mkg (11/05/82)
I am a FIRM beliver that one should always use the latest and greatest version of something (as long as that version works at least as well as the version it replaces). Putting up new versions of netnews take only a hour or so (not counting the wait for the make to finish) so I can't see any reasonable for sites be running anything older than 2.9. Anyway, the BEST reason I can think of for upgrading from an old netnews version is illustrated by the recent flurry of activity in net.joke, net.periph, net.uniz-wizards, and all the other mis-spelled newsgroups that old versions of news will allow to get out. If you haven't noticed, your netnews spool directory is quite large and these 'transient' newsgroups only make it larger (remember that there are two slots for every newsgroup). Yes I know that people are busy but I hope that people would have enough love for the net to keep it operating at its best by keeping your netnews software up to date. Marsh Gosnell BTL Piscataway (201) 981-2758 harpo!whuxlb!mkg
sjb (11/06/82)
I would like to avoid any misconceptions on my previous article that may have been brought out: I did NOT say that I don't favor putting up the newest versions of B news when they come out. Indeed, it takes very little time; the last time a new version came out, I was able to update, install, and test it on 6 machines in ONE AND A HALF HOURS! What I said was that we shouldn't force people to put up new versions, but rather just let them know that they exist, what their advantages are, and give them good reasons to put it up (even offer help if they want it). The the final decision must be left up to them and the people at their sites that use the software.