Terminology
Section or Part
The number of characters - by packet - the poster
defined. The number of lines can be altered, and is sometimes
the subject of fierce debate, but most posters use 3200
lines. Sections can be reposted by themselves to complete a
"missing section" request. (See Missing
Parts.)
Segment or File
The total single "message" posted. Some posters only
post 1 segment - "xxx.zip" and therefore have only one,
others use "xxx.zip part 1 of 3; or xxx.zip part 'a'
", where each 'part' of the three is a complete,
viewable/extractable file.
Archive (Rar, Zip, Ace, bz2, etc.)
One of several means to compress (make smaller) a file for posting
(the less space you can use, the better). Can also be used to
'split' a large file into smaller pieces for more efficient
propagation across servers. Special software is needed to
de-compress (extract) the files back to their original form, or in
the case of a 'split' file, to recombine it into a single file.
See Commonly
used archival tools.
Parchive (PAR,P00,P01, etc.)
Primarily only seen with larger posts, or in
groups where 20+ meg files are commonly posted, Parchive files are
a Parity Archive Volume Set,
which isn't a direct archiving format like
Zip,RAR,ACE,BZ2, et. al as mentioned above.
Instead, what they are is
a tool to apply the data-recovery
capability concepts of RAID-like systems to the posting and
recovery of multi-part archives on Usenet. Current filespec
and clients support the 'Reed-Soloman Code' implementation
that allows for recovery of any 'X' volumes for 'X' parity
volumes present.
In other words: PAR files allow you to recover/replace X amount
of missing or corrupted files per X par files.
From the Parchive project's FAQ:
Q: What is this for...?
The primary intention of the Parchive Project and 'parity volume sets' is to release binary newsgroups of some repost traffic.
Example: You post 10 rar volumes into a binary group. But some people don't get all of them. One is missing r01, another one is missing r06 and a third one is missing r04. Usually, you have to repost these 3 files now. But now you can create a parity volume for your post (one volume would suffice for this example). Everyone can download it and recover his missing file with it. It doesn't matter, which file is missing, as long you have as many parity volumes as missing files. (Due to the type of parity scheme utilized, it doesn't matter which volume you get, just so long as you have one for each missing/corrupt file.) In this case, the posting of 1 file will avoid the posting of 3 files...
More information on PAR files can be found on the project's
website: http://parchive.sourceforge.net/
yEnc
Ocasionally, you may see a post that has a strange little word
at the end of it. - 'yEnc'
What is yEnc?:
(borrowed from http://www.yenc.org)
yEnc is a new encoding method which offers efficient and proper
transmission for binaries on the Usenet (or by eMail and other
applications).
Other encodings are BASE64, BinHex, UUencode, Quoted Printable,
.....
yEnc is NOT an audio format (as MP3) or a video format (as AVI,
MOV,...) or a picture format (as GIF or JPEG), nor is it a new
archiving format
(ZIP, RAR, ACE, etc.)
Why are so many people using yEnc for posting now ?
My newsreader does not recognize yEncoded posts - what should I do ?
I don't want that yEnc stuff - how can I get rid of it ?
Everything you could ever want to know about
yEnc can be found on the author's "official" webpage: http://www.yenc.org
Join
Assembling the multiple parts / sections of a post as
posted onto Usenet. Basic Usenet tools needed (correct term is
"extracting").
See Newsreaders.
Multi-Part posts
Larger binaries need to be split up into multiple, linked parts
for posting. Your Newsreader software will usually do this for you
automatically, however, you may need to adjust the settings to be
able to post properly. The fractions indicate the part
number. For instance 5/32 is part 5 of a 32 part file.
You will need all 32 parts available on your server to
successfully download and re-combine the sections into a usable
file. (See Missing
Parts.)
If there's more than one n/n expression in the header, the first usually indicates the how many files are in a series, such as diddle_a.zip, diddle_b.zip and so on. Please note, some newsreaders might choke on these "false fractions". If you have problems, retrieve the message bodies individually, then select all the parts and use the 'Manually Decode Binary Attachments' options that are appropriate to your newsreader software to force your newsreader to join the parts correctly.
The '0' file
The 0/n (or 0/XX or 00) part is the
beginning of the multipart post where the contributor includes a
text message for you to learn more about what the post
contains. It usually explains the format used in the creation
of the e-book, the needed archive tool to extract it, and a
description of the contents. A very high percentage of the
questions posted in the ABEB* newsgroups are from the result of
readers ignoring these introductory texts. This
is NOT recommended behavior! One of the quickest, and surest
ways to anger/irritate the regulars in any given newsgroup is to
start posting a bunch of questions that have already been answered
in the FAQ. READ the headers in a group to first see if the
question has already been asked before. Try to find your own
answers to a question by using a GOOD search engine like
Google
before posting any questions to the group. You'll find that the
regulars of any given group are much more friendly and helpful
if you show that you've actually made an effort on your own,
instead of expecting to be spoon-fed answers.
UUencoded files
When you download a file, and you can see the first part of it,
but the other parts all look like "jumbled junk". Don't
delete them! That IS the file, encoded into ASCII
(UUencoding) format for posting onto Usenet. (see
USENET). If each line begins with an M, it's
UUencoded. If not, chances are it's either MIME or base 64
(see Newsreaders).
An overly high percentage of the questions posted in ABEB and other groups are the direct result of readers ignoring the '0' file or 0/n of the files posted. These texts often contain important messages about formats, compression used, and other important information that will aid you in identifying content, materials contained, or other special instructions necessary to the file(s). Please, Please get into the habit of checking them. An overly high percentage of the requests for reposts, and reposts of reposts, are from people who do not read these texts, or check ABEB often enough to catch the files they want. Please be fair to the posters and other readers. When you ask for a file, check back daily to be sure you don't miss it. If you cannot or will not keep up with the group, then don't post requests.
Can't get these files to work?
When you ask for help, be sure to provide enough information so
someone CAN help you! Don't just post something stupid
and annoying like:
"These files don't work - plz repost".
That's a sure way to get ignored or flamed as an idiot. At a
minimum give your OS type (Win9x, Win 3.1, Mac, etc.), the
Newsreader software you're using (Forte Agent, M$OE, Xnews,
Netscape, etc.), a description of your problem (uploading,
downloading, decoding, viewing), and the specific file(s) you are
having trouble with. The more information you give, the
better the chances someone can provide you with an answer.
ALWAYS scan the headers before
posting even a single question.
It takes time for someone to reply to people individually.
If you are using Forte's Agent as your newsreader, finding
your own answers is actually quicker than asking. Select the
pertinent newsgroups and then use Edit|Global Search
to find posts discussing whatever you need to know. This
feature is not built into FREE Agent, but is available as a
separate utility called "
Agent Global Search".
Want to know why some people who ask questions
get ignored, or get a sarcastic response instead?
Polite questions in the proper groups get responses,
unless the answer is already staring them
right in the face. In that case, the poster
might be ignored or get a response ranging from "Why are you
asking this in here?" to a not-so-polite reminder to READ
THE FAQ before
posting. Sometimes a question goes
unanswered because the person didn't provide enough
information or because no one knows the answer (or cares).
Other times it's because the question should have been
directed elsewhere, such as to a software or hardware vendor,
or internet service provider. People who are stupid,
post without thinking about it first, or making any sign of
effort, those who post inappropriate materials, floods, or
who post garbage/spam are usually called out on it (sometimes
in the most cruel and amusing ways).
If you don't like the rules as they stand, make a suggestion for a USEFUL change. If you're not willing to do that much, too bad.
Here's your refund: