From: dbucklin@sdf.org
Date: 2019-04-21
Subject: The place of net news in the tilde ecosystem

*Originally posted to yourtilde.general at news.tildeverse.org*

I've  been  thinking about what place net news has within the tilde
environment. IRC has immediacy, but sharing a 500-word  article  in
one  or  more channels will get you a stern talking-to if not a ban
for some length of time. People do share links to blog posts on the
web,  gopher, and even pastebins. This works, but it's easy to miss
if you are not joined to the channel or just not  paying  attention
before  it  disappears  from your buffer. This means that conversa-
tions and ideas don't get the traction they would  have  within  an
appropriately structured environment.

A news server provides such an environment. Conversations are orga-
nized within topic groups and structured as threaded conversations.
News  supports  long-form writing as in gopher, provides the struc-
ture of email, and has the openness of IRC. It  seems  to  me  that
news offers something unique, but I don't know how well it competes
against the status quo.

To change their behavior, people must find value in what  is  being
offered.   Ultimately,  the  users decide what is useful to them. I
believe, however, that the spectre of Usenet is a  stumbling  block
on  the  way  to an objective evaluation of net news as a medium. I
believe that distinguishing a tildeverse net news system  from  the
legacy  of  Usenet  will  be  a key element in helping users decide
whether net news offers something valuable.