I currently have an arr-stack setup on my home server with qBittorrent, which works relatively well. However, I mainly have two issues with it:

  1. There is very little content available on BitTorrent in my native language (Dutch), not even on private trackers afaik
  2. There are many torrents which take days to download, or even worse get stuck (hate it when that happens, especially if it’s at 99%)

This got me interested in Usenet.

As for point 1, I found an NZB indexer which seems to have a lot more Dutch content. I still have some questions, however.

  1. I understand that apart from having access to indexers I’ll also need a Usenet provider. How big are the differences between providers? I can find plans between €2 and €20 per month; does it matter that much which I take, apart from retention rate and download speed? Do all providers host all newsgroups?
  2. As for point 2, I understand that if content is on a provider’s servers, then you will be able to download it with whatever speed your provider gives you. How much content will I actually be able to find? Why isn’t content constantly taken down?
  3. Is using a VPN recommended with Usenet?
  • dendarion@feddit.nlEnglish
    4·
    4 days ago

    For dutch content on Usenet, I can strongly recommend Spotnet. If you are familiar with docker, you will find a turnkey solution here to get you going with spotnet.

    Short explanation (from Wikipedia): “Spotnet is a protocol on top of Usenet, providing a decentralized alternative to usenet indexing websites, and the NZB format in general. Spotnet allows users to create and browse private ‘newsservers’, or decentralized repositories of files and information. Members share spots (file sharing) with one another, similar to the seeding process in torrent sharing”.