Genealogy-Geneology.net - Newsgroups

Geneology Search

Newsgroups

Newsgroups allow you to communicate with large numbers of fellow genealogy researchers.

Until recently you could only access newsgroups through your ISP (Internet Service Provider), and built-in or third party software was required to read and post newsgroup messages.

However this has all changed since the popular search engine Google.com acquired the main newsgroup provider deja.com.

Google.com allows you to post messages on "Usenet" ( the portion of the internet newsgroups reside on) through Google Groups.

What is the difference between Google Groups and Usenet?

"Usenet refers to a distributed computerized bulletin board system begun in 1979 at Duke University. Usenet users can post messages in newsgroups that can be read by anyone with access to the system and special news reader software. Over the years, the number of newsgroups has grown to the thousands, hosted all over the world and covering every conceivable topic about which humans converse.

Google Groups is the world's most comprehensive archive of postings to Usenet, dating back to 1995. Google Groups eliminates the need for a news reader and lets you search this archive in the same you would search HTML pages on the Internet. You can also use Google Groups to post your own comments to a newsgroup." ( Google.com)

Note: If you want to read newsgroup messages through the email program Outlook Express, follow the instructions below:

First establish whether your internet service provider provides a Usenet service - it may be referred to as "newsgroups" or "news". If your ISP does support Usenet, you will need to find out the name of its news server, for example, news.nameofISP.com. You should be able to find this in the help section of your ISP's homepage.

In order to set up the news account in Outlook Express, first click on Tools/Account and select the News tab. Click on the box marked "Add" in the top right hand corner and click on "News" in the pop up list that appears.

The connection wizard will ask you to supply your name and email address. Next enter the name of your news server in the box marked "News (NNTP) server". Unless your ISP has specified otherwise, leave the box marked "My news server requires me to log on" unchecked.

Click "finish" and you will be invited to download the newsgroup headings for the account just added.

As soon as the setting up process has been completed the Newsgroups Subscriptions window will pop up, which contains a list of available newsgroups. You can type the name of the newsgroup you want to subscribe to in the search box. Once you have located it click on the "subscribe" box. If the newsgroup you want is not available you can contact your ISP and ask them if they can provide it. Or alternatively, you can access it at Google Groups.

To read messages make sure the folders window is displayed by clicking on view/layout and checking the "folder list" box. Within the folder list you should see the name of your news server, together with the newsgroups you subscribed to earlier.

As you click on each newsgroup, the messages will begin to download and will appear in the message pane on the right. Click on each message to read the contents.

Newgroup Netiquette

Once you've spent time observing the newsgroup postings of other people, the time will come when you will want to make a post yourself. There are a few newsgroup guidelines to follow when posting messages to newsgroups or mailing lists.

• Stay on-topic. Off-topic posts may not be tolerated.

• Use a descriptive subject line. If you are responding to a message and the current subject still applies, the subject line does not need to be changed. If you are responding to a message but changing the subject of the discussion, change the text in the "Subject field" so it reflects your topic - this will make it easier for others to follow your thread.

• Quote part of the original message. It can be difficult to follow a thread when your response does not include a quote of the original message. It is very confusing when a message only reads "I believe this to be incorrect." etc.

  Remember to quote only as much as you need. Delete parts of a message that you are not responding to. You only need to quote enough of the message to let the readers know what you are talking about.

• Do not use ALL CAPS in your message. This is considered over the top and is very hard to read. The exception to this rule is capitalizing all SURNAMES - a surname that is capitalized is much easier to identify than one that is not.

• Do not respond to off-topic or abusive messages in public. Take your responses to private e-mail. If the newsgroup is moderated, let the moderator take care of the situation.

Follow the links below for all the answers to any questions you may have regarding the use of "Google Groups":

Note: you must be connected to the internet to view these websites.

Google Groups FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)

Google Groups Posting FAQ

Posting Style Guide

Google Groups - Usenet Glossary

What are the main genealogy newsgroups available?

Below is a list of the main soc. and alt. newsgroups. You can easily locate these newsgroups by typing it's name into the Google Groups search engine. Also try searching for alt.family-names.*, and soc.genealogy.surnames.* (Input your surname in place of the asterisks i.e. alt.family-names.wagner) into the search box in order to locate newsgroup messages mentioning your surname. You can also try a search for your surname by itself, Google Groups will then retrieve all newsgroup messages where your surname has been mentioned. Remember to use the searching techniques discussed in the First Chapter in order to improve your results i.e. +firstname +surname +location.

ALT. Newsgroups

alt.culture.cajun
alt.family-names.*
alt.genealogy

SOC. General Interest Newsgroups

soc.genealogy.misc - General genealogical discussions.
soc.genealogy.computing - Genealogical computing & internet resources.
soc.genealogy.marketplace - Geneology services and products.
soc.genealogy.medieval - Genealogy in the period from approximately AD500 to AD1600.
soc.genealogy.methods - Genealogical methods (Moderated)

SOC.Ethno-Geographic Newsgroups

soc.genealogy.african - Genealogy of Africa (Moderated)
soc.genealogy.australia+nz - Australia, New Zealand, and territories.
soc.genealogy.benelux - Geneology in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg
soc.genealogy.britain - Genealogy in Britain and the islands.
soc.genealogy.french - Francophone genealogy.
soc.genealogy.german - German Genealogy
soc.genealogy.hispanic - Genealogy relating to Hispanics.
soc.genealogy.ireland - Geneology in Ireland ( North and South).
soc.genealogy.italian - Italian genealogy and family heraldry.
soc.genealogy.jewish - Jewish genealogy. (Moderated)
soc.genealogy.nordic - Genealogy in Denmark, Faeroe Islands, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.
soc.genealogy.slavic - Slavic Genealogy.
soc.genealogy.west-indies - Geneology of the West Indies.

SOC. Surnames Newsgroups

soc.genealogy.surnames.global - Surnames queries central database.
soc.genealogy.surnames.britain - Surnames queries - Great Britain.
soc.genealogy.surnames.german - Surnames queries - German speaking countries.
soc.genealogy.surnames.canada - Surnames queries - Canada.
soc.genealogy.surnames.ireland - Surnames queries - Ireland & Northern Ireland.
soc.genealogy.surnames.usa - Surnames queries - USA.
soc.genealogy.surnames.misc - Surnames - regions not covered elsewhere.