The Great Newsgroup Downsizing 2011

Last month we reported that the Big-8 Usenet Management Board is considering the removal of some 192 unmoderated newsgroups.  The original RFD (request for discussion) was posted on February 1st.  Followed by a 2nd RFD on March 3rd.  The original RFD brought a few comments and suggestions but no one disagreed that the 198 groups in question are in frequent use.  In fact none have relevant posts in the last 18 months.

You can expect the LCC (last call for comments) to come in the week ahead.  Here is the 2nd RFD:

From: Big-8 Management Board <board@big-8.org>
Subject: 2nd RFD: The Great Downsizing 2011/1
Date: Thu, 3 Mar 2011 23:52:13 EST
Message-ID: <great-downsizing-2011-1-rfd-2@news.albasani.net>


              REQUEST FOR DISCUSSION (RFD)

This is a formal Request for Discussion (RFD) to remove the following
198 unmoderated newsgroups.

RATIONALE:

All groups listed below fulfill these conditions:
- no moderated groups
- no group names matching *.misc
- zero on-topic, non-crossposted threads in the past 18 months
- on-topic questions that received no on-topic answer do not count

The discussion following the publication of the 1st RFD brought up
principal opposition to the removal of groups, and the notion that
some groups have a function beyond mere traffic.

The claim that the groups in question have not been used for a long
time was not disputed, however. Therefore the list was not changed.

DISTRIBUTION:

news.announce.newgroups
news.groups.proposals
news.groups

Because of the magnitude of the group list this proposal is not cross-
posted to target groups. In the course of these proceedings the B8MB
will post pointers to this announcement to appropriate groups. Readers
are encouraged to take initiative and spread the message.

PROCEDURE:

The procedure shall take at least 8 weeks, with announcements posted
every 4 weeks: 1st RFD, 2nd RFD, and LCC. The group lists may be re-
vised during this stage. Discussion about candidate groups should take
place in moderated group news.groups.proposals. After publication of
the LCC the board votes on each newsgroup individually.
More details can be found here:

  http://www.big-8.org/wiki/Mass_removal_of_groups

NEWSGROUP LINES:

comp.arch.bus.vmebus		Hardware and software for VMEbus Systems.
comp.archives.msdos.d		Discussion of materials available in MSDOS archives.
comp.bbs.tbbs		The Bread Board System bulletin board software.
comp.bbs.tsx		TSX BBS discussions.
comp.bugs.2bsd		Reports of UNIX* version 2BSD related bugs.
comp.bugs.4bsd		Reports of UNIX version 4BSD related bugs.
comp.bugs.sys5		Reports of USG (System III, V, etc.) bugs.
comp.compilers.tools.pccts		Construction of compilers and tools with PCCTS.
comp.databases.revelation		All products produced by Revelation Software.
comp.dcom.frame-relay		Technology and issues regarding frame relay networks.
comp.dcom.isdn		The Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN).
comp.dcom.lans.fddi		Discussions of the FDDI protocol suite.
comp.dcom.lans.token-ring		Installing and using token ring networks.
comp.dcom.servers		Selecting and operating data communications servers.
comp.dcom.sys.bay-networks		Bay Networks hardware, software, other products.
comp.emulators.freemware		Open source PC Virtualisation software.
comp.emulators.mac.executor		ARDI's Mac emulator, Executor.
comp.games.development.art		Creative use of visual art in games.
comp.games.development.audio		Music, sound, speech production.
comp.graphics.api.inventor		Object-oriented 3D graphics in Inventor.
comp.graphics.api.pexlib		The PEXlib application programming interface.
comp.graphics.apps.avs		The Application Visualization System.
comp.graphics.apps.data-explorer		IBM's Visualization Data Explorer (DX).
comp.graphics.apps.freehand		Questions, answers, tips and suggestions.
comp.graphics.apps.iris-explorer		The IRIS Explorer, aka MVE.
comp.graphics.apps.softimage		Softimage applications and products.
comp.graphics.apps.wavefront		Wavefront software products, problems, etc.
comp.groupware.groupwise		Novell's Groupwise product (Wordperfect Office).
comp.infosystems.harvest		Harvest information discovery and access system.
comp.infosystems.interpedia		The Internet Encyclopedia.
comp.infosystems.intranet		Intranet topics.
comp.infosystems.www.advocacy		Comments and arguments over the best and worst.
comp.infosystems.www.databases		Web Database Integration.
comp.infosystems.www.servers.mac		Web servers for the Macintosh platform.
comp.internet.services.social.myspace		Teenage social networking.
comp.ivideodisc		Interactive videodiscs -- uses, potential, etc.
comp.lang.basic.visual.3rdparty		Add-ins for Visual Basic.
comp.lang.limbo		The Inferno OS's Limbo programming language.
comp.lang.lisp.mcl		Discussing Apple's Macintosh Common Lisp.
comp.lang.pascal.delphi.advocacy		Contentious issues related to Delphi.
comp.lang.pascal.delphi.components.usage		Using pre-written components.
comp.lang.pascal.delphi.components.writing		Writing Delphi components.
comp.lang.sather		The object-oriented computer language Sather.
comp.lsi.cad		Electrical Computer Aided Design.
comp.mail.list-admin.policy		Policy issues in running mailing lists.
comp.mail.mush		The Mail User's Shell (MUSH).
comp.mail.smail		Administering & using the smail email transport system.
comp.mail.zmail		The various Z-Mail products and their configurability.
comp.org.cpsr.talk		Issues of computing and social responsibility.
comp.org.decus		Digital Equipment Computer Users' Society newsgroup.
comp.org.eff.talk		Discussion of EFF goals, strategies, etc.
comp.org.issnnet		The International Student Society for Neural Networks.
comp.org.sug		Talk about/for the The Sun User's Group.
comp.org.user-groups.apcug		Association of Personal Computer User Groups.
comp.org.user-groups.management		Running a user group.
comp.org.user-groups.newsletters		User group newsletter Production.
comp.os.chorus		CHORUS microkernel issues, research and developments.
comp.os.inferno		The Inferno network operating system from Lucent.
comp.os.lantastic		The LANtastic network operating system.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.comm		MS-Windows communication applications.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.compatibility.win95		Running DOS&Win3 apps in Win95.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.utilities.win3x		Utility/add-on programs for Win3.x.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.winsock.mail		Winsock email applications.
comp.os.ms-windows.apps.winsock.news		Winsock news applications.
comp.os.ms-windows.networking.ras		Windows RAS networking.
comp.os.ms-windows.nt.advocacy		Windows NT advocacy arguments.
comp.os.ms-windows.nt.pre-release		Unreleased and beta Windows NT versions.
comp.os.ms-windows.nt.setup.hardware		Windows NT hardware setup.
comp.os.ms-windows.pre-release		Pre-release/beta versions of Windows.
comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.multimedia		Multimedia programming.
comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.tools.owl		OWL-based development for Windows.
comp.os.ms-windows.programmer.winhelp		WinHelp/Multimedia Viewer development.
comp.os.ms-windows.setup.win3x		Setup, hardware, and driver issues in Win3.x.
comp.os.ms-windows.setup.win95		Setup, hardware, and driver issues in Win95.
comp.os.ms-windows.win95.setup		Setup and Configuration of Windows 95.
comp.os.msdos.mail-news		Administering mail & network news systems under MS-DOS.
comp.os.netware.security		Netware Security issues.
comp.os.os2.comm		Modem/Fax hardware/drivers/apps/utils under OS/2.
comp.os.os2.programmer.oop		Programming system objects (SOM, WPS, etc).
comp.os.os2.scitech		Real-time, engineering/CAD, sciences, etc.
comp.os.parix		Forum for users of the parallel operating system PARIX.
comp.os.xinu		The XINU operating system from Purdue (D. Comer).
comp.protocols.appletalk		Applebus hardware & software.
comp.protocols.ibm		Networking with IBM mainframes.
comp.protocols.iso		The ISO protocol stack.
comp.publish.cdrom.multimedia		Software for multimedia authoring & publishing.
comp.publish.electronic.developer		Electronic publishing developer tools.
comp.publish.electronic.end-user		Electronic publishing end-user tools.
comp.security.gss-api		Generic Security Service Application Program Interface.
comp.security.pgp.resources		PGP related resources, information and more.
comp.society		The impact of technology on society.
comp.society.development		Computer technology in developing countries.
comp.soft-sys.app-builder.appware		Novell's visual development environment.
comp.soft-sys.app-builder.dynasty		Dynasty Development.
comp.soft-sys.khoros		The Khoros X11 visualization system.
comp.soft-sys.middleware.opendoc		OpenDoc and its related technologies.
comp.soft-sys.shazam		The SHAZAM econometrics computer program.
comp.soft-sys.stat.systat		The statistical program package SYSTAT.
comp.sources.games.bugs		Bug reports and fixes for posted game software.
comp.specification.larch		Larch family of formal specification languages.
comp.std.internat		Discussion about international standards.
comp.sys.alliant		Info and discussion about Alliant computers.
comp.sys.amiga.datacomm		Methods of getting bytes in and out.
comp.sys.amiga.multimedia		Animations, video, & multimedia.
comp.sys.amiga.networking		Amiga networking software/hardware.
comp.sys.amiga.uucp		Amiga UUCP packages.
comp.sys.apple2.gno		The AppleIIgs GNO multitasking environment.
comp.sys.be.advocacy		Why BeOS is better/worse than XYZ.
comp.sys.be.programmer		Topics related to BeOS programming.
comp.sys.convex		Convex computer systems hardware and software.
comp.sys.harris		Harris computer systems, especially real-time systems.
comp.sys.ibm.pc.games.marketplace		PC clone games wanted and for sale.
comp.sys.ibm.pc.soundcard.advocacy		Advocacy for a particular soundcard.
comp.sys.intergraph		Intergraph hardware and software products.
comp.sys.isis		The ISIS distributed system from Cornell.
comp.sys.mac.games.adventure		Adventure games for the Macintosh.
comp.sys.mac.oop.macapp3		Version 3 of the MacApp object oriented system.
comp.sys.mac.oop.powerplant		Metrowerks' PowerPlant (CodeWarrior) Framework.
comp.sys.mac.oop.tcl		Symantec's THINK Class Library for object programming.
comp.sys.mac.programmer.codewarrior		Macintosh programming using CodeWarrior.
comp.sys.mac.programmer.games		Macintosh game programming.
comp.sys.net-computer.advocacy		Relative merits of Network Computers.
comp.sys.next.advocacy		The NeXT religion.
comp.sys.next.bugs		Discussion and solutions for known NeXT bugs.
comp.sys.nsc.32k		National Semiconductor 32000 series chips.
comp.sys.proteon		Proteon gateway products.
comp.sys.psion.comm		Discussions about Psion communications.
comp.sys.psion.marketplace		Buy and sell Psion computers and accessories.
comp.sys.ridge		Ridge 32 computers and ROS.
comp.sys.sequent		Sequent systems, (Balance and Symmetry).
comp.sys.sgi.audio		Audio on SGI systems.
comp.sys.sgi.graphics		Graphics packages and issues on SGI machines.
comp.sys.tahoe		CCI 6/32, Harris HCX/7, & Sperry 7000 computers.
comp.text.desktop		Technology & techniques of desktop publishing.
comp.unix.advocacy		Arguments for and against Unix and Unix versions.
comp.unix.cde		The Common Desktop Environment.
comp.unix.large		UNIX on mainframes and in large networks.
comp.unix.machten		The MachTen operating system and related issues.
comp.unix.pc-clone.16bit		UNIX on 286 architectures.
comp.unix.pc-clone.32bit		UNIX on 386 and 486 architectures.
comp.unix.sys3		System III UNIX discussions.
comp.unix.sys5.r3		Discussing System V Release 3.
comp.unix.xenix.sco		XENIX versions from the Santa Cruz Operation.
comp.windows.garnet		The Garnet user interface development environment.
comp.windows.interviews		The InterViews object-oriented windowing system.
comp.windows.open-look		Discussion about the Open Look GUI.
comp.windows.suit		The SUIT user-interface toolkit.
comp.windows.ui-builders.teleuse		Using/augmenting the TeleUSE UI Builder.
comp.windows.x.i386unix		The XFree86 window system and others.
misc.forsale.computers.discussion		Discussions only about items for sale.
misc.forsale.computers.mac-specific.cards.video		Macintosh video cards.
misc.forsale.computers.mac-specific.portables		Portable Macintosh systems.
misc.forsale.computers.mac-specific.systems		Complete Macintosh systems.
misc.forsale.computers.monitors		Monitors and displays for sale and wanted.
misc.forsale.computers.other.systems		Complete other types of systems.
misc.forsale.computers.pc-specific.audio		PC audio equipment.
misc.forsale.computers.pc-specific.cards.video		PC video cards.
misc.forsale.computers.pc-specific.motherboards		PC motherboards.
misc.forsale.computers.printers		Printers and plotters for sale and wanted.
misc.industry.pulp-and-paper		Technical topics in the pulp and paper industry.
misc.jobs.offered.entry		Job listings only for entry-level positions.
news.admin.nocem		NoCeM protocol policy issues and information.
rec.arts.comics.elfquest		The Elfquest universe and characters.
rec.arts.sf.starwars.collecting.customizing		Customizing Star Wars toys.
rec.arts.sf.tv.quantum-leap		Quantum Leap TV, comics, cons, etc.
rec.autos.sport.rally		Any type of interest in any form of rally motorsport.
rec.crafts.dollhouses		Collecting and making of dollhouse miniatures.
rec.games.bolo		The networked strategy war game Bolo.
rec.games.computer.quake.editing		Editing and hacking Quake-related files.
rec.games.computer.quake.playing		Playing Quake and user-created levels.
rec.games.computer.quake.quake-c		Modifying Quake with Quake-C.
rec.games.frp.industry		Roleplaying industry & companies.
rec.games.frp.storyteller		World of Darkness and StoryTeller games.
rec.games.trading-cards.marketplace.magic.trades		Trading Magic cards.
rec.games.trading-cards.startrek		Star Trek Trading Card Games.
rec.games.video.cd-i		CD-i topics with emphasis on games.
rec.games.video.cd32		Gaming talk, info and help for the Amiga CD32.
rec.games.xtank.play		Strategy and tactics for the distributed game Xtank.
rec.games.xtank.programmer		Coding the Xtank game and its robots.
rec.music.artists.ani-difranco		Ani Difranco, related topics.
rec.music.artists.danny-elfman		Composer Danny Elfman's music.
rec.music.artists.stevie-nicks		Singer/songwriter Stevie Nicks.
rec.music.artists.wallflowers		Music group The Wallflowers.
rec.music.iranian		Discussion of Iranian music.
rec.parks.theme		Entertainment theme parks.
rec.scouting.guide+girl		Guiding and girl scout organizations.
rec.sport.basketball.women		Women's basketball at all levels.
rec.sport.footbag		Discussion about the sport of footbag.
rec.sport.orienteering		All matters related to the sport of orienteering.
rec.sport.skating.roller		Conventional (quad) roller skating.
rec.video.dvd.advocacy		DVD-Video pro/con arguments.
sci.aquaria		Only scientifically-oriented postings about aquaria.
sci.engr.coastal		Coastal and ocean engineering.
sci.engr.marine.hydrodynamics		Marine Hydrodynamics.
sci.med.occupational		Repetitive Strain Injuries (RSI) & job injury issues.
soc.adoption.parenting		Adoptive parenting by adoptive parents.
soc.college.teaching-asst		Issues affecting collegiate teaching assistants.
soc.support.depression.seasonal		Seasonal affective disorder.

CHANGE HISTORY:

2011-02-01      1st RFD
2011-03-04      2nd RFD