11.1   CLARINET: ASSOCIATED PRESS, MISS MANNERS AND DILBERT

 
Usenet "newsgroups" can be something of a misnomer.  They may be 
interesting, informative and educational, but they are often not news, at 
least, not the way most people would think of them. But there are several 
sources of news and sports on the Net.  

One of the largest is Clarinet, a company in Cupertino, Calf., that 
distributes wire-service news and columns, along with a news service 
devoted to computers and even the Dilbert comic strip, in Usenet form.  

Because Clarinet charges for its service, not all host systems carry its 
articles. Those that do carry them as Usenet groups starting with 
"clari."  As with other Usenet hierarchies, these are named starting with 
broad area and ending with more specific categories.  Some of these 
include business news (clari.biz); general national and foreign news, 
politics and the like (clari.news), sports (clari.sports); columns by 
Mike Royko, Miss Manners, and others (clari.feature); and NewsBytes 
computer and telecommunications reports (clari.nb).  Because Clarinet 
started in Canada, there is a separate set of clari.canada newsgroups.  
The clari.nb newsgroups are divided into specific computer types 
(clari.nb.apple, for example). 

Clari newsgroups feature stories updated around the clock.  There are 
even a couple of "bulletin" newsgroups for breaking stories: 
clari.news.bulletin and clari.news.urgent.  Clarinet also sets up new 
newsgroups for breaking stories that become ongoing ones (such as major 
natural disasters, coups in large countries and the like). 
     
Occasionally, you will see stories in clari newsgroups that just 
don't seem to belong there.  This happens because of the way wire 
services work.  AP uses three-letter codes to route its stories to 
the newspapers and radio stations that make up most of its clientele, and 
harried editors on deadline sometimes punch in the wrong code.