Sharon (and everyone else who is Usenet-challenged)...
Don?t give up!!
I'm a huge proponent of newsgroups. How else can a person upload a file just once, and theoretically that file can then be downloaded by an unlimited number of others around the world? That?s the potential of Usenet (newsgroups)! Albeit, it is a little tricky to get started. Basically, Usenet utilities can be categorized into three areas:
Newsreader
This is first and foremost the most important aspect of using a newsgroup. A newsreader will access a newsgroup and then download all the headers (messages). For binaries, it will combine all the messages making up the file into a single message for you to download. It will also allow you to participate in the group by posting either text messages or files. Xnews is a workhorse, but totally user unfriendly. Some good primers are available online to help the struggling to get started with Xnews.
http://www.slyck.com/xnews.php?page=1
http://usenethelp.abmefaq.net/XNews_Primer.html
If Xnews seems too complicated, you might try Newsman Pro. It has a slicker interface than Xnews, and it includes a help file (yeah!!!) with a step-by-step guide in getting started. Plus, it?s free.
Binaries Poster
If you are posting just a file or two, your newsreader should do just fine. However, if you are posting a large number of files, you will appreciate using a binaries posting utility. I think Sharkpost is the easiest and use it all the time. PowerPost-A&A is more powerful, but a little more complicated.
Binaries Downloader
I personally do not use this type of program, since a good newsreader can be used to download files. This type of utility will access a group, download all the headers, and then provide a listing of all the binaries for you to download.
If you need some more help, just let me know.
Timothy