best proper news client? recommendations sought

[hanrahan398]

Another question - what news client are the sensible people using nowadays? Is there one that

• doesn't put your domain name in the Message-ID (in fact, which maybe lets you choose the Message-ID),

• threads posts properly,

• makes it easy to let users post under a couple of different identities

• doesn't cost anything

• lets you add additional headers if you want, and

• doesn't under any circumstances look like Microsoft Explorer, or otherwise treat you as if you're an idiot?

Turnpike 5 is great but falls down on the first item in the above list, and also puts in an X-Newsreader: header, which I wouldn't mind if it only identified the news client, but it includes a serial number.

Michael

[tony sayer]

In article , [e-mail] scribeth thus

Turnpike 5.02 is excellent :))..

[Ron Lowe]

Oh, no! Now you've done it!

That's a bit like asking what's the best religion, only more contentious.

[tinnews]

I presume you mean on some version of MS Windows, and that you want a GUI client?

If *not* then I'd recommend slrn or tin.

A quick Google suggests that slrn is available for windows so, if you want/like a text mode newsreader then that's one possibility.

[Ron Lowe]

What, you want an actual *application*?

Surely the only true way is to telnet into the server on port 119 and do the protocol by hand.

That's the only way you have total control over it.

[Paul - xxx]

Xananews, very configurable.

[tinnews]

I use tin, even now I find it *much* better than any GUI client I have ever tried. It's semi-GUI anyway as it's mouse-aware so there's very little that a full GUI client can do that tin can't.

I can't speak for slrn on this front as I've not tried it in quite a few years now.

[Mark]

the one in my headers

-

[Andy Burns]

Time you looked at your own headers then ;-)

[Mark]

WHoooooosh

-

[Andy Burns]

So your reply was deliberately, rather than accidentally, unhelpful?

[Bob Eager]

Not helpful.

[Mark]

Why would you want to do this?

I use Forte Agent. I can't claim it's the best because I haven't tried them all but it works for me.

[John Williamson]

I use it as a way to identify spam sources.

A different identity for each newsgroup lets me check which addresses have been harvested.

[Mark]

I just use an invalid address. It saves loads of hassle.

[Tim Downie]

An then what do you do?

I can't say it's ever been a big problem. I've been using an un-munged address with ES for ages and get very little spam.

I suspect most harvesters have given up looking at usenet.

Tim

[Mark]

Unfortuntaly not true. I recently had to give a real email address in order to be allowed to post to a news server. Within a couple of hours I started getting spam (mainly 419 scams).