Future's Signature

[ElFanDeMKW]

Today, January 25, 2024, I have decided to leave my personal signature on the most famous conversation wall related to The Simpsons. Thanks to the series for so many things that have been given to us fans, both joys and disappointments, all this makes the series more memorable.

As a person, I leave my good wishes for whoever reads this, and that they know that they have my spiritual support in all their problems, and that they know that hope is the last thing that is lost.

And as a fan, I leave you my favorite episode: "Last Exit to Springfield", the favorite of many.

Signed by Joss. January 25, 2024

Memorable dates to see this message:

February 22, 2024: Forum closure.
February 15, 2024: 70 years of Matt Groening
June 30, 2024: Author's graduation.
August 1, 2024: Author's birthday.
November 22, 2024: 10 months since the forum closes.
January 25, 2034: 10 years since the publication of this message.
February 22, 2034: 10 years since the forum closed.
January 25, 12024: 10,000 years since the publication of this message.
January 25, 102024: 100,000 years since the publication of this message

[Adam H. Kerman]

Post by ElFanDeMKW
February 22, 2024: Forum closure.

The "forum" is not closing. This is Usenet. Usenet isn't going away.

What is it with you people?

Use a newsreader. Become a user on a News server. Subscribe to this
newsgroup.

[Travoltron]

Post by Adam H. Kerman

Post by ElFanDeMKW
February 22, 2024: Forum closure.

The "forum" is not closing. This is Usenet. Usenet isn't going away.
What is it with you people?
Use a newsreader. Become a user on a News server. Subscribe to this
newsgroup.

Somebody must have written an article or something that triggered this.

[Renee McNeely]

Post by Travoltron

Post by Adam H. Kerman

Post by ElFanDeMKW
February 22, 2024: Forum closure.

The "forum" is not closing. This is Usenet. Usenet isn't going away.
What is it with you people?
Use a newsreader. Become a user on a News server. Subscribe to this
newsgroup.

Somebody must have written an article or something that triggered this.

Not that Google should have had to clarify this, but I can imagine a lot
of people got the impression that Google created and controlled Usenet,
and therefore, that Google discontinuing a service they had already
abandoned meant game over for Usenet. For a lot of people my age (born
in the 2000s) who are more familiar with sites like Reddit or Discord,
the idea of Usenet being a decentralized service provided by a myriad of
sources probably never even crossed their mind.

[Keith F. Lynch]

Post by Renee McNeely
Not that Google should have had to clarify this, but I can imagine a
lot of people got the impression that Google created and controlled
Usenet, and therefore, that Google discontinuing a service they had
already abandoned meant game over for Usenet.

Right. The history of the net isn't taught in school. At least it
wasn't when I went to school. Which isn't surprising since that was
before the net existed.

Post by Renee McNeely
For a lot of people my age (born in the 2000s) who are more familiar
with sites like Reddit or Discord, the idea of Usenet being a
decentralized service provided by a myriad of sources probably never
even crossed their mind.

The net, or rather the online world, started as a bunch of walled gardens.
A user of CompuServe (founded in 1969) couldn't communicate with a user
of Genie, AOL, Delphi, The Source, the ARPAnet, or any BBS.

Later the ARPAnet evolved into the Internet, and at about the same
time (early 1980s) Fidonet (a network of BBSs) and Usenet (a network
of Unix machines at universities) were founded. Within about a decade
Fidonet, Usenet, Tymenet, and AOL were absorbed into the Internet. It
was a wonderful time. Anyone could talk to anyone, and there was no
censorship. The Web (which is not just another name for the Internet)
was created in 1991, and any public web page could be viewed by
anyone. There was a problem with spam, but there were techniques
to deal with it.

I'm baffled that people have retreated from this, and joined a new set
of walled gardens, called "social networks." For instance MySpace,
AOL (again), LiveJournal (until it was taken over by Russians), Google
Groups, Reddit, SDMB, Twitter (now "X"), YouTube, and Facebook. And
nobody on on one social network can talk to anyone in another. And
everyone is subjected to constant ads. And likely to be permanently
banned for wrongthink at any time.

Usenet isn't perfect, but it's a great improvement over its successors.

And it's even older than The Simpsons.

And it's still here, and is not going away. Nobody has the power to
shut it down. New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo tried, 16 years
ago. He failed. He later resigned in disgrace, in response to
accusations of sex crimes.

[Keith F. Lynch]

Post by ElFanDeMKW
February 22, 2024: Forum closure.

WRONG!!!, as several people have already pointed out here.

Usenet was around long before Google, and will remain around
long after Google is bankrupt. People will continue discussing
The Simpsons in this forum long after Google is forgotten.
If you're not here to participate, that's your loss.