microsoft.public.word.vba.general

Jean-Guy Marcil wrote:
> Greetings to all,
>
> Now that I have a 9-5 desk job, I cannot access the groups with he
> tools I would like to use. During the last 5 years I was using
> Outlook Express at home where I used to work as well. Here at the
> office I am now stuck with Lotus Notes. I tried accessing Usenet with
> Lotus Notes (It does offer Newsgroup capabilities) and with OE, but I
> believe the security set up by the IT people at the company is
> preventing me from making an NNTP connection. So I am using the Web
> Interface.
>
> I am getting accustomed to it. But I noticed that it is called "Word
> programming."
> Where are the 5 basic VBA groups I am used to
> (microsoft.public.word.vba.addins,
> microsoft.public.word.vba.beginners,
> microsoft.public.word.vba.customization,
> microsoft.public.word.vba.general,
> microsoft.public.word.vba.userforms)?
> Also, while I was on Google groups, I noticed that there is a group
> called "microsoft.public.word.vba". I never saw it with OE.... What
> is it? Was it always around but I just never noticed it thinking it
> was just a prefix, not an actual group)?
> Am I correct in asuming that "Word Programing" is in fact
> "microsoft.public.word.vba.general"?
>
> If there is no connection between the Web interface and those 6
> groups, how do people, post to those groups? (Presumebly this means
> that there is no connection betwen Word itself and those 6 groups.)
> Will I have to use Google to access those groups? Anybody using
> Google to manage their posts? How is it?
>
> Thanks.

Hi, Jean-Guy,

First, my condolences on your loss. I find the Web interface nearly
intolerable for any extended work -- so much so that I lobbied our IT group
for specific NNTP access to the msnews server and eventually got it.

There are different ways to get Web access to the microsoft.public groups.
The most sensible one is to start with
http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.aspx and
append ?dg= and the group's (real) name, such as

http://www.microsoft.com/communities/newsgroups/en-us/default.aspx?dg=microsoft.public.word.vba.general

Yes, this is the "Word Programming" group (actually, one of two, the other
being microsoft.public.word.programming). Ignore the silly labels in the
left-hand pane.

The Web newsgroups and the NNTP newsgroups are mostly the same. Although
they're hosted on different servers at MS, there is a mechanism for
propagating posts in both directions. Occasionally it breaks down (oddly,
most often in the Web-to-NNTP direction) and there will be posts that are on
one but not the other.

The microsoft.public.word.vba group is one of several newsgroups (another
being microsoft.public.word.general) that no longer exist on the msnews
servers. Because Usenet is a network of unrelated and unregulated servers,
others continue to propagate messages in them. Nobody has the "authority" to
tell them to stop.

--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP FAQ: http://word.mvps.org
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