Newsgroup FAQ

This page last updated on 10/18/01 Support Home Page

Go to top of the page Q:   How many Newsgroups does your new server provide?

A:  The number of newsgroups available on our news server can fluctuate either up or down.  Currently there are approximately 75,000 groups available on "news.imagenisp.com."

Go to top of the page Q:  Is it possible to download just a portion of the newsgroup list?

A:  No, it is not.  You must download the entire list before being able to access any of the groups.  That's just the way it is.  If you find a way please be sure to let me know at "postmaster@imagenisp.com."

Go to top of the page Q:  What are Newsgroups?

A:  A newsgroup is a collection of messages posted by individuals to a news server. News servers are computers maintained by companies, groups, and individuals, and can host thousands of newsgroups.

You can find newsgroups on practically any subject. Although some newsgroups are monitored, most are not, and messages can be "posted" and read by anyone who has access to that group. There are no newsgroup membership lists or joining fees.

In order to access our news server you must specify "news.imagenisp.com" as your news server, in your news reader program.  After you have configured the news server, you can read and post messages on any of the newsgroups stored on the news server.

When you find a newsgroup you like, you can "subscribe" to it so that it is displayed in your newsgroup list. Then you don't have to scroll through the long list of newsgroups on the server to find what you want.

Go to top of the page Q:  Why does it take a long time to download the list of newsgroups?

A:  It takes a long time to download the list of newsgroups because there are a lot of them.  With a 33.6 modem we observed that it took about 5 minutes to download the entire list.  For an approximate number of the amount of groups on this server click "here."

If you feel that it is taking longer than it should to download the newsgroups list please click "here" for some suggestions on checking the quality of the internet path from your computer to the news server.