Newsgroup
is a web-based interactive forum for groups of
like minded people to share information and learn
from each other. Possibly the greatest networking
tool ever invented, Newsgroups have no geographic
border and virtually cover every subject under
the sun. Anyone can select a newsgroup (from thousands
!), join the discussion going on, start a new
one, ask for advice or simply listens to others
experiences/views/observations.
The origin of newsgroup is Usenet
- a world-wide distributed discussion system.
It consists of a set of "newsgroups" with names
that are classified hierarchically by subject.
"Articles" or "messages" are "posted" to these
newsgroups for broadcasting to other interconnected
computer systems via a wide variety of networks.
Members of Newsgroups then download these postings
from their servers using News feature of their
web-browser. For example, a VSNL subscriber can
download Usenet news by configuring his/her browser
(Netscape/Internet Explorer etc.) accordingly.
However, this process has become redundant now,
as can be seen later.
While there was incredibly valuable
information available in the discussions taking
place on newsgroups, finding that information
was really tough. In 1995, Deja News was created
to provide a user-friendly interface to Usenet.
Deja began archiving and indexing messages so
they could be searched and sorted, turning an
ephemeral and unmanageable resource into a reference
tool that was fairly easy to use. Deja became
extremely popular with Net users.
In February' 2001 - Google Inc
acquired Deja.com's Usenet Discussion Service.
Since then, Deja has undergone great transformation.
Google now offers a way to post messages on Usenet
through Google Groups. Google has also made available
full Usenet archive formerly maintained by Deja.com.
Together, these upgrades provide you with complete
access to Usenet data since 1995 and the ability
to add your own comments to the more than 650
million messages already posted.
Newsgroups can be an effective
way to get the word out about your product or
service or receive feedback. You can easily find
out what is being said about you and your product.
Here is some basic information to get you started
along with some tips to keep your campaign rolling.
Newsgroups
and Mailing Lists
Newsgroups disseminates information
in a one-to-many form. Anybody can start a newsgroup
(it is still free !) or join an existing one.
When a member "posts" message to a newsgroup,
the message gets distributed all over the world
to different news servers. People who belong to
the group can respond to these postings, or just
read it and other people's replies. Many newsgroups
have hundreds of regular contributors, and thousands
of regular readers. Earlier, newsgroups could
be accessed through news reader feature of Web
browser. However, Google has now removed this
somewhat archaic feature and made all newsgroups
accessible like any web-page. Please visit http://groups.google.com/googlegroups/deja_announcement.html
Mailing lists are made up of groups
of people who exchange email about a subject that
interests them. These are not one-to-one mails
- but one-to-many where each mail is sent to all
members of the group. Similarly, each response
is also sent to all members. Once you join a mailing
list, be prepared to get lots of mail in your
mailbox. Alternatively, you might want to read
the list in "digest" format, where several days
worth of mail are sent in a single file that you
can review at your leisure. Yahoo's eGroup is
a notable example in this regard.
Though both Usenet and Mailing
Lists take advantage of one to many communication
- there are few subtle differences. Usenet is
a cooperative network of computers that have agreed
to distribute 'netnews'. You might think of Usenet
as broadcasting, and Mailing Lists as narrowcasting.
You can access any newsgroup readily, however
to access the information on and participate in
a mailing list, you need to subscribe.
Usenet or Mailing Lists - which
one to choose ? Actually, they are no better or
worse. Some people do not like to get lots of
e-mail and Usenet obviously becomes their ideal
choice. On the other hand, you may be just starting
to explore the Internet, and e-mail may be one
of the areas where you feel sufficiently confident.
Or you may dislike surfing and feel comfortable
reading and responding to e-mails. However, if
your area of interest is very narrow - you opt
for whatever is available.
Newsgroups and Mailing lists, could
be two types - free or moderated. In a free newsgroup/list,
each posting is sent to all members of the group
unedited. This results in a large number of posting/e-mails
originating everyday in your mailbox, many of
which may be of little interest.
In a moderated list on the other
hand, each mail/posting is scrutinized and edited
by the moderator who sends a digest of selected
postings with his/her comment in many cases. It's
a pleasure to join such groups/lists, especially
when moderated by an outstanding person.
A Web site is not the only way
to promote your business online. Many small business
owners have found great success marketing their
products and services through the "discussion"
features of the Internet - newsgroups and mailing
lists. There are literally thousands of groups
and lists available to you, covering every conceivable
subject. The benefit is that they allow you to
reach a highly targeted group of individuals whose
interests you already know and share. This lets
you network with like-minded individuals; prospect
for customers; share your expertise; and increase
the visibility of your company.
Newsgroups and mailing lists are
excellent learning opportunity for everyone aspiring
to become a successful Net entrepreneur. Moreover,
you get a chance to network with outstanding people
in your field and share their knowledge and experience.
Be aware that newsgroups and mailing
lists are like little communities. To market your
business effectively through these forums, you
need to understand how they operate and what type
of behavior is acceptable. You need to keep in
mind that Newsgroup/Mailing List are not advertising
platforms but forum for discussion and sharing
information.
In next issues, we shall discuss
how to find right Newsgroups and Mailing Lists,
acceptable behaviour and tips on how to post in
Newsgroups.
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