Date: Mon, 3 Jan 83 08:33:47 MST
                From: news@cbosgd.ATT.COM
                Subject: network news message
                To: rnews@npois.ATT.COM

                NPath: cbosgd!mhuxj!harpo!utah-cs!sask!derek
                NFrom: derek@sask.UUCP (Derek Andrew)
                NNewsgroups: misc.test
                NSubject: necessary test
                NMessage-ID: <176@sask.UUCP>
                NDate: Mon, 3 Jan 83 00:59:15 MST
                N
                NThis really is a test.  If anyone out there more than 6
                Nhops away would kindly confirm this note I would
                Nappreciate it.  We suspect that our news postings
                Nare not getting out into the world.
                N

    Using mail solves the spooling problem, since mail must always be
    spooled if the destination host is down.  However, it adds more
    overhead to the transmission process (to encapsulate and extract the
    message) and makes it harder for software to give different
    priorities to news and mail.

4.3.  Batching

    Since news messages are usually short, and since a large number of
    messages are often sent between two hosts in a day, it may make
    sense to batch news messages.  Several messages can be combined into
    one large message, using conventions agreed upon in advance by the
    two hosts.  One such batching scheme is described here; its use is
    highly recommended.

    News messages are combined into a script, separated by a header of
    the form:


                   #! rnews 1234

    where 1234 is the length of the message in bytes.  Each such line is
    followed by a message containing the given number of bytes.  (The
    newline at the end of each line of the message is counted as one
    byte, for purposes of this count, even if it is stored as <CARRIAGE
    RETURN>.)  For example, a batch of message might look
    like this:







 
RFC 1036              Standard for USENET Messages         December 1987


                #! rnews 239
                From: jerry@eagle.ATT.COM (Jerry Schwarz)
                Path: cbosgd!mhuxj!mhuxt!eagle!jerry
                Newsgroups: news.announce
                Subject: Usenet Etiquette -- Please Read
                Message-ID: <642@eagle.ATT.COM>
                Date: Fri, 19 Nov 82 16:14:55 EST
                Approved: mark@cbosgd.ATT.COM

                Here is an important message about USENET Etiquette.
                #! rnews 234
                From: jerry@eagle.ATT.COM (Jerry Schwarz)
                Path: cbosgd!mhuxj!mhuxt!eagle!jerry
                Newsgroups: news.announce
                Subject: Notes on Etiquette message
                Message-ID: <643@eagle.ATT.COM>
                Date: Fri, 19 Nov 82 17:24:12 EST
                Approved: mark@cbosgd.ATT.COM

                There was something I forgot to mention in the last
                message.

    Batched news is recognized because the first character in the
    message is #.  The message is then passed to the unbatcher for
    interpretation.

    The second argument (in this example rnews) determines which
    batching scheme is being used.  Cooperating hosts may use whatever
    scheme is appropriate for them.

5.  The News Propagation Algorithm

    This section describes the overall scheme of USENET and the
    algorithm followed by hosts in propagating news to the entire
    logical network.  Since all hosts are affected by incorrectly
    formatted messages and by propagation errors, it is important
    for the method to be standardized.

    USENET is a directed graph.  Each node in the graph is a host
    computer, and each arc in the graph is a transmission path from
    one host to another host.  Each arc is labeled with a newsgroup
    pattern, specifying which newsgroup classes are forwarded along