FAQ

What is Itchycats?

Simply put, itchycats is a premium usenet service provider with an easy to use web-browser based interface. With access to content on over 100,000+ usenet newsgroups, and our easy to use interface, Itchycats is a revolutionary usenet experience.

What is Usenet?

To describe what Usenet is to someone who has never heard of it is no easy feat. Due to the fact that Usenet is complex, and has been around since before modern internet was born. Usenet itself is not a part of, nor is it owned by any single company, organization, nor does it have a centralized management authority. This in itself makes it very distinct. It is slightly more simple to define what Usenet is NOT vs. what it actually is.
Examples:

• Usenet is not a peer-to-peer network.
• Usenet is not just a forum
• Usenet is not a chat program
• Usenet is not the Internet
• Usenet is not censored
• Usenet is not illegal

Well then...what exactly is Usenet?

Usenet is a worldwide system of discussion groups used by tens of millions of individuals on the internet today. You could think of Usenet as one-to-many teleconferencing system. the operation of Usenet is most similar the the way that a combination of e-mail, and forums work. Working in similar fashion as an email/forum, a posted message/artilce gets posted to a local group also known as a newsgroup. With Usenet you can read, and view messages, and "articles" at your own convenience. The system of Usenet allows users to have access to, and view articles days, weeks, and even months after the date it was initially posted.
Usenet is very diverse, and offers a wealth of information, and articles available at your fingertips. Just reading, and viewing "articles" is not the only thing Usenet can offer. Usenet has literally no restrictions on actual "space". Usenet is extremely popular in being able to contain an abundance information passed along to public domains. Usenet is utilized not only by individuals such as yourself, but Universities, and organizations alike. For example, imagine an online text-book on nano-technologies. The fiel itself could exceed anywhere from 100-200mb in size. How would one go about sending, or receiving a file of this size to 100's of online students? Email would be to slow, if possible in the first place. This situation might not be possible for numerous reasons. The solution: Usenet.
With usenet one has the ability to view topic specific newsgroups with content specific to that newsgroup. The articles on Usenet are divided into hundreds of thousands of newsgroups. Each newsgroup is defined by a specific topic. From education to music, to travel, Usenet is an unlimited resource of information.

What can I access on Usenet?

Imagine a room filled with millions of different people, each creating and sharing their own ideas working collaboratively and in unison. Usenet was created around the idea of sharing information, acting as a forum for many diverse individuals from across the world to use. With over 100,000+ newsgroups already formed, Usenet provides the ultimate in information and idea sharing on almost any topic imaginable at blazing speeds. Newsgroups can offer articles on every topic from education, music, culture, language, arts, movies, or any thing you could possibly imagine. Usenet may very well be the worlds largest uncensored collection of information available to the public.

Why pay for access to Usenet?

Usenet is built on three major concepts: Completion, the amount of information available on Usenet, and the speed at which you can gain access to this information. The growth of Usenet from its humble beginnings has inspired us at Itchycats to work towards providing the highest quality access to the Usenet available Ð ensuring that you can access what you want, when you want it. We are hard at work to guarantee speedy, reliable, and convenient usenet experience to our users. Being on the cutting edge of technology requires a great deal of resources, from vast amounts of disk storage to the latest in processing servers, not to mention tremendous amounts of bandwidth. As a premium Usenet provider, we require a very large infrastructure to deliver the best Usenet experience possible. It is with you in mind that we strive to perfect our performance, offering competitive Retention, Completion, Speeds, and Ease of Use at very reasonable prices.

Is Usenet accsess private?

We at Itchycats believe that your personal information should remain as private as possible. Our Privacy Policy is maintained to keep you Ð and your information safe from prying eyes. We do not share, or sale any of your information to any third party companies, or affiliates (we hate spam just as much as you do). Itchycats values the privacy of its customers, and exercises rigorous efforts to maintain your confidence. We do not keep log files of our customers activities on Usenet. Your privacy is of extreme importance to us.

How do I recover my Username or Password?

If you need to recover a lost/forgotten usermane/and or password please send e-mail request to: admin@itchycats.com

Why is my connection slow?

There are numerous reasons one might experience slow speeds. It is not uncommon for ISP's to throttle connection speeds. You might want to investigate your ISP. The faster your internet connection, the faster your access will be. Itchycats can provide Usenet content as fast as your internet connection can take it. Using a wireless connection also causes for slower access speeds then a physical connection.

Are there any long term contracts?

No long term contracts are required to use Itchycats, and you can cancel anytime. Itchycats is a subscription based service that automatically re-bills your card at the anniversary date of your initial sign-up every month. You may cancel your subscription at any time by visiting your Manage Account page, and selecting "turn off auto-billing".

What do I need in order to use Itchycats?

Itchycats is currently compatible with the following:
Supported Operating Systems: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Mac OS X (working on Linux port for future...Linux users check back)
Supported Web Browsers: Firefox (windows/mac), Safari (mac), IE6, and IE7. (though all these browsers work great with itchycats, Firefox is recommended, and most compatible with both systems)

Payment options

We currently accept all major credit cards. Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express are all accepted.We will attempt to charge your credit card for your monthly charges if you have not cancelled re-billing. If re-billing fails due to credit card expiration, or any other credit issue your account will be terminated at the end of your current service period.

Service Renewal

Itchycats.com bills in advance for services provided. Each billing cycle's invoice will be generated on or near the anniversary date of your account creation date. Payment is due upon receipt. Our service is a "subscription" based service, and we re-bill our accounts on or near the anniversary date of your account creation every month until you request cancelation.

How do I cancel my account?

Cancelation of service can be done at any time, and can be done two different ways.
1: You can visit the "manage account page" in the members area and select the "turn auto-billing off"' option.
2: You can send us your cancelation request via email: admin@itchycats.com
If canceling your account by e-mail, please include your username. Cancelations cannot become effective until we have received your valid username. Please contact us if you have lost your username, or password. Cancelations must be entered prior to the end of the current service period in order for them to take effect before the next service period begins. Cancelations submitted after the next service period begins, will then take effect at the end of that service period. Accounts rotate to the next service period on, or around the anniversary date of your account creation.

Refunds

No refunds will be given under any circumstances. No refunds will be considered for any accounts deleted for violation of our Terms of Service Agreements, or Acceptable Use Policy.

Duplicate Accounts

Creation of multiple accounts will require payment in full for each account created. Cancelation and refund provisions apply to each account created without regard to any other accounts you may have created.