news readers

[kidquick]

I use alt binz. Have been for years. Still use version .25. Is there a better program to use? If so what? And Why? Thanks

[Skiz]

I think Alt.Binz is the bomb. :01:

I used to use stolen copies of the more up to date version that donators have available but I never utilized any of the extra features so I no longer bother with it.

A lot of people like Newsleecher but personally I think its awful. Of the more popular four clients, I would only use Newsleecher if all other options were not available.

Grabit is solid, but the amount of features are limited.

Newzbin (and NB Pro) are solid as well but I feel that client caters a bit more to a different audience.

[SonsOfLiberty]

I prefer Newsleecher


Skiz your forgetting one very good client...might I mention "freeware" and has all kinds of scripts for all kinds of crap...that worps my fagile little mind :lol:

SABnzbd
http://www.sabnzbd.org/

[manu1991]

SABnzbd works great for me

[Skiz]

Skiz your forgetting one very good client...might I mention "freeware" and has all kinds of scripts for all kinds of crap...

There are loads more, but the four I mentioned are the only ones I've tried and can comment on.

[thadiyan]

I use SABnzbd extensively and I am testing the 0.5 alpha version and it is remarkable for what it does as a open source program. Further it works on all major platforms.

It focuses only on nzb files, but it does it very well.

thadiyan

[zot]

Lately I've beeen using Usenet Explorer ( http://www.netwu.com/ue/ ) it does everything; works as both a newsreader and binary grabber.

It's completely portable, and does not need to be "installed" and does not write to the registry. Usenet Explorer is the only newsreader that fully supports compressed headers on all the major NSPs that offer this feature - and the developer has spent the last several weeks working with the NSP admins perfecting this. (Newsbin Pro supports compressed headers on Astraweb only, I believe)

In addition, UE's trial can be used multiple times if desired (without having to scrub the registry) :)

[SonsOfLiberty]

Yeah, but, their is no working crack for it, I've made requests after requests to the scene for it and none wants to do it....never the less, it still awaits on the craktro.

[Chopsticks]

What is the best

[SonsOfLiberty]

It depends on who you ask, I think Newsleecher, Newsbin Pro, and SABnzbd are the best, Usenet Explorer and Alt.binz are right up there too...and so is Grabit...just search them in google or here (nzb section) and give them a a try, there technically NO BEST since everyone will give you a different answer :lol:

[ericab]

*edit*

[wayhold]

Most of the programs listed here look to be for Windows. Lets hear from the Linux users! :)

I'm using http://www.lottanzb.org/ and it only downloads the PARS if it finds incomplete files. So far I find that its great at auto extracting, but if I could find one to also auto load the NZB's from a folder or download directly from Newzleech then I'd be in heaven! :happy:

<Edit>

SABnzbd works great for me

I just checked SABnzb out, and it looks to have everything I could ask for! Thanks Manu1991!

[zot]

Most of the programs listed here look to be for Windows. Lets hear from the Linux users! :)

I'm using http://www.lottanzb.org/ and it only downloads the PARS if it finds incomplete files. So far I find that its great at auto extracting, but if I could find one to also auto load the NZB's from a folder or download directly from Newzleech then I'd be in heaven! :happy:

<Edit>

SABnzbd works great for me

I just checked SABnzb out, and it looks to have everything I could ask for! Thanks Manu1991!

An alternative to Sabnzbd is Ninan. www.ninan.org
Both 'clients' are web-based , and they work more or less the same, with small differences (ex: Ninan lets you access NZBs from Newzbin directly; Sabnzbd excels at downloading direct from RSS feeds) the main difference being that Ninan uses Java and Sabnzbd is Python-based.

[manu1991]

^ Sabnzbd also has newzbin support , i havent used this feature so cant comment whether it accesses the nzb's directly or not

[thadiyan]

SABnzbd with firefox plugin nzbdstatus makes newzbin super easy. Although you don't need the firefox plugin. You can punch in report #s into SABnzbd and it will pull the report from newzbin.

[SonsOfLiberty]

Both plugin's are not supported by FF v3, you have to install another add-on to make older add-on's to install.

[thadiyan]

nzbdstatus has moved to sourceforge and the newest version there does work in FF 3. I am not sure what the 2nd plugin you are referring to.

http://sourceforge.net/projects/nzbdstatus/

[sickest]

i prefer newsbin pro to all others.

[Eaglenik]

I use and really love altbinz... solid and clear options with all the handy options provided.
Sadly something has gone wrong with the latest cracked editions but oh well... if nothing changes i ll check the new version of grabit once release and newsleecher one and then decide what to do. I ll either stick to the latest cracked working or move to one of the 2 i mentioned.

[zot]

It's been reported that some of the latest cracked versions of Alt.Binz contain a virus. Any version released before v.30 should work as-is without a crack.

I don't quite understand the point of "switching" from Alt.binz to Grabit just because the latest cracked version of Altbinz won't work. The official "free" version of Altbinz, v.0.25, does essentially everything that the current version of Grabit does (both are probably about equally outdated).

(I put "switching" in quotes because most people, it seems, display loyalty to only one software application at a time. I tend to be somewhat promiscous - I've got a stable of about two dozen newsreaders)

[ericab]

I've got a stable of about two dozen newsreaders




absolutley ridiculous.

[SonsOfLiberty]

I've got NL and Sab installed, Newsbin Pro is saved on the drive along with Grabit and Altbinz 0.25...

[zot]

I've got a stable of about two dozen newsreaders


absolutley ridiculous.
I hope you don't carry only one club when you play golf. :lol:

There's no such thing as a "perfect" newsreader - they all have their strengths and weaknesss, as well as performing a different set of functions. Some are better for reading/replying to text posts, others make good thumbnail picture viewers, while others specialize in streaming video. Some are "portable" and can be run off a flash drive - while many are not. Some are easy to learn and some highly complicated. No single newsreader even comes close to doing it all.

Even among some of today's "standard" features on binary news downloaders, consider some of the various features that have appeared over the last few years:

Yenc support
SSL encryption
auto-rar
auto-par
NZB downloading
NZB creation
header grouping^1
header grouping^2
header compression
multi-server
fill-server
proxy settings
RSS
bandwidth throttle
scheduler

These feature were introduced one-at-a-time, and most debuted on different newsreaders or add-ons (for example, Stunnel). Historically, the only way to get all the latest advanced features was to have multiple clients installed, and the same is true today. If you don't want to wait months for the latest-and-greatest feature to appear on your favorite client, the only option is to install another newsreader that offers it.

Also, most newsreaders only work on Windows (and most Mac newsreaders and many Linux ones don't). People like myself who don't limit themselves to a single OS will usually have a different set of applications for each OS.

I also happen to like trying out new software. So many people ask "what's the best ..." but I prefer to see for myself exactly what each one is capable of. I might have tried out a hundred different newsreaders in all -- I've completely lost count.

[SonsOfLiberty]

Well I've heard one is the perfect News Reader, Usenet Explorer and hardly anybody has heard of it, even has SS :) I think you the one that show me the path :lol:

[zot]

True, I've said that Usenet Explorer is one newsreader that has some of the best features to be found anywhere, as well as having well-written, highly-efficient code. But I don't recommend it for everyone, because Usenet Explorer is probably the hardest newsreader to learn how to use.

There's always going to be a tradeoff: the more abilities, features, settings, and options something has, the more time (and often frustration) will be required to learn it -- and the more things can go wrong. Many people simply don't have the patience -or intellect- for 'geeky' software. (no doubt a big reason why Napster and Kazaa became so popular while older feature-packed P2Ps like Filetopia never did)

A lot of new usenet users just want to be able to grab a file with the least amount of work possible. For them, a better choice in newsclients might be Tamava, because it is extremely easy to set up and use -- a good choice for people who can't handle anything more complex than Kazaa or Limewire. (Sadly, Tamava could be considered 'abandonware', and was still a bit buggy when it was discontinued)

[Beck38]

I've looked at virtually every reader mentioned in this thread, and each one of them has major limitations. Most don't even run in most versions of windows, require complex setups before doing a single thing, don't support nzb's directly or easily (again, major complex setups), and so on.

Maybe it's just me, but a newsreader these days needs to install straight away, allow one to plug in their news server, grab an nzb, and go.

One should be up and running within a minute. Period. Anything greater, and it shows the programmer had too much time on their hands.

If someone can nominate a program that fits those requirements, speak up.

[SonsOfLiberty]

These might help, maybe not too?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Usenet_newsreaders


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Usenet_newsreaders

[iLOVENZB]

These might help, maybe not too?



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Usenet_newsreaders


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Usenet_newsreaders

Good 'ol Wikipedia.

GrabIt does what I want it to do - Leech :naughty:. I've only had a handful of problems with it, but what do you expect it free.

I've Newzbin but it's near impossible to find it from a qualified source ;).

[Bonzai11]

All I have to say is thank you for recommending nzbstatus. Works wonders also new versions are now up on Mozilla
(well atleast version that supports FF3.5)
Right now I'm using sabnzbd, but old version 4.11 works very well since I used to use grabit on win, but now I'm on lin.

[zot]

I've looked at virtually every reader mentioned in this thread, and each one of them has major limitations. Most don't even run in most versions of windows, require complex setups before doing a single thing, don't support nzb's directly or easily (again, major complex setups), and so on.

Maybe it's just me, but a newsreader these days needs to install straight away, allow one to plug in their news server, grab an nzb, and go.

One should be up and running within a minute. Period. Anything greater, and it shows the programmer had too much time on their hands.

If someone can nominate a program that fits those requirements, speak up.

Then you probably hated Usenet Explorer, as using it for the first time can be like trying to figure out a puzzle.:w00t:

As I mentioned above, I have yet to see a full-service binary newsreader that (to my mind) is as simple, easy to use and intuitive as Tamava. The programmer even stated that was his primary goal in developing Tamava.

Although the built-in search engine no longer works, Tamava is still usable.

Of the other free binary newsreaders, Grabit is also easy to learn. (I'm not counting the NZB-only downloaders, many of which are even simpler)

[freealta]

I've been using 0.25 altbinz for over a year but would like to have an integrated news *reader*. Using Xnews as newsreader right now. Sounds like UE will do the job but not willing to spend $35 for it.

[zot]

I've been using 0.25 altbinz for over a year but would like to have an integrated news *reader*. Using Xnews as newsreader right now. Sounds like UE will do the job but not willing to spend $35 for it.
There are some unofficial versions of Xnews that support NZBs (the official version does not)

If you've tried the Usenet Explorer trial version, you might have noticed that it's not hard to "reset the clock" and get another trial.

[Skiz]

I've looked at virtually every reader mentioned in this thread, and each one of them has major limitations. Most don't even run in most versions of windows, require complex setups before doing a single thing, don't support nzb's directly or easily (again, major complex setups), and so on.

Maybe it's just me, but a newsreader these days needs to install straight away, allow one to plug in their news server, grab an nzb, and go.

One should be up and running within a minute. Period. Anything greater, and it shows the programmer had too much time on their hands.

If someone can nominate a program that fits those requirements, speak up.

:blink:

What are you talking about? Alt.Binz, Newsbin, Newsleecher, and Grabit all do that.

What sort of "major limitations" are you talking about? What functions are you looking for that you aren't finding?

NewsBin runs on all versions of Windows x32 & x64, plus Linux and Mac.

Newsleecher runs on all versions of Windows x32 & x64.

Alt.Binz runs on all versions of Windows x32 & x64, plus Linux.

Grabit runs on all versions of Windows x32 (x64?), plus Linux.

They all support NZBs. They all import or open them automatically so I don't know why you find it difficult. They all have similar setups that only require you enter your basic host information and password.

[thadiyan]

Can somebody give me some thoughts on newsleecher and what makes it especially good? I use SABnzbd and I am very happy with it.

Can I setup rss feeds to automatically dl stuff with NL?

Thanks,

[iLOVENZB]

Can somebody give me some thoughts on newsleecher and what makes it especially good? I use SABnzbd and I am very happy with it.

Can I setup rss feeds to automatically dl stuff with NL?

Thanks,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_Usenet_newsreaders

If you're happy with SABnzbd then stick with it :)

Back to your question about RSS feeds: Yes

SABnzbd is much simpler (imo)

[ploopsy]

SABnzbd on my main computer and NZB-O-Matic for tinkering on the road with my netbook.