<< Usenet is a joke nowadays...I don't ever set foot in there. >>
To you, perhaps. The same can be said about IRC, but if you're using either medium for a *purpose*, both resources are indispensable. I learned the more esoteric aspects of the C language from the pedants on comp.lang.c. I frequently scour newsgroups for problems that arise in my projects, and often times, I'll hit IRC because I always find at least one person who has some insight into something I'm working on. Granted, IRC is often a waste of time for those that frequent #teenchat, but there are many channels with technically lucid people who enjoy "talking shop."