Re: Proposal for the New Top-Level Hierarchy ai.* - Artificial Intelligence

On 01.04.2025 17:26 Uhr Bingo3331 wrote:

1. **comp.ai.* is Stagnant**: While `comp.ai.*` exists for
English-language AI topics, most of its groups—like
`comp.ai.neural-nets` or `comp.ai.philosophy`—are virtually inactive.
From what we’ve seen, they haven’t kept up with modern AI
developments (e.g., ChatGPT, generative models). We’re not convinced
that adding English posts there would revive them; it might just get
lost in the noise. `ai.*` offers a fresh, focused space to capture
today’s AI enthusiasm, starting with `ai.ita.*` and potentially
expanding (e.g., `ai.eng.*`).

comp.ai exist for general topics. There isn't much traffic, so nothing
is being lost in the noise.

2. **it.* Limits Scalability**: Creating an Italian AI group like
`it.ai` or `it.comp.ai` is a solid idea, and `it.*` is indeed active
thanks to the Italian community. But nesting AI under `it.*` ties it
to a national hierarchy, which works great for local topics but less
so for a global field like AI. `ai.*` lets us start with `ai.ita.*`
for Italians while leaving room for other languages (e.g., `ai.fr.*`,
`ai.de.*`) without needing separate proposals for each. It’s a more
unified, future-proof approach.

I do not see any reason non-Italians who speak Italian should not use a
group in it.*.

In de.*, we have people from Austria and Switzerland too.

You could list the groups in an FAQ in the general English groups.

That said, we’re not ruling out synergy with `comp.ai.*` or `it.*`.
We could crosspost between `ai.ita.general` and `it.comp` to
kickstart activity, or even revive `comp.ai.*` as a parallel effort.
What do you think about that as a bridge?

Revive the already existing groups.
They are already available on the servers and people know the
hierarchies.

We’d love your take on this—would fewer groups (say, three or four)
feel more sustainable to you? We’re flexible on the number if it
helps win your support.

Usenet is already full of unused groups, which makes finding
discussions rather difficult. That is why I advocate for using the
places that already exist.

### **Why ai.* is Worth a Shot**
Marco, we share your desire to see Usenet thrive. AI is buzzing
 everywhere—X, Reddit, conferences—and Usenet risks missing out
without a modern, dedicated space.

Could we convince you to back this as an experiment?

It is your choice anyway. You can create the control files you want and
server operators can follow them, so the groups exist. big-8 and it.*
are already familiar, so most users can use that. I dunno if most NNTP
operators will add another hierarchy, but if you really want, give it a
try.
I also don't know how web archives will handle that.

Propagate `ai.ita.*`, watch the stats, and see if it takes off. If it
does, Usenet wins; if not, we pivot. Your support could make the
difference—any tweaks you’d suggest to feel good about it?

I can't support nor not-support that - I can just give my opinion. I
don't run a news server, but I run a web gateway (only German groups
currently).

If you really want to create that hierarchy, I might add it, but my
server is rather slow.

--
kind regards
Marco

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