Winning E-Story Submitted by: Marsha Neely

My daughter, son-in-law and my 3 month old grandson are living overseas. He was born here but left in January. If it wasn't for the Internet I don't think I could stand it. I receive pictures and videos almost every day of my grandson so I can be a part of his growing up. I can be a part of all of his "firsts." I also can send him pictures and videos so he can get to know me and remember his Grammy, so when he comes to visit in a year or so he will know me.

Marsha just earned two free months of NATCO Internet service! Submit your E-Story today and you could be our next winner! Remember that you can enter more than once. So, if you didn't win this time, try again! Just go to www.natcotech.com/estories.php and tell us how using NATCO's Internet or e-mail service has made your life easier, helped you promote or manage your business, or simply how much you enjoy using the Internet and e-mail. If your E-Story is chosen, you'll win two months of free NATCO dialup Internet service ($19.95 X 2 = $39.90) or an equivalent credit on your DSL or ISDN account.

NATCO Adjusts for CALEA Compliance

In October of 1994, Congress passed legislation which requires all telecommunications carriers to take actions to allow "interception of communications for law enforcement purposes."

With advancements in technology, it has become increasingly difficult to monitor electronic communications. The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act requires all Internet Service Providers to implement technologies which will allow law enforcement agencies to monitor communications originating from or terminating to a telecommunications carrier.

In order to comply with these regulations, NATCO will be changing the protocol used for DSL connections. The compliant protocol used, PPPoE, allows the logging and authentication of connections.

If you have recently signed up for DSL, you're modem is likely already configured for PPPoE. If you have been a customer for some time now, we may have contacted you already to walk you through adjusting your DSL modem. If you have any questions or concerns about your modem's configuration, please call 870-453-8800 or 1-800-775-6682.

For more information about CALEA, read more on the FCC's website or on askcalea.net.

Tech Tips

High-Speed Secure Digital Cards
Secure Digital is a memory format commonly used for digital cameras. While standard speed cards are less expensive, high-speed cards can allow you to take pictures faster. Less time between shots can be important in certain circumstances like sporting events or other live-action scenarios where you need the ability to take follow-up shots as quickly as possible.

Rechargeable Batteries
Nickel-cadmium batteries are a type of rechargeable battery which suffers from "memory-effect" problems. These types of batteries adhere to the commonly held belief that you should completely drain a battery before recharging it. Failing to completely drain the batteries would resort in a shorter life span of the batteries. Most batteries today are lithium-ion based, and may be recharged at any time during their life-cycle.

Can I Play MP3's on My Car Radio?
Many people have massive music collections of songs in MP3 format. While there may be a noticeable depreciation in audio quality, MP3 is one of the most popular music file formats. The reason is simple: MP3's take very little room (disk space) to store. Some car radios have the ability to play CD's with MP3's. This allows you to create a single CD with over 100 songs on it. Though you would be less likely to fumble around with CD's, keep in mind that while listening to the first song, it takes a lot of button pushing to skip to the 100th song. Not all car radios play MP3's. Check your vehicle's owner's manual if you are unsure about MP3 compatibility.

See You at the Business Expo in Mountain Home - May 12th

The Mountain Home Area Chamber of Commerce will be hosting its second annual Business Expo May 12th, 9am-4pm. NATCO will have a booth setup to discuss our services with customers, and give away prizes. If you attend the Expo, be sure to stop by and say "hi."

Quick Facts about Land Lines

With the explosion in popularity of cell phones, some people are beginning to wonder about the advantages of the traditional land line phones. Some of these advantages include:

•	Emergency 911 can only retrieve a physical address from traditional phones as of February 2007 in Marion County.
•	Home and business security systems connect to traditional phone lines.
•	Traditional phones offer clear, private connections with no dropped calls. You always have a "good signal."
•	Phone number listings in phone books allow friends and neighbors to find your number.
•	Land line telephones work when the power is out.

These are just some of the reasons that the traditional land line is important for safety, security, and superior service. For more information call us at 1-800-775-6682.

We Enjoyed Seeing Everyone at the Twin Lakes Home Builders Home Show

We appreciate all of the responses we received from the Twin Lakes Home Builders Home Show April 13th & 14th at the Baxter County Fairgrounds. It was nice to take a moment to speak with so many of our customers. If you missed it, we had a booth set up and were explaining our latest Internet offer: if you upgrade to DSL and sign an 18 month contract, you will receive a free modem and 2 months of DSL access free.

Surge Protectors

April showers are coming, and they're bringing lightning with them. Is your computer safe? You should verify that your computer and its peripherals are protected by a surge protector. However, even if you have a surge protector, there are a few precautions you should still take.

Make certain that the phone line for your modem goes through your surge protector. If your surge protector does not have telephone ports, invest in one with this feature. It is a common mistake to leave the phone line unprotected allowing nearby lightning strikes to damage the modem as well as the computer.

Another common mistake is the purchase of a power strip instead of a surge protector. Power strips look similar to surge protectors, but lack the internal components to filter out electrical spikes. Always read the manufacturer's information on the package to determine if you are purchasing a power strip or a surge protector.

For a more complete understanding about how surge protectors work, check out the article at HowStuffWorks.com.

Identity Theft

We have all heard about identity theft issues from various events in the news. One of the most recent issues was the largest known theft of credit card information which occurred to customers of clothing company T.J. Maxx. Approximately 45.7 million credit and debit card numbers are thought to have been stolen. The precise quantity is unknown because security analysts are still looking into the issue, and some data has been deleted. So far, ten people have been arrested for trying to use the credit card numbers after buying approximately $1 million worth of merchandise and gift cards, but the original hackers have escaped detection. In addition to the credit and debit card number theft, an estimated 455,000 people who returned merchandise without a receipt could have had information about their identities compromised.

Hackers aren't the only threat to your identity. The story of Hank Gerbus proves that even someone without a credit card could encounter a great amount of trouble. Mr. Gerbus had computer problems and took his computer to a Best Buy store. The employees determined he needed a new hard drive. Hank knew that he had important information on his hard drive, and requested that they return his old hard drive to him. Best Buy employees stated that they could not return his hard drive due to warranty constraints, but reassured him that his hard drive would be destroyed by drilling holes through the drive. Imagine Hank's surprise when a man named "Ed" called Hank and told him that he had bought Hank's hard drive at a flea market - complete with names, phone numbers, and social security numbers.

So, how can you protect yourself from identity theft when even nationally-known companies like T.J. Maxx and Best Buy can be careless? While it may be impossible to become invincible to identity theft attempts, there are some actions you may take to decrease the odds of becoming a victim. You should avoid keeping confidential data like credit card numbers and social security numbers on your computer, and remain cautious of anyone who asks for such information.

More details about preventive measures you can take to protect yourself may be found on the FTC's website.

Win a South Shore Gift

When you visit the South Shore website at www.southshore.com, you'll have a chance to win a South Shore souvenir, like a T-shirt, a cap, chiller cups, and other necessities for the great South Shore outdoors. The South Shore website is an electronic community for the towns on and near the south shore of Bull Shoals Lake, and it's packed with information for you and for our tourist visitors.

Monica Longo is this month's winner of a South Shore tote bag. Congratulations, Monica.

Weekly Maintenance on Wednesday

Each Wednesday morning from 12:01 A.M. until 5 A.M., NATCO Technologies performs regular maintenance on Internet equipment. Your Internet service should not be affected. But, if you do experience an interruption in service during this time, please try again a few moments later. We try to minimize any "down time" by doing our maintenance at a regular time each week.

All users agree to terms and guidelines published at www.natcotech.com/guideline.htm.

Feedback: NATCO invites readers' comments about the e-newsletter and suggestions for future articles. Let us know what information in the e-newsletter is most useful or what Internet issues are important to you. Readers may send suggestions for future e-newsletter articles, questions or comments to: custserv@natconet.com.

Want to view previous issues? Visit: e-newsletter archives.

NATCO Technologies does not endorse or recommend any software or program. The purpose of the articles included in this newsletter is to keep our customers informed. We do not provide free technical support for software or programs such as Norton, McAfee, AVG Anti-Virus, Instant Messenger Services, etc. Please see the NATCO Internet brochure for full details on what is and is not covered by our free Internet Technical Support.