OT: Unwanted Newsguy SPAM attached to my posts

On Wed, 05 Apr 2006 16:07:00 -0400, I wrote in :

Someone had mentioned a one-time buy of 25 Gigs of download--no time limits.

I'm trying that service now.

Sorry for the OT stuff ...

Marty

I come here to read about RCs, not to hear whining about a friggin' posting footer. The off-topic posts are annoying!!!

Was not pleased with the Newsguy footer at first but I contacted their techies and they told me how to remove it. Took 2 seconds - no more footer - end of story.

Feel free to rant about it, moan about it, get another provider, whatever floats your log - just please keep it out of the newsgroup.

SJMarcus

Says "OT" in the header. Somebody twisted your arm to read it?

No likee, no clickee.

Marty's had literally hundreds, if not thousands, of useful posts here. Have you had even one? Refresh my memory, 'kay?

Texas Pete

So, you "accidently" read the post that's clearly labeled "OT"?

Odd how thus far you're the only one complaining about it...

This from a fellow who just made an off-topic post in the process of whining.

Just two things are needed for a quantum improvement in Usenet happiness:

Hypocrite.... ;-)

Good flying, desmobob

I was overly aggressive in my initial post, but I've seen some good groups reduced to a flood of OT babbling, and would hate to see that happen to rec.models.rc.air. I really do enjoy reading the group though my first comments may have indicated otherwise.

Point taken Pete. I'm new to the world of RC, so the group has been invaluable to me in that respect. As a RC newbie, I didn't think I'd have much to contribute in the form of posts.

I do post to other Usenet groups actively, but in those situations I have something of substance to offer. I'll make an effort to post in the future.

SJMarcus

Holy Schmolie

Less caffeine really helps with the stress level....

As the younger generation would say, "Chill- It's all good."

they did? I never noticed but then I rarely read past the message part anyway/

On Wed, 05 Apr 2006 18:56:04 -0500, Bob Cowell wrote in :

Yes.

The support guy said that it had been announced for two weeks in news:newsguy.general before the policy went into effect. Anyone who did not have a Newsguy signature got the SPAM tacked on. If their newsreader didn't follow classical sig rules (dash dash space on a line by itself, then the signature lines), their spam got tacked on.

I saw it out of the corner of my eye on some other people's posts; I assumed that they had volunteered to carry billboards for newsguy in return for some benefit.

It was only when I read one of my own posts today by accident that I saw what was going on.

I've switched to a different news provider and asked newsguy to close my account. There won't be a refund, but I'm happy to have found a different provider.

Marty

Thanks for doing that, Marty. These unwanted and unsolicited tagalongs are rampant these days, and I'm getting tired of having to either purge them or have my sytem bogged down by them. You have given one spammer outfit that thinks your PC (and your identity) is his free marketing domain the only sort of reply they will understand. I react similarly to such intrusions on my time and space, and hope more will join to show the perps it isn't going to profit them

Abel

Let me chime in here. We are here because we share a common interest. This brings people together who may be the sorts we would become friends with on the flying field. Only we aren't on the flying field, yet we talk exactly like we were.

On the field, we would hear all sorts of stuff...some of it we would ignore, some would be little bits of wisdom that would be good for us to know.

I am on two other newsgroups and the "members" of one have twice-a- year get-togethers in Texas. Last year, I spent an additional weekend with a bunch of the ones who live up by Virginia. Now, when I post to that group, I recognize names and see their faces. They are friends, we e-mail back and forth, and when they have had their little dog put down, we hurt with them, and when one's daughter was killed in a car crash, many of us shed a tear in his behalf.

Is this sort of exchange off-topic to the group? You bet it is! We would stop doing it if we wanted to. It is a very active group and yes, the fast majority of the topics are on the subject. But we all respond to "OT - I Need Some Help, Here.

And this friendship might extend over to our families and general visiting. I learned that they are very smart, well-rounded people knowing lots of stuff I don't know. (I just ran a beta test program on my website...using guitar players...who were other technical things...but mostly friends.)

Now the other group does not tolerate off-topic postings and they will scorch you soundly for using things like :o) or .

They believe that we should be literate enough to not need them. I agree. I call the emoticons "laugh tracks for the illiterate." :o) But, Jeez! Who can zip off a few comments on some subject and not say something offensive to someone on an international newsgroup?

If you doubt this, just start the thread here about European scale models not having swastikas, and the complaints that goes on in various parts of the U.S.

But one of those little :o) things can help us realize that the comment was not made in sarcasm but in jest.

So, there are people behind these monikers and pseudonyms. Some are nice. Some are less so. But all of them know bunches of stuff that I don't know -- and a fellow would rather know stuff than not know stuff.

There is almost no one on that other group I would even want to have a beer with, much less spend a long weekend at a camp site with.

One other thing, for a long time, I thought "OT" meant "Old Testament." I am not always the brightest bulb on the tree.

Have a good day.

Ken