1000 days of retention, wow, that is a lot. That is almost three years full of data retention. I remember that my first Usenet provider stored data for a few days after which they were deleted. Not enough time to go on holiday for two weeks and to come back to continue where you left of. And Giganews itself, have hit the 100 day retention mark back in 2007, 400 days in 2009, 600 days of retention in 2010 and now in 2011 they are at 1000.
But what’s data retention exactly? Those of you who have never used the Usenet may have some troubles figuring that out. To simplify things think of the Usenet as a huge network of servers where both text contents and binary contents are uploaded to. You may have heard about Google Groups; That’s a copy of the text content part of the Usenet, at least part of that. You find groups where every imaginable topic is discussed, from the latest recipes to computer programming and manufacturer support. It is like a huge forum with separate categories for every topic.
The binary part of the Usenet is where files are posted with messages, and where other users can reply and download. All Usenet users can post files to the Usenet, which then become available for all other users, provided that their Usenet provider monitors that group for posts, and that the user has an account that allows posting to the Usenet.
That’s almost like a public ftp server where anyone can upload stuff to. Oh, and all users can download the files as well, and read the messages of the uploaders and other users.
The binary part of the Usenet is responsible for the majority of traffic and storage space requirements. Terabytes of data get uploaded to the Usenet each day, which means that providers need lots of storage to store those files for their customers and users. That’s for example nine Petabyte of storage for Giganews customers.
If you know the guys at Giganews, you know that they will not stop there. Plans are to increase storage and retention further.
I have been a Giganews customer for a long time, and never have looked back after my initial signup. The thing that’s probably even more impressive than the 1000 day retention, is that I never had a problem with the service. It was always top notch, top speed with no connection issues whatsoever. Giganews is a premium Usenet provider, which means that they are definitely not the cheapest, but their quality and service is unparalleled if you ask me.
Congratulations Giganews Usenet. Oh, the winners of the 1000 days retention giveaway have been announced as well.
If you want to know what files you can download, try an indexer like binsearch.
Related Articles:
Giganews 1000-Days Retention GiveawayUsenet Provider Giganews Reaches 400 Days Of Data Retention
Giganews Usenet Reaches 1200 Days Retention
Giganews updates storage and offers 120 days retention
Giganews has now 100 days of retention
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I haven’t used usenet since the late 90s. And back then I was more interested in debating/flaming than downloading warez.