Help is at hand for your email and internet problems

Since the beginning of 2007 I have started to get documents sent to me that have been generated in Office 2007, Microsoft flagship office software. These documents can't be opened in Office XP or Office 2003! The solution is here... Microsoft have released a free download to enable Office XP and Office 2003 users to open AND save documents for the Office 2007 suite. Download your FREE copy here...

Another new thing I have been doing over the last couple of years is using Googlemail. Its a free e-mail service from the search engine giants Google and what it does for me is get rid of nearly ALL my SPAM!

I have all my e-mail forwarded to my Googlemail account from my ISP (you should be able to set this up for yourself on your ISP's website) and the SPAM is stripped out and placed in a separate folder. You can still go and have a look at it but I haven't had to for over a year.

It also means I can check my e-mail and respond to it anywhere in the world because the system is web based (It is also POP3 enabled - that means you can still download your SPAM-free e-mail to your home computer using Outlook Express etc.)

You need to be invited to join Googlemail but if you would like to give it a go drop me an e-mail and I will send you an invitation. webmaster@41club.org

The two main threats to our enjoyment of the internet, namely spam and viruses, have now been joined by a third, known as adware or spyware. These tiny programs are delivered to you as an attachment on email or come as a download from the internet and they hide on your hard drive and download advertising whilst you are on line and will sometimes try and dial premium rate phone lines!

Viruses. Hopefully you are running good quality anti-virus software such as Symantec Norton Anti-Virus or McAfee Anti-Virus and you are keeping it up to date! New viruses appear daily and updating your virus definitions every day before handling your email is not a bad idea; you can run a free virus scan by clicking here.

Keep your Microsoft Windows operating system up to date with all the latest patches etc installed. This link will take you to the relevant MS Windows Update page. The Microsoft web site will scan your computer, identify your operating system and offer you any updates that have not been installed. Just click the install button to download and install them automatically.

In conjunction with your anti-virus software think of using a firewall such as Symantec Internet Security or McAfee Security Suite. This will stop unauthorized programs, such as spyware, from using your internet connection and also stop any attempt by hackers trying to gain access to your computer. You can run a free security check by clicking here.

  For the last couple of years I have been using the Anti-Virus software from F-Secure, an excellent product that runs faultlessly in the background (I found Norton a little invasive, reporting every thing it did!) and F-Secure can be used on three separate computers at no extra cost. You can download the software from the link above. Recommended 5* ^back to TOP^

Spam. Most ISP's now have built-in spam filters though many of them have to be turned 'on' by the user and they will sometimes allow through mail you don't want and block mail you do want. Personally I use a free download called 'Mailwasher', by Firetrust; this allows you to view the subject lines and senders of all your email BEFORE you download it on to your computer, you can look at you mail and review it, delete it if you wish all before you download anything on to your hard drive. Mailwasher also have a 'Pro' version which costs $37 and that may just be the best $37 you ever spend!

Remember, NEVER reply to spam, NEVER succumb to the urge to dash off a stiff note of protest! All you will wind up doing is confirming that your email address is live, then the spammer will be able to sell it, at a premium, to other spammers! ^back to TOP^

Adware and Spyware the latest threat to your enjoyment of the internet can make your computer run slowly whilst you are on line and may do odd things like try to dial a connection either when you first boot up or at any other time. If you suffer from any of these problems then it's likely that you have spyware on your computer.

There are two main ways of removing these pests and they are Spybot Search and Destroy and AdAware from Lavasoft. Download both. Personally and from experience I recommend that you use both, run them and let them clean your hard drive - and to inoculate your system against future infestation download SpywareBlaster. SpywareBlaster doesn't scan and clean for spyware--it prevents it from ever being installed. SpywareBlaster blocks the installation of spyware ActiveX controls. Like your anti-virus software, these programs have to be kept up to date to provide maximum protection. ^back to TOP^

Domain names. What is a domain name and why would I want one? Well, if you register your own domain name such as www.myname.co.uk you will get with it all the email addresses that go with it, such as me@myname.co.uk.
What happens when you register your own domain name is that all mail sent to your new email address is automatically forwarded to your current email address such as 'myname@aol.com'.
Still not clear? Well if the whole spam thing starts to get out of hand and you are receiving lots of email you don't want then change your ISP or change your identity with your current ISP. Both of these solutions means that you WILL have a new email address but instead of having to tell everyone in your address book about your new address YOU just change to your new address at the site that sold you your domain name and all your mail will now be forwarded to your NEW email address.

Now this might be as clear as mud! But the order of events goes like this:

1. Register your domain name (The registration process will automatically forward email to your current email address)
2. Tell everyone that your new email address is me@mydomainname.co.uk (Your choice of name @ your new domain name)
3. Once all your correspondents are using the new email address you are free to change ISP etc at any time and all you have to do is change the address your email is forwarded to at the site where you bought your domain name.

What does it cost? Well it might surprise you to learn that a .co.uk domain name of your choice is only around £9.99 for 2 years. This will include web and email forwarding. Use this link to find out if the domain name of you choice is available. (EASILY is the company that supplies all my domain names! You can search as many times as you want for free!)

Don't become paranoid about using email and the internet, just make sure you are using the right protection. Personally I have used Norton Anti-Virus and Norton Internet Security 2003 but now I use F-Secure plus Mailwasher Pro, Googlemail and Spybot plus AdaWare and have (touch wood!) NO problems.

Mail me if you need more specific advice or help with any of the above or any other computer problem. ^back to TOP^

The Webmaster