Newsgroups are a special kind of forum that has existed since before the World Wide Web was even created. Although newsgroups are hosted on many different systems in many different places, collectively they are known as "Usenet."

To use a newsgroup you need to use special software called a newsgroup reader or newsreader, which works pretty much like your e-mail manager. In fact, Outlook and Communicator come with built-in newsreaders.