Nosey

CobraJet wrote:
> In article <33q_d.31822$Q83.29931@bignews5.bellsouth.net>, Joe
> <avoidingspam@nospam.com> wrote:
>
>> CobraJet <slither@fang.ford> wrote in
>> news:170320051625533456%slither@fang.ford:
>>
>>> In article <4237DB60.2080201@your.disposal>, Wound Up
>>> <none@your.disposal> wrote:
>>>
>>>> CobraJet wrote:
>>>>> I'm open to suggestions, but even the Snake roster is spotty
>>>>> and
>>>>> apathetic. We all see what happens to the post count when I'm not
>>>>> around.
>>>>
>>>> In recent memory, AHPBBFM has been hijacked by web forums (remember
>>>> "CobraJet1"?).
>>>>
>>>> From my professional perspective, the immediate questions that
>>>> need
>>>> answering surround the Usenet-to-Web interface.
>>>>
>>>> How difficult is it to set up a read / write Usenet-to-Web
>>>> interface such that Usenet and the Web are in synch? It must run
>>>> essentially real-time. This must have been done before, but, my
>>>> expertise is not in this area. Nothing is impossible, especially
>>>> when you're marrying two old technologies. Is CGI preferable, or
>>>> ASP, or something else? What about error handling? How much
>>>> bandwidth would it need to handle? Who would host it? Are there
>>>> canned solutions?
>>>
>>> This is something I tried to integrate shortly after the
>>> formation
>>> of this group, and another time thereafter. I came up empty. Now,
>>> it's evident by the existence of places like autoforumz.com that an
>>> interface program is out there somewhere. How or where that is
>>> attainable I don't know. Nobody in this group was able to help.
>>>
>>>>
>>>> What trade-offs exist, and are recurring costs involved?
>>>
>>> I had at one time a related domain name that I was prepared to
>>> fire
>>> up as a Webside companion to this group. I was ready to shoulder the
>>> relatively minor monthly costs involved in that endeavor, and I even
>>> had my eye on a personal server to file accumulated information.
>>>
>>>>
>>>> What about going from all that HTML to plain text and back again?
>>>> What happens to all the tags, even non-compatible between browsers?
>>>>
>>>> How are subscription and other commands handled (this goes back to
>>>> "how good is the interface").
>>>>
>>>> Finally, there's the issue of conflicting cultures, and web
>>>> moderators.
>>>> This is not a big deal, but it needs consideration.
>>>
>>> I can't answer these questions, but I can point to Google as the
>>> major example of a Web interface. It can be done. As far as
>>> moderation, it would be an exercise in futility when linked to a
>>> newsgroup. Better off without. The core constituency can handle
>>> trolls, as we have done many a time here.
>>>
>>>>
>>>> ...
>>>>
>>>> Hmmmmmmmmmmm
>>>>
>>>> What off-the-shelf interfaces exist that can fit the bill, how
>>>> expensive are they, and what type of hosting services do you need?
>>>> How do you defray any recurring costs without "cooperative
>>>> advertising", aka Spam in the net world...
>>>
>>> At the time I was going to plop a one terabyte dedicated server
>>> into
>>> my ISP's headquarters in Scottsdale. Aside from the cost of the box,
>>> the people there estimated my monthly bandwidth costs to be in the
>>> neighborhood of 100 bucks a month. If I were to have achieved the
>>> type of traffic and info-swap I had envisioned, I would not have
>>> blinked over that amount. Aside from that, *on-topic* ads, if held
>>> to a reasonable level, should not bother most people. I had a lot of
>>> this mapped out, but I shitcanned it.
>>>
>>>>
>>>> This shit isn't hard, it's just not my specific area of expertise.
>>>> I think answering these questions would be a huge step forward.
>>>
>>> As I said, I've put effort into this without help from anyone and
>>> come up with nothing. This has certainly punctured my enthusiasm.
>>> However, I will reconsider if someone else comes up with a plan.
>>>
>>> CobraJet
>>
>> Here's a link that might help:
>> http://usenetweb.sourceforge.net/
>
> That's the idea, but I have no idea how to implement it, or if I can
> with an Apple box. The download link went "Not Found". This is all
> over my head.

The download link works again. I downloaded it but I haven't tried to run it
yet. It looks like it runs on UNIX/Linux platforms, not Apple or Microsoft.
They claim it's OS independent, but who knows what that really means. I
could try this out on my Linux box when I get back to Texas.
--
Ken
ThunderSnake #51