Re: [Pan] Messages
- From: "John F. Morse" <john@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 09 Aug 2011 10:34:07 -0500
OnlyMe wrote:
Thanks for your input.
In your view, is there a better news reader for this OS than Pan?
You are welcome.
As for your question, there are too many variables for any one person to answer. For instance, to just which OS are you referring? :-\
For instance, I use Pan more as a tool than my usual newsreader, which is Thunderbird because of its ability to do so many things I personally require.
Thunderbird is very weak in filtering and can't actually score. Pan is considerably better in scoring, but lacks Thunderbird's binary posting ability. I rarely post any binary, but do occasionally post screen capture images of configurations for various programs to assist others.
Thunderbird is actively supported, while Pan hasn't seen a stable upgrade in seven years. Pan is much smaller than Thunderbird, so it is a good basic newsreader for my use -- as a quick tool.
My main use of Pan as a tool is for maintaining (monitoring) several local Usenet servers, plus monitoring and examining newsgroup article propagation on many remote NSP servers around the world. It is very simple and fast to add a new NNTP server, then delete one if I don't want to retain it.
I also use Pan 0.14.2.91 because it does not combine all the servers when downloading. IOW, I can access a specific server to see if a certain article was posted on it. The newer beta Pan versions (i.e. 0.133) combine server downloads so only one specific Message-ID is retained. That's great for a normal newsgroup reading person.
Most everybody reading this group won't have a need for this "tool" use. They get their news from some NSP, free or commercial, and the amount of spam varies.
I don't have spam issues because I run INN with Cleanfeed and NoCeM. Therefore. in my situation, newsreader filtering and scoring is not a point for choosing my newsreader.
I like Pan and Thunderbird. Both are good newsreaders, but so are many others. None are excellent, and none will ever be unless I write my own. Then others will not agree. ;-)
That is exactly what Xnews is based upon. The designer, Luu Tran says he designs the Xnews interface and features for himself only, reflecting his "preferences, habits, and sensibility."
So, even though Xnews is good in some areas (what Luu likes), it is quite poor in others. I rarely use it because I have never used it enough to be "fluent" in its rather strange operation, and do not have the time to work it out, nor even the desire to run a Windows program under Wine on Linux.
If I did want to run a Windows newsreader under Wine, it would probably be Agent, or maybe Gravity or even 40tude Dialog. All are "good" and somewhat highly-configurable in the scoring/filtering department (which really doesn't interest me). I have all of them (and more) installed on a few Windows PCs, up through Windows Vista, but I rarely have a need to boot a Windows box. If I do, it is almost always to take a look at a program for helping someone.
BTW, Agent is commercial and not free in any sense. Dialog, Opera, and Xnews are freeware, but still proprietary. Gravity, Pan and Thunderbird/SeaMonkey are free of cost and free of restrictions. Support freedom or it may be lost. :-)
If I didn't have Linux, I'd likely still be using a Mozilla.org newsreader, like I did last century on Windows, and on the Mac before that. (Netscape, Mozilla, SeaMonkey, Thunderbird, IceDove, ....)
Now on Linux, there are many choices. That is what Linux is about, right? Choices, freedom, configurability, security, control, stability, and also a bonus of free of cost in most cases.
There are good Linux GUI newsreaders, like Thunderbird, Claws Mail, KNode, Pan, XPN, and some not quite so good, like Opera Mail and News. Perhaps Claws Mail is superior to Thunderbird in my opinion, but I have never decided to move. I keep every e-mail message received and sent, and every newsgroup article sent, in a multi-level "Local" Thunderbird archive. Thunderbird uses mbox while Claws Mail uses maildir for the storage method, so I can't simply "drag and drop" the various message files between the programs.
Then there are the many text-only newsreaders for Linux/Unix: gnus, mutt, nn, pine/alpine, rn, slrn, tin, trn, and I'm sure some others. Even plain old telnet can work!
Evidentially many cannot or will not learn to use a keyboard, and are therefore stuck to a mouse, condemned to point an click on what some unknown programmer decides to put in a menu.
These text-only newsreaders are all free of cost and free of restrictions (FLOSS). Some have a very powerful regex-based scorefile filtering ability. Exactly what someone needs who gets bombarded by spam and other undesirable trolls and flamers.
They are small and fast, no bloated GUI is needed, and they can even be run on a remote computer via SSH.
You can't beat these, unless you are interested in downloading binary pictures, sounds, DVDs, etc. Then you should use a binary grabber, like KLibido, and not a newsreader because there's nothing to "read"!
So, as you can imagine, there are too many variables involved in the personal desires, needs, abilities, and even which computer OS they have.
I know about so many newsreaders because over the years I have tried every one of them. I know what *I* like, what *I* can use to do my work, and what OS platforms are available, and which *I* prefer to use.
As they say, your mileage will (certainly) vary. I suggest you try them all. It takes time, but it is time well spent on your personal education.
It isn't time likely "wasted" asking unknown people which is best. ;-)
--
John
When a person has -- whether they knew it or not -- already
rejected the Truth, by what means do they discern a lie?
.
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