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Home > Usenet Support > Complete Usenet Glossary
Complete Usenet Glossary
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Complete Usenet Glossary: Definitions for Every Key Term from Article Retention to yEnc

Tweaknews presents this glossary as a reference to help users understand the terminology used throughout Usenet services. It’s a practical guide for both new users and experienced readers.

Tweaknews Usenet Glossary

  • Article – Another name for a Message. Articles are individual Usenet posts submitted to a newsgroup.

  • Article Retention – The period Tweaknews retains articles on its servers. High article retention allows broader access to older discussions.

  • Auto Headers – A feature in NewsBin (Version 5) that keeps group headers up to date automatically.

  • Automatic Download – Available in NewsBin (Version 4), this feature retrieves all data from selected groups, applying any filters. It can loop when combined with Recycle Servers.

  • Automatic Shutdown – A setting in NewsBin (Version 4) that closes the application once all selected groups have finished processing.

  • Automatic Startup – In NewsBin (Version 4), enables header downloading to begin as soon as the software launches.

  • Bandwidth – The data transmission capacity of an Internet connection, usually measured in Mbps. Tweaknews supports multiple connections for maximum use.

  • Bandwidth Limiter – A setting in NewsBin that allows users to limit bandwidth usage.

  • Beta – A testing stage for software before final release. May still include bugs.

  • Cache Chunks – When enabled in NewsBin, stores chunks of posts in memory for faster assembly.

  • Chunk – A piece of a multi-part post. Stored temporarily until all parts are received.

  • Compact View – A layout setting in NewsBin that reduces visual clutter by grouping multi-part posts into single lines.

  • Connection – A communication path to a Usenet server. More connections typically improve speed.

  • Connection Limit – The maximum number of simultaneous server connections NewsBin allows. Up to 100.

  • Crash – An unexpected termination of the NewsBin application.

  • Display Age – Determines how many days of headers are displayed when a group is opened in NewsBin.

  • Download Age – Controls how far back NewsBin retrieves headers from the server.

  • Download Limit – Any set threshold for data retrieval over a given period.

  • Download Path – The directory where NewsBin saves articles. Configurable by group or globally.

  • Enabled – Indicates a feature or setting is turned on.

  • Fill – Reposted data meant to complete missing parts of a post. Also refers to servers that activate when others fail to retrieve the article.

  • Filters – Tools for narrowing displayed results or excluding unwanted posts in NewsBin.

  • Freeze – See Stall.

  • FTR – First Time Records. Deprecated; replaced by Display Age.

  • GIF – A limited-color image format. Common in early Internet use but largely replaced by PNG.

  • Groups – See Newsgroups.

  • Hang – See Stall.

  • Header – Metadata in a Usenet article, including subject, date, and sender. Used for indexing.

  • Indexer – A service that organizes headers and produces NZBs for simplified access.

  • JPEG – A common image format with strong compression. Uses .jpg extension.

  • Lock Up – A system condition where input is no longer responsive.

  • Master Splitter – A program for dividing large data into numbered segments. NewsBin can reassemble them.

  • Message – The main unit of communication on Usenet. Contains a header and a message body.

  • Message ID – A unique, server-independent identifier assigned to each Usenet message.

  • MP3 – Digital audio format using MPEG-1 compression.

  • MPA – See Max Post Age.

  • MPG – Compressed video file format.

  • Multi-part Post – A single post divided into smaller parts. NewsBin merges them for reading.

  • Multi-threaded – Describes software that can perform multiple tasks at once.

  • New – Indicates articles that have not been read. In NewsBin v5, this status applies until all parts are marked.

  • NewsBin – A robust client for accessing Usenet, retrieving articles, and decoding multi-part posts.

  • Newsgroup – A forum for topic-specific discussions within Usenet.

  • NZB – A file format that references message IDs to simplify article retrieval.

  • Part – A section of a Usenet post or a file in an archive.

  • PNG – A modern image format with lossless compression.

  • POS – Informal label for malfunctioning software.

  • Post – A message sent to a Usenet group or the act of sending it.

  • Post ID – See Message ID.

  • Poster – The user who submitted the article.

  • Post List – Interface in NewsBin that shows articles in a group.

  • Quade – The developer responsible for creating NewsBin.

  • RAR – A file compression format used to package multi-part articles.

  • Record Number – A unique article number tied to a specific server.

  • Recycle Servers – A NewsBin (Version 4) mode that restarts article processing from the beginning after a delay.

  • Restart Delay – Specifies the waiting period before restarting in Recycle Servers mode.

  • Robot – A utility for automating repetitive Usenet-related actions.

  • Sequential – Refers to events occurring one after another.

  • Signature Cache – Stores digital signatures of previously processed articles to detect duplicates.

  • Simultaneous – Tasks that run at the same time.

  • Size – The total data volume of a post.

  • Spool – Where NewsBin stores header information for each group.

  • SSL – Encryption protocol that secures the connection between the user and Tweaknews.

  • Stackable – All applied filters must be satisfied for the post to appear.

  • Stall – A temporary freeze or slowdown in NewsBin. May recover automatically.

  • Storage Age – Duration headers remain saved on the user’s device. Configurable globally.

  • Subject – A description in the header, usually indicating what the post contains.

  • Usenet – A worldwide, distributed discussion system organized by topic and accessed via newsgroups.

  • UUEncode – Outdated encoding method for converting data into ASCII text. Replaced by yEnc.

  • Virus – A harmful program that replicates and causes disruptions.

  • yEnc – An efficient encoding format replacing UUEncode. Minimizes overhead to around 3%.

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