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Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups

Cross-posted to 3 groups.

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On 09/23/2026 9:12 AM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
> On 2026/9/23 7:7:8, ....winston wrote:
>> On 09/22/2026 1:23 PM, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
>>> On 2026/9/22 17:33:53, J. P. Gilliver wrote:
>>>> On 2026/9/22 15:28:38, ....winston wrote:
>>>>> On 09/22/2026 3:39 AM, Jeff Gaines wrote:
>>>>>> On 20/09/2026 in message <nhagq4Fb024U1@mid.individual.net> Brian
>>>>>> Gregory wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On 02/02/2023 13:37, Newyana2 wrote:
>>>>>>>>    Suddenly neither E-S nor AIOE can find the MS newsgroups.
>>>>>>>> I visit microsoft.* regular for VB, vbscript, and the most active
>>>>>>>> XP group. Does anyone know the story here? Have they been
>>>>>>>> discontinued? Threats from Microsoft or some such? Historicallt
>>>>>>>> the MS groups have been among the best because they had
>>>>>>>> a long history of use by MVPs and Windows professionals.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> AFAIK they were never an official part of usenet and originally you
>>>>>>> had to connect to msnews.microsoft.com to access them. However
>>>>>>> Microsoft closed that server down over 15 years ago.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> They were carried by the major players like NIN. Microsoft moved to web
>>>>>> based forums that it could control content to avoid the criticism in the
>>>>>> news groups.
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Not entirely true.
>>>>>     At the time, circa 2010
>>>>>     - NNTP was old technology
>>>>>     - Spam and Flame Targets
>>>>>     - NNTP traffic declined(50% less than prior year, 80% less than 2008
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>> What are you saying is not true?
>>>> Yes, NNTP traffic was falling, but that doesn't mean Microsoft wanted to
>>>> move discussion to somewhere where they had absolute control.
>>>
>>> Sorry, meant to say:
>>>
>>> Yes, NNTP traffic was falling, but that doesn't mean Microsoft DIDN'T
>>> want to move discussion to somewhere where they had absolute control.
>>
>> Absolute Control wasn't the primary reason.
>> Nor were you party to why the business decisions focused elsewhere.
>>
>> - Flaming and targeting MSFT employees that were monitoring the NNTP
>> groups was rampant.
>> - In 2010, Outlook Express was no longer a supported product. Windows
>> Live Essentials already had 2 yrs of online forum and feedback support.
>> Windows 8 already in beta stage with no included email client and Live
>> Mail the only MSFT news/mail product supported was the focus.
>>    Note: While Live Mail included nntp support, it was only a courtesy
>> inclusion. Live Mail was first and foremost intended for use with MSn,
>> Hotmail, Live *Microsoft Accounts*(for Mail, Contacts, Calendar,
>> SkyDrive(later renamed to OneDrive) *and* all capable of two-way
>> sync-ability.
>>       -i.e. no reason to support nntp when the product direction, support
>> and feedback were already in place online and other online
>> channels(social media - Twitter, Reddit, etc.).  Additionally, no real
>> business reason to internally support 3rd party email/news clients that
>> provided none of the sync features that the Windows Live Essentials
>> suite(Mail, PhotoGallery, Movie Maker, Writer, Messenger) provided.
>>
>> Yes, localizing support to MSFT turf can be interpreted as a 'control'
>> reason, but more important reasons and objectives existed.
>>
> You seem to be suggesting that the main - or at least a major - reason
> for them leaving usenet was that they no longer wanted to support NNTP.

That would be more correct than incorrect.
  As noted, in 2010, Win8 in beta(and again once released to RTM) had 
already made it clear that no email client would be included in the OS.
  Live Mail was the only supported client and focused on synchronization 
with Mail, Contacts, Calendar, SkyDrive(OneDrive), PhotoGallery and 
integration with Messenger(Contacts).
   - it was also clear in 2010 that Live Mail would be deprecated in 
2012(Last release), Live Mail 2011 was already in preview mode and 
intended for Vista(Not Windows 7 or 8).
  => It was quite clear, that the move to Online forums and Social Media 
was the favored over NNTP. Coincidentally, in 2010, Microsoft Answers 
2.0 was already in preview mode and designed to replaced Answers 1.0 and 
the existing previously mentioned Live Forums where the Live Forums 
content would be migrated into Answers 2.0.
  i.e. all the above further validating that NTTP support was destined 
for the graveyard. Furthermore, it was easy to see that MSFT really had 
no reason to support internal use of other 3rd party news clients for 
continued NNTP use.


> 
> But the discussions in those newsgroups covered a lot more than just
> their NNTP client; there might have been one specific 'group that did, I
> can't remember, but they were wide-ranging, covering all aspects of -
> well, for example, as Newyana2 lists, VB, vbscript, and XP, to name but
> three; such discussion of such subjects were not really affected by
> whether an NNTP client was supported or not.
Did not matter, see above - all those topics could be covered in 
Answers, Reddit, Social Media, and Feedback.  Windows Insider(its own 
Feedback for everything Windows included) was already in the Pre-Alpha 
and Milestone(both before Beta status) stage - again no internal 
direction or support for NNTP.
> 
> An interesting parallel was (were?) the demon.* 'groups; several of the
> main newsservers carried those, and continued to do so when Demon became
> only a fond (or otherwise!) memory. (In fact as far as I can see several
> tens of them are still there, though I don't know how active.) Not a
> complete parallel, as AFAIK they were never part of a closed server.

Yes, but that does not mean supported by MSFT(MSFT didn't care and 
ignored the status of any group and content on alternative newsservers)

All I can add, not much of this was available to public, but those of us 
who add access to internal on-site(Redmond campus) meetings and 
discussions were well aware(but not always comfortable) with the 
direction, but it was clear in 2010 NNTP support was a dead issue and 
even more so what was coming in the future(Windows 8 and 10, Forums, 
Social Media, and the Insider O/S builds and its own Feedback portal).


-- 
...w¡ñ§±¤ñ

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Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Brian Gregory <void-invalid-dead-dontuse@email.invalid> - 2026-09-20 17:43 +0100
  Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "s|b" <me@privacy.invalid> - 2026-09-21 19:45 +0200
    Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-21 22:09 +0100
      Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Paul <nospam@needed.invalid> - 2026-09-21 18:15 -0400
  Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-22 07:39 +0000
    Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-22 10:28 -0400
      Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-22 17:33 +0100
        Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-22 18:23 +0100
          Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-23 02:07 -0400
            Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-23 14:12 +0100
              Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-24 03:52 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-24 18:33 +0100
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-24 22:41 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-25 07:43 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups sticks <wolverine01@charter.net> - 2026-09-25 07:32 -0500
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-25 13:20 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups sticks <wolverine01@charter.net> - 2026-09-25 09:49 -0500
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-25 21:09 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-26 18:34 +0100
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Daniel70 <daniel47@nomail.afraid.org> - 2026-09-26 22:23 +1000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-27 07:40 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-25 20:22 +0100
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-27 11:39 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-27 16:49 +0100
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-25 11:04 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-25 21:12 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-28 11:06 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-28 20:45 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-28 19:20 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-29 07:48 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-29 19:58 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-30 07:38 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-30 10:20 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "Jeff Gaines" <jgnewsid@outlook.com> - 2026-09-30 14:54 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-09-30 18:11 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-09-30 10:17 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-30 10:13 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-09-30 17:57 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-10-01 14:23 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups Frank Slootweg <this@ddress.is.invalid> - 2026-10-01 18:49 +0000
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-10-01 15:17 -0400
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "J. P. Gilliver" <G6JPG@255soft.uk> - 2026-09-25 20:27 +0100
                Re: OT - Microsoft newsgroups "....winston" <winstonmvp@gmail.com> - 2026-09-27 00:40 -0400

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