...itself, Usenet (created in 1979) doesn't function in anything close to real time. Instead, it works on a "store-and-forward" basis: If somebody in Russia contributes a posting to the rec.travel.air newsgroup about Aeroflot's food...

...origin. This is what's known generically as a store-and-forward mail system, as opposed to direct or point-to-point...Think about it a moment and you'll see that store-and-forward works more like the post office than some fancy...

...transmission over one line, I haven't found an inexpensive device designed for light commercial use that will store and forward fax signals or data from that line. Send your questions to John Gilroy in care of The Washington Post, 1150 15th...