Explore Groups

Alternative groups — anything goes, anyone can create sub-groups

• 2600 rb.alt.2600

  Hacking, phreaking, security research, lockpicking, and hacker culture — in the spirit of the legendary Usenet alt.2600.

• about rb.alt.about 2 posts

  Charter: This group is for the discussion of anything you fucking want. Talk about yourself, and talk about others, your favorite drink, whatever.

• ai rb.alt.ai 8 posts

  Artificial Intelligence (rb.alt.ai) is a RootBadger discussion group for threaded, searchable conversation. AI, machine learning, LLMs, and the future of computing Related groups: About Anything, Anonymous, Conspiracy.

• flonk rb.alt.alien.vampire.flonk.flonk.flonk.flonk 14 posts

  Charter: Because Flonk. Obviously. ALL HAIL FLUFFY FOR HE HACE GRATENESS. Froup created on behalf of teh Empire of Meow.

• all-things-music rb.alt.all-things-music 4 posts

  Charter: Disscussion of music mostky RnR and Country. I love music and behind the scenes. What were your favorite live shows?

• anonymous rb.alt.anonymous 3 posts

  Post without identity — throwaway discussions

• rules rb.alt.buzzard.rules 7 posts

  House rules for the rb.alt.buzzard corner.

• conspiracy rb.alt.conspiracy 2 posts

  Fringe theories, rabbit holes, and questioning the narrative

• cryptids rb.alt.cryptids 2 children · 2 posts

  Discussion of cryptids, folklore creatures, field reports, sightings, skeptical review, documentaries, and related cultural history.

  • bigfoot rb.alt.cryptids.bigfoot 8 posts

    Charter: Charter - rb.alt.cryptids.bigfoot Purpose rb.ult.cryptids.bigfoot is a forum dedicated to the discussion, investigation, folklore, history, sightings, evidence, skepticism, and cultural impact of Bi...

  • chupacabra rb.alt.cryptids.chupacabra

    Charter: rb.alt.cryptids.chupacabra is a group to discuss the observation and live capture of at least one infamous Mexican goat sucker.

• crypto rb.alt.crypto

  Cryptocurrency, blockchain, and decentralized finance

• nose rb.alt.fan.karl-malden.nose 14 posts

  A monument to alt.fan.karl-malden.nose and the Meow Wars: Karl Malden's nose, absurdist Usenet lore, and the folk-art birth of trolling.

• food rb.alt.food

  Recipes, restaurants, cooking, and eating well

• gaming rb.alt.gaming

  Video games, tabletop, and all things gaming

• hackers rb.alt.hackers 1 child · 12 posts

  Charter: rb.alt.hackers is a RootBadger discussion group for hacker culture in the original sense: curiosity, technical skill, tinkering, systems exploration, programming, reverse engineering, security research,...

  • poc-lab rb.alt.hackers.poc-lab 4 posts

    Charter: CHARTER: rb.alt.hackers.poc-lab is for proof-of-concept security research, exploit-shape discussion, defensive reproductions, and short illustrative code fragments. Posts should explain the class of b...

• hacking rb.alt.hacking 1 posts

  Security research, CTFs, exploits, and the hacker mindset

• history rb.alt.history

  Historical events, revisionism, and lessons from the past

• humor rb.alt.humor 4 posts

  Jokes, memes, absurdity, and things that make you laugh

• lameyslair rb.alt.lameyslair 160 posts

  Charter: Talk about old school usenet. Bring up old times and laughs. Maybe get some old timers in here. It's all about fun.

• music rb.alt.music

  Music discussion, recommendations, and discovery

• philosophy rb.alt.philosophy 1 posts

  Epistemology, ethics, metaphysics, and big questions

• politics rb.alt.politics 2 children

  Political discussion — all sides welcome, keep it civil

  • uk rb.alt.politics.uk 5 posts

    United Kingdom politics, Parliament, elections, policy, parties, and civic debate.

  • us rb.alt.politics.us 63 posts

    United States politics, elections, policy, government, and civic debate.

• privacy rb.alt.privacy 5 posts

  Digital privacy, surveillance, OPSEC, and staying anonymous

• rants rb.alt.rants 1 posts

  A RootBadger group for hard arguments, criticism, venting, and rants without targeted harassment, threats, doxxing, slurs, hate content, or following disputes into other groups.

• self rb.alt.self

  Self improvement, mental health, relationships, life advice

• spam rb.alt.spam 3 posts

  A low-stakes RootBadger group for safe junk posts, formatting tests, harmless memes, bot experiments, and “does this work?” posts that should not clutter serious groups.

• test rb.alt.test 21 posts

  Testing posts and features — sandbox group

RootBadger arts discussion: books, music, film, visual art, comics, and creative culture.

• books rb.arts.books 3 children

  Books, authors, reading, publishing, literary discussion, and book culture.

  • nonfiction rb.arts.books.nonfiction 2 children

    **Charter — rb.arts.books.nonfiction** This group is for the discussion of nonfiction books in all their forms: history, biography and memoir, science and nature, technology, philosophy, politics and current affairs, economics, true crime, travel, self-improvement, essays, and reference works. If a book is grounded in fact rather than invention, it belongs here. Topics include: * Reviews, recommendations, and reading lists * Author discussion, interviews, and new releases * Deep dives into a book's arguments, sources, and accuracy * Comparing competing works on the same subject * Study notes, reading-group discussion, and questions * The craft of nonfiction: research, structure, and narrative * Audiobooks, editions, translations, and where to find them Off-topic here: * Fiction and poetry (use the fiction and literature groups) * Piracy links or requests for pirated copies * Spam, self-promotion beyond a reasonable mention of your own work * Personal attacks, harassment, or bad-faith trolling **Rationale** RootBadger has strong homes for fiction — science fiction, book series, and general literature — but no dedicated space for nonfiction, which is a huge and distinct area of reading. Nonfiction discussion turns on evidence, sourcing, and accuracy in a way fiction does not, and readers looking for the next great history or science book deserve a focused place to find it. This group gives nonfiction its own room to grow.

    • biography rb.arts.books.nonfiction.biography

      **Charter — rb.arts.books.nonfiction.biography** This group is for biography, autobiography, and memoir: books that tell the story of a real person's life, whether by an outside author or the subject themselves. From definitive multi-volume lives of historical figures to intimate personal memoirs, if the subject is a real life, it belongs here. Topics include: * Reviews and recommendations of biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs * Discussion of a subject's life, era, and legacy as told in the book * The biographer's craft: sourcing, access, objectivity, and bias * Authorized vs. unauthorized lives, and competing biographies of one subject * Diaries, letters, and collected personal writing * New releases and classic lives worth revisiting Off-topic here: * Fiction, including "based on a true story" novels (use the fiction groups) * General history not centered on a single life (use the History group) * Piracy links or requests for pirated copies * Spam, harassment, or trolling **Rationale** Biography is one of the largest and most beloved corners of nonfiction, and it reads differently from history or science: it turns on a single life, the biographer's access and honesty, and the tension between the private person and the public record. A dedicated group lets readers trade recommendations and argue over how a life was told.

    • history rb.arts.books.nonfiction.history

      **Charter — rb.arts.books.nonfiction.history** This group is for history books: works that explain, narrate, and interpret the past. Ancient, medieval, modern, and contemporary; political, military, social, economic, and cultural history; microhistories and sweeping global accounts. If a book is about understanding what happened and why, it belongs here. Topics include: * Reviews, recommendations, and reading lists across every period and region * Discussion of a book's argument, evidence, and interpretation * Historiography: how historians read sources and why accounts differ * Competing books on the same event or era * Primary sources, popular history, and academic history alike * New releases and enduring classics Off-topic here: * Historical fiction (use the fiction groups) * Biography centered on a single life (use the Biography & Memoir group) * Present-day politics as advocacy rather than historical discussion * Piracy links or requests for pirated copies * Spam, harassment, or trolling **Rationale** History is the backbone of nonfiction reading, and good history invites argument: over sources, over interpretation, over what the past means. Readers deserve a focused place to find the best books on a period and to debate the accounts they read, separate from biography and from current-affairs politics.

  • sci-fi rb.arts.books.sci-fi 1 child · 10 posts

    Charter: Charter - rb.arts.books.sci-fi Welcome to rb.arts.books.sci-fi, a discussion group dedicated to science fiction literature in all its forms. Science fiction has challenged readers to imagine the...

    • robert-forward rb.arts.books.sci-fi.robert-forward 2 posts

      Charter: This group is for discussion of the science fiction works of Robert L. Forward. Topics include: • Robert L. Forward's novels and short stories • Dragon's Egg • Starquake • Rocheworld and the...

  • series rb.arts.books.series 4 children

    Discussion of multi-book series, shared worlds, reading order, continuity, and long-running fiction.

    • foundation rb.arts.books.series.foundation 4 posts

      Charter: Charter - rb.arts.books.series.foundation Welcome to rb.arts.books.series.foundation, a discussion group dedicated to the Foundation series created by Isaac Asimov. The Foundation series is one...

    • horseclans rb.arts.books.series.horseclans 7 posts

      Discussion of the Horseclans book series, its setting, characters, continuity, themes, and reading order.

    • known-space rb.arts.books.series.known-space 8 posts

      Charter: Charter - arts.books.series.known-space Welcome to rb.arts.books.series.known-space, a discussion group dedicated to the Known Space universe created by Larry Niven. Known Space is one of scienc...

    • riverworld rb.arts.books.series.riverworld 6 posts

      Charter: Charter - rb.arts.books.series.riverworld Welcome to rb.arts.books.series.riverworld, a discussion group dedicated to the Riverworld series created by Philip José Farmer. Riverworld is one of th...

• comics rb.arts.comics 1 posts

  Comics, graphic novels, manga, creators, story arcs, collecting, and adaptations.

• dark-corners rb.arts.dark-corners 28 posts

  Charter: rb.arts.dark-corners is for gothic, dark, strange, and twisted creative work and discussion. The group covers visual art, handmade work, photography, short fiction, poetry, folklore, horror-adjacent a...

• film rb.arts.film

  Movies, cinema, directors, actors, screenwriting, reviews, and film culture.

• music rb.arts.music 2 children · 1 posts

  Music discussion: artists, albums, songs, scenes, instruments, recording, and listening.

  • radio rb.arts.music.radio 4 posts

    Discussion of music radio as culture, craft, and discovery: stations, DJs, shows, playlists, formats, college and independent radio, internet radio, broadcast history, and the way radio connects listeners with music they might not find anywhere else.

  • rock rb.arts.music.rock 2 posts

    Charter: A spot for rock music in the broad sense: classic rock, punk, metal-adjacent stuff, garage bands, indie records, live shows, riffs, gear talk, album arguments, and songs people will not shut up about....

• visual rb.arts.visual

  Painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, design, galleries, and visual art discussion.

The RootBadger books branch for reading, authors, publishing, literary culture, and book-focused subgroups.

• hard-scifi rb.books.hard-scifi 1 posts

  Discussion of hard science fiction books, authors, ideas, recommendations, reviews, and scientifically grounded speculative writing.

Computers, software, hardware, and computer science discussions.

• lang rb.comp.lang 1 child

  Programming languages — design, implementation, and usage.

  • python rb.comp.lang.python 3 posts

    Charter: comp.lang.python is for discussion of the Python programming language. Appropriate topics include Python syntax, language features, standard library modules, third-party libraries and frameworks,...

• os rb.comp.os 1 child

  Discussion of all operating systems.

  • linux rb.comp.os.linux 1 child · 29 posts

    Linux operating system — distributions, kernel, configuration, and development.

    • cerberix rb.comp.os.linux.cerberix 8 posts

      Discussion of the Cerberix Linux distribution, including installation, hardware support, package management, upgrades, configuration, troubleshooting, development, and long-term use.

• programs rb.comp.programs 2 children · 5 posts

  Charter: comp.programs is for discussion of computer programs, applications, utilities, tools, and software of general interest. Appropriate topics include useful programs, new applications, old favorites,...

  • announce rb.comp.programs.announce 17 posts

    Charter: CHARTER: rb.comp.programs.announce rb.comp.programs.announce is a moderated group for announcements of computer programs, applications, utilities, tools, software releases, updates, ports, patche...

  • nmap rb.comp.programs.nmap 2 posts

    Charter: rb.alt.program.nmap Explore. Enumerate. Understand. This group is dedicated to Nmap, the open-source network discovery and security auditing tool. Whether you're just learning the basics or using...

• rootbadger rb.comp.rootbadger 2 children · 91 posts

  rb.comp.rootbadger is for discussion of RootBadger as software, service, and community infrastructure. Appropriate topics include feature ideas, bug reports, Android app feedback, API behavior, moderation tooling, group administration, deployment notes, performance, security hardening, accessibility, documentation, and practical workflows for running or improving RootBadger. The group is also a place to coordinate user-facing changes and to discuss how RootBadger should interoperate with broader networking, messaging, and Usenet-inspired tools. Posts should stay technical, operational, or community-process focused; general programming or networking announcements belong in the more specific rb.comp.* groups when they are not directly about RootBadger.

  • burrowcraft rb.comp.rootbadger.burrowcraft 2 posts

    The art of writing clear, polished, useful RootBadger posts and replies. BurrowCraft is where users practice structure, clarity, tone, quoting, proofing, and discussion as a small performance.

  • testing rb.comp.rootbadger.testing 8 posts

    Charter: CHARTER: rb.comp.rootbadger.testing rb.comp.rootbadger.testing is for testing RootBadger App features, posting behavior, formatting, clients, feeds, app behavior, and site functionality. Appropr...

• security rb.comp.security 1 child · 12 posts

  Computer security, cryptography, privacy, and vulnerabilities.

  • darkweb rb.comp.security.darkweb

    Discussion of dark web technology, onion services, privacy tooling, threat research, scam awareness, and the security issues surrounding hidden networks.

The RootBadger finance hierarchy: stock markets, trading, investing, and personal finance. Pick the subgroup that fits your topic.

• algotrading rb.fin.algotrading 2 posts

  Quant and algo trading: backtesting, bots, signals, and automation.

• crypto rb.fin.crypto

  Cryptocurrency markets: coins, DeFi, on-chain analysis, and digital assets.

• forex rb.fin.forex

  Foreign-exchange trading: currency pairs, macro drivers, and FX strategies.

• investing rb.fin.investing

  Long-term investing: portfolios, index funds, dividends, and value investing.

• options rb.fin.options

  Options trading — strategies, the Greeks, spreads, and derivatives.

• personal rb.fin.personal

  Budgeting, saving, debt, retirement, and everyday money management.

• stocks rb.fin.stocks

  Equities, tickers, earnings, and general stock-market discussion.

• trading rb.fin.trading

  Active trading — setups, technical analysis, day and swing trading strategies.

Arts, literature, philosophy, classics, and humanities scholarship.

• history rb.humanities.history

  History — events, movements, eras, and historiography.

• lit rb.humanities.lit 3 posts

  Literature — novels, poetry, short fiction, literary criticism, and writing.

• philosophy rb.humanities.philosophy

  Philosophy — metaphysics, ethics, epistemology, logic, and history of philosophy.

Miscellaneous topics that do not fit neatly into other hierarchies.

• forsale rb.misc.forsale

  Classified listings — items for sale, wanted, and trades.

• test rb.misc.test

  Post test messages here. All test posts welcome.

RootBadger news groups for topical current events, source links, and community discussion.

• feed rb.news.feed 3 children

  Automated and semi-automated news-feed groups powered by FuzzyFeeds.

  • mma rb.news.feed.mma 1,170 posts

    MMA news links posted by FuzzyFeeds for discussion about fights, events, rankings, interviews, promotions, and combat sports coverage.

  • science rb.news.feed.science 330 posts

    Science news links posted by FuzzyFeeds for discussion about research, space, medicine, environment, physics, biology, and scientific discovery.

  • technology rb.news.feed.technology 1,292 posts

    Technology news links posted by FuzzyFeeds for discussion about software, hardware, security, platforms, policy, and the internet.

• groups rb.news.groups 1 posts

  Propose new RootBadger groups here. This is the control group for newgroup requests, in the tradition of Usenet's news.groups. Newsreader users especially: post your proposal as a new thread following the template in the pinned post. An admin reviews every request.

• tech rb.news.tech

  Technology industry news, product announcements, and analysis.

• world rb.news.world 1 posts

  Global news

The RootBadger projects hierarchy: open-source work, startups, show-and-tell, and feedback.

• feedback rb.projects.feedback

  Request and give constructive feedback on projects, code, and ideas.

• opensource rb.projects.opensource

  Open-source projects: releases, contributions, licensing, and collaboration.

• showandtell rb.projects.showandtell

  Share what you are working on — demos, screenshots, and works in progress.

• startups rb.projects.startups

  Startups and entrepreneurship: building companies, products, fundraising, and lessons learned.

Recreation, hobbies, entertainment, fandom, leisure, and things people enjoy doing or watching.

• drugs rb.rec.drugs 2 children

  Discussion of recreational and medicinal drugs: effects, harm reduction, policy, and personal experiences.

  • cocaine rb.rec.drugs.cocaine

    Cocaine: effects, risks, harm reduction, addiction, and recovery.

  • marijuana rb.rec.drugs.marijuana

    Cannabis: strains, cultivation, effects, medical use, and legalization.

• gaming rb.rec.gaming 2 children · 2 posts

  Video games, tabletop games, and interactive entertainment.

  • adnd-1e rb.rec.gaming.adnd-1e

    Charter: **rb.rec.gaming.adnd-1e** This group is for discussion of **Advanced Dungeons & Dragons, 1st Edition (AD&D 1E)** as originally published by TSR. Topics include: * Core rulebooks, official sup...

  • dnd5e rb.rec.gaming.dnd5e

    Dungeons & Dragons 5e: rules, character builds, homebrew, actual play, and play-by-post games.

• garage rb.rec.garage 4 posts

  Cars, engines, garage fixes, dirt tracks, NASCAR, local racing, road trips, stormy race weekends, and other Midwest shop talk.

• music rb.rec.music

  Music — all genres, artists, recordings, instruments, and music culture.

• outdoors rb.rec.outdoors

  Outdoor recreation, hiking, camping, field observation, tracking, trail gear, nature trips, and practical field discussion.

• pets rb.rec.pets 5 children

  Pets and animal companions: care, behavior, health, and stories.

  • aquariums rb.rec.pets.aquariums

    Aquariums and fishkeeping: freshwater, saltwater, plants, and tank setups.

  • birds rb.rec.pets.birds

    Pet birds: parrots, finches, canaries — care and behavior.

  • cats rb.rec.pets.cats

    Cats and kittens: care, behavior, breeds, and feline companionship.

  • dogs rb.rec.pets.dogs

    Dogs and puppies: training, breeds, health, and canine life.

  • reptiles rb.rec.pets.reptiles

    Reptiles and amphibians as pets: snakes, lizards, turtles, and husbandry.

• radio rb.rec.radio 7 posts

  Radio — amateur radio, shortwave, broadcasting, and radio technology.

• sport rb.rec.sport 5 children

  Sports, athletics, and competitive activities.

  • baseball rb.rec.sport.baseball 1 child

    Baseball discussion: MLB, minors, international leagues, college, rules, analytics, history, ballparks, and fandom.

    • mlb rb.rec.sport.baseball.mlb

      MLB discussion: games, clubs, players, trades, prospects, analytics, postseason, labor, rules, and history.

  • basketball rb.rec.sport.basketball 2 children

    Basketball discussion across leagues, countries, levels, strategy, history, culture, and pickup courts.

    • nba rb.rec.sport.basketball.nba

      NBA discussion: games, teams, players, trades, draft, salary cap, awards, history, and league culture.

    • wnba rb.rec.sport.basketball.wnba 1 posts

      WNBA discussion: games, teams, players, draft, roster moves, tactics, history, business, and culture.

  • fishing rb.rec.sport.fishing 1 posts

    Charter: rb.rec.sport.fishing — CHARTER PURPOSE A home for anglers of every stripe — fly, spin, bait, ice, kayak, surf, and everything between. Fresh water or salt, a farm pond or bluewater, a $12 rod or a cu...

  • football rb.rec.sport.football 2 children

    Football discussion across codes and levels: gridiron, association football, college, clubs, leagues, tactics, history, and fandom.

    • ncaa rb.rec.sport.football.ncaa

      NCAA football discussion: teams, conferences, recruiting, rankings, bowls, playoffs, coaching, history, and realignment.

    • nfl rb.rec.sport.football.nfl

      NFL discussion: games, teams, players, coaching, draft, free agency, rules, fantasy context, and league history.

  • mma rb.rec.sport.mma 2 children · 13 posts

    Mixed martial arts discussion: promotions, fighters, matchmaking, technique, judging, training, history, and regulation.

    • bkfc rb.rec.sport.mma.bkfc

      BKFC discussion: events, fighters, matchmaking, bare-knuckle technique, judging, safety, regulation, and promotion news.

    • ufc rb.rec.sport.mma.ufc

      UFC discussion: events, fighters, matchmaking, rankings, technique, judging, contracts, history, and promotion news.

• tv rb.rec.tv

  Charter: **rb.rec.tv** This group is for discussion of television programs, networks, streaming services, documentaries, miniseries, made-for-TV productions, and the television industry. Topics include:...

• whiskey rb.rec.whiskey 5 posts

  Charter: **rb.rec.whiskey** This group is for discussion of whiskey in all its forms, including Scotch, Irish, American, Canadian, Japanese, rye, bourbon, single malts, blends, world whiskies, and related top...

• youtube rb.rec.youtube 1 child

  Discussion of YouTube channels, creators, videos, trends, recommendations, and the culture around online video.

  • best-of rb.rec.youtube.best-of 3 posts

    Curated recommendations for especially good YouTube videos, channels, series, explainers, documentaries, and creator work.

Natural and social sciences, scientific research, and technology.

• anomalies rb.sci.anomalies 1 posts

  Evidence-focused discussion of unusual observations, unexplained reports, edge cases, and claims that need careful skeptical review.

• botany rb.sci.botany

  Plant science, field botany, taxonomy, ecology, identification, conservation, and the biology of plant life.

• entomology rb.sci.entomology 2 posts

  Insects and related arthropods: identification, behavior, field notes, beneficial bugs, pest management, taxonomy, and ecology.

• math rb.sci.math

  Mathematics — pure, applied, recreational, and educational.

• physics rb.sci.physics 1 child

  Physics — theoretical, experimental, and applied.

  • quantumphysics rb.sci.physics.quantumphysics 1 child

    Quantum mechanics and quantum physics: superposition, entanglement, wavefunctions, quantum field theory, experiments, and the interpretations that try to make sense of it all.

    • mindset rb.sci.physics.quantumphysics.mindset

      Positive mindset through the lens of quantum physics. Observation shapes outcomes, possibility over fixed certainty, entanglement with the world around you — use quantum principles as mental models for an intentional, growth-oriented mindset. Quantum thinking applied to everyday life.

• space rb.sci.space 1 child · 5 posts

  Space exploration, astronomy, astrophysics, and cosmology.

  • spacex rb.sci.space.spacex 2 posts

    Charter: rb.sci.space.spacex "The Future Doesn't Build Itself." This group is for discussion of SpaceX, its spacecraft, launch vehicles, missions, technology, and future plans. Topics include: Falcon...

Social issues, cultural discussions, world affairs, and society.

• culture rb.soc.culture

  Cultural discussion — societies, traditions, arts, identity, and social norms.

Open debate, controversial subjects, and discussion without strict topical limits.

• politics rb.talk.politics

  Political debate — all parties, all ideologies, all countries.

Technology namespace for serious computing, infrastructure, protocols, operating systems, and engineering discussion.

• os rb.tech.os 1 child

  Operating systems namespace for kernel, filesystem, networking, init, packaging, virtualization, and platform internals.

  • bsd rb.tech.os.bsd 1 child

    BSD operating systems: FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD, DragonFly BSD, administration, networking, security, filesystems, ports, jails, bhyve, and Unix system design.

    • freebsd rb.tech.os.bsd.freebsd 2 posts

      FreeBSD discussion: base system, kernel, ZFS, jails, bhyve, ports/pkg, poudriere, networking, storage, performance, security, releases, and real deployments.