Internet News

Internet News, which shares the same user interface as Internet Mail, can be accessed through Internet Explorer by clicking the Go menu and then Read News.

A News window is displayed enabling you to ask questions, read what others have to say and join in with the debates across the Internet. You can also access the News window by clicking the Mail button and then selecting Read News.

The Internet News window has a toolbar, distinct menu items, a Newsgroups box, a Subject pane and a preview pane. You can resize each of the three panes to accommodate the mail information by positioning the cursor on the border lines between two panes (the cursor changes shape) and dragging the panes to the proportions you desire.

The Newsgroups drop down box displays the currently connected newsgroup. hemscott.net gives you access to many thousands of groups, with more being added all the time. When you subscribe to a newsgroup it will be added to this list, to enable you to connect to it in future with the minimum of effort.

Newsgroup names comprise several parts, separated by dots. The first part of a group name shows the general area of the discussion. For example:

• comp. groups cover computer-related topics
• rec. groups discuss "recreational activities"
• sci. groups contain scientific discussions
• clari. groups hold news items
• uk. groups discuss UK-specific topics

Many groups are to some extent controlled or moderated but the alt. ("alternative") groups are more anarchic, covering subjects that don't really fit or aren't appropriate within the rest of Usenet news.

You can list all available newsgroups by clicking the Newsgroup button on the toolbar. This will display a Newsgroups window with a pane showing the groups and a number of buttons, of which the Subscribe, Unsubscribe and Go To are the most useful. If you want to view the contents of a particular newsgroup simply click on the name and click the Go To button. The Newsgroups window will close and the Internet News window displays your selected newsgroup in the Newsgroups box, with all current postings listed in the Subject pane. To subscribe to a newsgroup, from the Internet News window click on the Newsgroup button, highlight the newsgroup of your choice and click the Subscribe button (you may also double click on the selection). A newspaper icon is displayed beside your selection to indicate you have subscribed.

Reading News

Once you have displayed the subject headings, associated with a newsgroup, you will want to read them. The Subject pane, displaying these headings, has the following columns:

• The Read icon shows if the message has been displayed.
• Subject shows the subject line of the message.
• From shows the name of the sender of the news message.
• Sent shows the date and time the message was posted.
• Size shows the number of lines in the message.

The News toolbar buttons and menu items offer further options for viewing, creating, sending, and storing news messages. When you position the mouse over each News window pane, you can use the pop-up menu (right mouse button) as a shortcut to several of the menu bar items.

When reading news articles you will, often see 'threads'. A 'thread' is created when someone posts an article on a new subject and, if it looks interesting (or controversial) enough, others post follow-ups commenting on what the original poster had to say. A news 'thread' is indicated by a small plus sign beside the Read icon. To display all the messages in a thread click on the plus sign.

Responding to articles

Once the message is displayed you can read it, reply to the newsgroup, reply directly to the author or forward the message to another recipient by clicking the appropriate toolbar buttons. Which of these you do depends on whether you feel the reply is likely to be of interest to the rest of the readers of the group, or only to the original author. To post an entirely new article in a group, simply click the New Message button.

Last modified: Saturday 28 November 1998