Alt.fan.sonic-hedgehog
From Sonic Retro
alt.fan.sonic-hedgehog (AFSH) is the largest of the USENET Sonic the Hedgehog discussion groups.
Created by Quozl on March 6, 1995 and originally intended to be a group for discussion of all aspects of Sonic the Hedgehog, the group has fallen into relative obscurity among recent times with the cessation of AOL's USENET support and the more easily accessible forums which have sprung up over time. The newsgroup is still accessible on most USENET servers, as well as on Google Groups, however over time it has descended into little more than a meeting place for die-hard regulars, with little to no frequent mention of Sonic.
Over the course of its eleven year history, the group has seen many changes and lots of drama.
Such events of note include the members Rob Cypher and David Gonterman, both of whom achieved notoriety in the Sonic community at their respective times, and in later years became the subjects of numerous in-jokes, but have been relatively unheard of in the modern Sonic community. (NOTE: It appears Gonterman, at least, is still active in his own projects.)
Among other notorious subjects in the group is the internet-on-TV service, MSN TV (Then known as WebTV). This service allowed users many services, including USENET. Aside from typically poor grammar, WebTV users would also commit one of the most unpopular acts on USENET - posting with HTML enabled, thus creating a simple HTML copy of the post. In some extreme cases, if the user were particularly unsure of proper netiquette, he or she would also append image-heavy signatures to his or her post. Both practices are considered poor taste in the text-basd medium, and users would often be asked politely once or twice to remove the offending HTML. Most, however, would refuse, and arguments would ensue as a consequence, often with the WebTV user being forced out of the group without a word. Over time, the use of WebTV became synonymous with the much-dreaded "How do I get past the barrels in Carnival Night Zone?" question, which was still being asked as late as 2001, and both have joined Cypher and Gonterman as time-honoured jokes within the regulars.
External Links
Google Groups - "Some AFSH holy texts, maybe?"