Help for National customers

A newsgroup is a kind of open discussion group or bulletin board devoted to a specific topic. The Internet is host to thousands of newsgroups on a vast range of topics, not just on the type of news you see on the television or on news websites.

In recent years the use of newsgroups has been overtaken by web forums, but they still have dedicated following.

Find the answer to your questions

Newsgroups can be a place to find answers to questions and discuss anything and everything - from gardening to classic cars, from Elvis memorabilia to pianos, cookery to politics. The community aspect is important to many subscribers, and talking to people who have similar interests is one of the main reasons that people come back.

Unlike email when you post a comment or reply to a newsgroup, anyone is able to see your message.

It isn't all about the news

Some groups allow subscribers to post or download not only text, but files like music, pictures or videos they have created, these are known in the newsgroups world as binaries. Some files in Newsgroups could contain viruses and spyway, or may not be legal, so be careful when downloading. If in any doubt, don’t download the file.