One of the major activities on the Internet is Newsgroups or USENET groups. These groups are electronic bulletin boards at which people post messages and receive replies. There are over 35,000 newsgroups that cover practically every imaginable topic of discussion.

Both the latest versions of Netscape Navigator and Internet Explorer can read newsgroups, but you may have to set up certain options in the browsers so they can connect with the appropriate news servers. If you need help with this, contact your ISP.

No Commercial Advertising

The Internet began as the ARPANET, a network of universities and corporations that were engaged in defense related activities; commercial activities of any kind were prohibited. The USENET was created, within the ARPANET, as a network of bulletin boards, and the prohibition against commercial activities was continued. That tradition of no commercialism continues today in the newsgroups, and people who violate it receive "verbal" tongue lashings (flames). Thus, except for newsgroups that are organized for commercial purposes, you should be careful to not post explicit advertisements in newsgroups.

E-mail Signatures Are OK

E-mail signatures are a long-standing tradition that has come down from the ARPANET, and most newsgroups tolerate signatures that contain brief mention of company names, URLs of commercial web sites, and company e-mail addresses. As a suggestion, before you include commercial signatures in your postings to newsgroups, spend some time reading e-mail from the groups to see what other people are doing with their signatures.

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