How do I Access Free Alt Newsgroups?

Alternative Newsgroups (ALT Newsgroups) are devoted to specific (sometimes controversial) topics. ALT newsgroups are rarely moderated and almost anyone can create one.

A newsgroup is like a forum where you can reply to previous posts and follow a newsgroup relevant to your interest by subscribing to it free of charge. Since ALT newsgroups are rarely moderated, you can also create your own newsgroup about anything - from ranting or raving about a movie to informing others about a current political issue. Other Usenet users can access and react to your posts.

ALT newsgroups are accessible through Usenet, a large network where you can download the newsgroup you want. Newsgroup topics can range from lists of news servers (alt.free.newsservers) to very specific groups like alt.food.wine.

To access an ALT Newsgroup, you need to have an account with a news server like Usenetserver, Astraweb, GigaNews, and Usenet Unlimited among others. Some Internet providers allow access to newsgroups but only a few are accessible because of limited storage capacity.

After you create a news server account, you now need to download a news client or news reader. Alt.binz and GrabIt are free news readers available for download from the Internet. Like BitTorrent, news readers allow users to select and download the newsgroup that they want through NewzBin. You can easily browse through and download newsgroups including ALT newsgroups afterwards.

If you do not want to go through the hassle of downloading and installing news reader programs, you can access Usenet through the Internet. All you need if you use a web-based Usenet service is a good Internet connection and a web browser (Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Opera, etc.). You can access Usenet through Google Groups, Interbulletin, Mailgate, News2Web, NewsOne.Net, Newsranger, Randori News, and WebNews-Exchange.