Final Reminder - Microsoft Responds to the Evolution of Community

[Tim Meddick]

Love the "subject line" !!

"Final Reminder...."

....sounds like an unwelcomed red-letter on the doormat!

Love the way you sought the opinions and responses of users of M$
Newsgroups - if you had put as much energy into finding out what your
(ever-fading) supporters in these groups thought, as you do with your
"corporate-style questionnaires" for "user-satisfaction", then you would
know by closing these groups with NO CONSULTATION you have [probably]
alienated a whole new section of your once-wholesome support-base!

You make me want to go buy an iPod!

All the best for your next crazy decision,...

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

< clipped > .....message is to inform you that Microsoft will soon begin
discontinuing
newsgroups and transitioning users to Microsoft forums.
< clipped >
Effective June 1, 2010 this newsgroup will be closed.
< clipped >

[Tim Meddick]

Goodbye everybody!!

Sorry for my appalling "netiquette" that has been so much of a pain to
those intent on educating the rest of us...

But it has been [great] fun, all in all, and I have really enjoyed working
to help people with their IT problems, here, over the past year that I have
been using :

microsoft.public.basic.dos
microsoft.public.win2000.cmdprompt.admin
microsoft.public.win95.msdosapps
microsoft.public.windowsxp.configuration.manage
microsoft.public.windowsxp.customize
microsoft.public.windowsxp.newusers
microsoft.public.windowsxp.general

on newsserver : msnews.microsoft.com

But no more......this is it!........goodbye.........forever!!

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

[Klaus Meinhard]

Hallo Tim , and everybody else here!

Post by Tim Meddick
But no more......this is it!........goodbye.........forever!!

You don't need MS to conntinue using Usenet. A great free newsserver for
read/write access with all the relevant groups is Eternal September (
http://www.newsgroupreviews.com/eternal-september.html ), where you'll
have to register. The server is reached under
<news.eternal-september.org>.

Hope to se you there,

[Tim Meddick]

I do also use : "alt.msdos.batch" on server : "nntp.aioe.org" but I'm
not sure whether or not my heart's in it anymore.

I honestly feel a bit of a "kick in the face" by M$ as it goes, and even
though I am already aware of other groups that I can access with a news
client, the whole experience has put a dampener on it for me...

I will try and look into the group / server info you quoted, although, as I
said, not feeling very optimistic about it.

(If you stuck your nose in at [alt.msdos.batch] I might be tempted to
reconsider)

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

Post by Klaus Meinhard
Hallo Tim , and everybody else here!

Post by Tim Meddick
But no more......this is it!........goodbye.........forever!!

You don't need MS to conntinue using Usenet. A great free newsserver for
read/write access with all the relevant groups is Eternal September (
http://www.newsgroupreviews.com/eternal-september.html ), where you'll
have to register. The server is reached under
<news.eternal-september.org>.
Hope to se you there,
--
Best Regards,
* Klaus Meinhard *
<www.4dos.info>

[John John - MVP]

Those other groups will still be there, Tim. If I don't see you in
another dimension I just want to tell you that I have always enjoyed
your posts in these groups. I've always anticipated your next post and
at times checked the groups were you post before any other group.
Hopefully this is just an au revoir and not an adieu.

John

Post by Tim Meddick
I do also use : "alt.msdos.batch" on server : "nntp.aioe.org" but I'm
not sure whether or not my heart's in it anymore.
I honestly feel a bit of a "kick in the face" by M$ as it goes, and even
though I am already aware of other groups that I can access with a news
client, the whole experience has put a dampener on it for me...
I will try and look into the group / server info you quoted, although,
as I said, not feeling very optimistic about it.
(If you stuck your nose in at [alt.msdos.batch] I might be tempted to
reconsider)
==
Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

Post by Klaus Meinhard
Hallo Tim , and everybody else here!

Post by Tim Meddick
But no more......this is it!........goodbye.........forever!!

You don't need MS to conntinue using Usenet. A great free newsserver
for read/write access with all the relevant groups is Eternal
September ( http://www.newsgroupreviews.com/eternal-september.html ),
where you'll have to register. The server is reached under
<news.eternal-september.org>.
Hope to se you there,
--
Best Regards,
* Klaus Meinhard *
<www.4dos.info>

[Helmut Meukel]

When M$ shut-down their servers, the microsoft groups
will not automatically be removed from the mirror servers.
M$ never cared about the mirrors in Usenet, but there is
a self-appointed "maintainter" Julièn Élie who sent those
control articles to the other servers. He announced he will
send rmgroup messages to the mirror servers.
*If* they are honoured, the groups will be removed from
the mirrors too.
However not all will do this:

Message-ID: <***@banana.shacknet.nu>
# From: Ray Banana <***@banana.shacknet.nu>
# Date: Fri, 07 May 2010 04:57:13 +0200
# [...]
# Thus spake grant <***@example.invalid>
# [...]
# > When Julièn Élie issues rmgroup control articles, will
# > eternal-september honour them?
#
# Given the current settings of E-S's control.ctl, no.

At least some other german news server admins stated
they will act accordingly.

Helmut.

I do also use : "alt.msdos.batch" on server : "nntp.aioe.org" but I'm not
sure whether or not my heart's in it anymore.
I honestly feel a bit of a "kick in the face" by M$ as it goes, and even
though I am already aware of other groups that I can access with a news
client, the whole experience has put a dampener on it for me...
I will try and look into the group / server info you quoted, although, as I
said, not feeling very optimistic about it.
(If you stuck your nose in at [alt.msdos.batch] I might be tempted to
reconsider)
==
Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

Post by Klaus Meinhard
Hallo Tim , and everybody else here!

Post by Tim Meddick
But no more......this is it!........goodbye.........forever!!

You don't need MS to conntinue using Usenet. A great free newsserver for
read/write access with all the relevant groups is Eternal September (
http://www.newsgroupreviews.com/eternal-september.html ), where you'll have
to register. The server is reached under <news.eternal-september.org>.
Hope to se you there,
--
Best Regards,
* Klaus Meinhard *
<www.4dos.info>

[98 Guy]

Post by Helmut Meukel
When M$ shut-down their servers, the microsoft groups
will not automatically be removed from the mirror servers.

There is no such thing as a "mirror" server on usenet.

Post by Helmut Meukel
M$ never cared about the mirrors in Usenet,

Quite the opposite. Microsoft intentionally peered itself with usenet
back in 1996 so that it became part of the world-wide usenet community.
This peering enabled posts made to the microsoft.public set of groups
from any server to appear on microsoft's server and vice-versa.

And again, microsoft is not and was not the "primary" server in this
context. It is (was) a peer - an equal - with other usenet servers.

Post by Helmut Meukel
but there is a self-appointed "maintainter" Julièn Élie who sent
those control articles to the other servers. He announced he will
send rmgroup messages to the mirror servers.
*If* they are honoured, the groups will be removed from

The admin of the aioe server apparently will honor these messages.

Microsoft deleted 500+ groups from it's server back in November last
year, and Julien did send out the corresponding control messages, and
they all seem to have been honored by AIOE. They were honored because
AIOE follows the ISC.ORG group list, which is influenced by Julien.

[RobertVA]

What is Happening?
This message is to inform you that Microsoft will soon begin discontinuing
newsgroups and transitioning users to Microsoft forums.
Why?
As you may know, newsgroups have existed for many years now; however, the
traffic in the Microsoft newsgroups has been steadily decreasing for the
past several years while customers and participants are increasingly
finding
solutions in the forums on Microsoft properties and third party sites. This
move will unify the customer experience, centralize content, make it easier
for active contributors to retain their influence, mitigate redundancies
and
make the content easier to find by customers and search engines through
improved indexing. Additionally, forums offer a better user and spam
management platform that will improve customer satisfaction by
encouraging a
healthy discussion in a clean community space. To this end, Microsoft will
begin to progressively shift available resources to the forums technology
and discontinue support for newsgroups.
In addition to offering a compelling online browser experience, for those
users who prefer to use an NNTP (newsgroup) reader to participate in the
newsgroups community, we have developed a solution called the NNTP Bridge
which allows a user to connect a variety of supported NNTP readers to the
forums they would like to participate in and continue having the NTTP
reader
functionality. You can find instructions on how to download and set up the
NNTP Bridge here: http://connect.microsoft.com/MicrosoftForums/
Which Newsgroups Are Affected by this Shutdown?
All public newsgroups will eventually be closed between June 1, 2010 and
October 1, 2010. Microsoft will be closing newsgroups in a phased approach,
starting with the least active newsgroups and moving eventually to more
active ones throughout the course of the next six months.
When will this Happen?
Effective June 1, 2010 this newsgroup will be closed.
Where Should I go with the Closure of this Newsgroup?
Microsoft has a large selection of forums, many of which cover either the
same or closely related technologies to the ones found in the newsgroups.
The forums have seen amazing growth and are an excellent place to continue
the discussion. We recommend that you start with
http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/categories
Should you want to visit the other Microsoft Forums, please go to
http://www.microsoft.com/communities/forums/default.mspx
Who Should I Contact with any Questions?
Send any questions about the process, recommended forums and timing to

WOW! This new "connection" makes the forum web interface look easy to use.

I'm just not seeing any instructions on how to activate these bridges or
how to configure my news reader to access them. I'm not seeing links to
the instructions either.

And they expect novice users to find these "connections"? This is almost
as good an idea as the Ford Edsel!

IT WASN"T Broke! WHY did you complicate things trying to fix it!

[Tim Meddick]

I suspect it's all about Microsoft "cutting the deadwood" by the
"backdoor".......

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London. :-)

Post by RobertVA

What is Happening?
This message is to inform you that Microsoft will soon begin
discontinuing
newsgroups and transitioning users to Microsoft forums.
Why?
As you may know, newsgroups have existed for many years now; however, the
traffic in the Microsoft newsgroups has been steadily decreasing for the
past several years while customers and participants are increasingly
finding
solutions in the forums on Microsoft properties and third party sites. This
move will unify the customer experience, centralize content, make it easier
for active contributors to retain their influence, mitigate redundancies
and
make the content easier to find by customers and search engines through
improved indexing. Additionally, forums offer a better user and spam
management platform that will improve customer satisfaction by
encouraging a
healthy discussion in a clean community space. To this end, Microsoft will
begin to progressively shift available resources to the forums technology
and discontinue support for newsgroups.
In addition to offering a compelling online browser experience, for those
users who prefer to use an NNTP (newsgroup) reader to participate in the
newsgroups community, we have developed a solution called the NNTP Bridge
which allows a user to connect a variety of supported NNTP readers to the
forums they would like to participate in and continue having the NTTP
reader
functionality. You can find instructions on how to download and set up the
NNTP Bridge here: http://connect.microsoft.com/MicrosoftForums/
Which Newsgroups Are Affected by this Shutdown?
All public newsgroups will eventually be closed between June 1, 2010 and
October 1, 2010. Microsoft will be closing newsgroups in a phased approach,
starting with the least active newsgroups and moving eventually to more
active ones throughout the course of the next six months.
When will this Happen?
Effective June 1, 2010 this newsgroup will be closed.
Where Should I go with the Closure of this Newsgroup?
Microsoft has a large selection of forums, many of which cover either the
same or closely related technologies to the ones found in the
newsgroups.
The forums have seen amazing growth and are an excellent place to continue
the discussion. We recommend that you start with
http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/categories
Should you want to visit the other Microsoft Forums, please go to
http://www.microsoft.com/communities/forums/default.mspx
Who Should I Contact with any Questions?
Send any questions about the process, recommended forums and timing to

WOW! This new "connection" makes the forum web interface look easy to use.
I'm just not seeing any instructions on how to activate these bridges or
how to configure my news reader to access them. I'm not seeing links to
the instructions either.
And they expect novice users to find these "connections"? This is almost
as good an idea as the Ford Edsel!
IT WASN"T Broke! WHY did you complicate things trying to fix it!

[Karl E. Peterson]

Post by Tim Meddick
Love the "subject line" !!
"Final Reminder...."
....sounds like an unwelcomed red-letter on the doormat!
Love the way you sought the opinions and responses of users of M$ Newsgroups
- if you had put as much energy into finding out what your (ever-fading)
supporters in these groups thought, as you do with your "corporate-style
questionnaires" for "user-satisfaction", then you would know by closing these
groups with NO CONSULTATION you have [probably] alienated a whole new section
of your once-wholesome support-base!

Well put. They're clearly on the way down. But I digress...

Post by Tim Meddick
You make me want to go buy an iPod!

I've been toying with the idea of building my own, lately. I inherited
one that had numerous problems, and found I could buy all the parts I
needed to fix it back up on eBay. And cheap! $5 for a batter, $4 for
a faceplate, $12 for a new LCD, etc. So what I've started to wonder
is, would it be possible to build one from scratch, just using the
parts found there? Would sure be more fun, wouldn't it? :-)