Index: cron/gate_news
===================================================================
RCS file: /projects/cvsroot/mailman/cron/gate_news,v
retrieving revision 1.22
diff -u -r1.22 gate_news
--- gate_news	1999/12/25 14:35:31	1.22
+++ gate_news	2000/02/07 16:12:40
@@ -125,7 +125,15 @@
             sys.stderr.write('connect to nntp_host failed\n')
             sys.stderr.write(`e`)
             break
-        r,c,f,l,n = conn.group(mlist.linked_newsgroup)
+
+        try:
+            r,c,f,l,n = conn.group(mlist.linked_newsgroup)
+        except nntplib.error_perm:
+            # We got an error 500. This could mean 'group' is not implemented,
+            # and that we need to set the connection to reader mode first.
+            conn.shortcmd('mode reader')
+            r,c,f,l,n = conn.group(mlist.linked_newsgroup)
+
         if not updatewatermarks:
             # just post the specified messages and be done with it
             poll_newsgroup(mlist, conn, first, last+1)