Natco E-Newsletter - February 2003

February 2003 - There's Still Time to Enter to Win!

Reminder: There's still time to tell us what you think by filling out our annual Internet Service Survey. Those who complete the survey and submit it by March 21 will be entered in a drawing to win three (3) months of free Economy Internet service from NATCO Technologies, your Internet Service Provider. We appreciate your input for improving our service to you!

Go to www.natcotech.com/survey2003.htm, fill out the form and submit it for your chance to win three free months of Economy Internet service! If you do not wish to enter the drawing, leave the contact information blank and your survey answers will still be accepted and appreciated.

We have already received many responses and some were from people experiencing problems that were easy to correct. In many cases, we eliminated the problem with a few minutes of over-the-phone support. If you are having a problem with your Internet service or e-mail, call or e-mail our trouble support: Flippin: 453-8822, Yellville: 449-5087, Mountain Home: 425-7325 and all others: 1-800-775-6682. E-mail us at: custserv@natconet.com.
As of February 15, 2003 the BBS will no longer be available. Most of you have already made the switch over to e-mail only which is only $6.95 per month, but if you are still using the BBS, call us today at 1-800-775-6682 for assistance in making the switch.
The mail servers have been upgraded! We've just upgraded our mail servers again to provide you with faster and more reliable e-mail capabilities. This is just another example of our continuing dedication to give our customers the best Internet Service in the area!

Don't forget to recommend NATCO Technologies to your friends and family. Anyone who becomes a NATCO Technologies Internet customer by February 28th will receive three free months of Internet Service! Remember, they must sign up by February 28th.
Please be sure to keep up with your account password. Although you can set your computer to remember your password, you inevitably will need it again and placing it in a safe location can save you the hassle of trying to track it down later. Also, if you have to change your password, there is a $10 fee.

NATCO's Online Yellow Pages puts area businesses right at your finger tips! Need a balloon bouquet for your sweetheart? There are several businesses listed in our Online Yellow Pages at: http://www.ozarkregionaldirectory.com/index.cfm

Net Nanny
Worried about what your kids are viewing online? Although parental supervision is the best way to monitor and control which Web sites your children visit on the Internet, there are other options for those of us that can't always be there. Net Nanny has been proclaimed the best Internet Filter available and is the world's leading parental control software. Net Nanny offers extensive privacy controls and open filtering features. To learn more about all the products offered by Net Nanny, visit: www.netnanny.com.

Sites Featured on E-page
This isn't the only place to find great Internet tips and useful technology information. Each Monday, check out the Baxter Bulletin's E-page which is sponsored by NATCO Technologies as a service to our customers. The following sites were featured in a previous issue of the E-page. Watch for the next E-page for more useful tips, the newest high tech products and other interesting Web sites.

IRS.gov
It's that time of year again - tax time. Fortunately tax information is getting easier and easier to find thanks to www.irs.gov. This site makes downloading forms and publications a breeze and features the newest tax laws or changes. You can fill out PDF forms on your computer to print and mail or file securly online if you qualify.
Swapping Tons
Trade books, CDs, and DVDs you no longer want for books, CDs, and DVDs that you do want! This is one of the better Internet mall sites and the service it offers is, at least for the time-being, free. Visit: www.swappingtons.com (link not live as of 05/12/04).
Got Time For Another Life?
Looking for a nice place to meet new people, escape from the ordinary or live the life you've always dreamed of? Well, www.there.com might be just what you've been looking for. It brings a new level of chat room to the Internet. First rate 3-D graphics and interactivity abilities equal to "The Sims Online," a similar site provided by www.ea.com, make this site fun and interesting. Sign up is free right now while programmers test and perfect their creation which allows you to take on another persona and live a virtual fantasy life. However, it's not one of a kind. Linden Labs offers a rival in it's "Second Life" site where sign up is also free of charge during testing.

Encrypted E-mail
NATCO Technologies now gives you access to it's secure e-mail system! Send messages with sensitive information without worrying about security. Our encrypted e-mail system prevents anyone but the intended recipient from reading your messages. For instructions for using our Web based e-mail go to: http://www.natcotech.com/webmail.htm. To access our secure e-mail server go to: https://webmail.natcotech.com/.
Noticed More Spam Lately?
If it seems like you are getting more spam than ever before - it is probably because you are. According to studies, spam has significantly increased this past year. There are several reasons for this rise in junkmail. A few are:
- An increased number of people online. According to Pew Internet & American Life Project, 61% of American adults or roughly 116 million are online. That number does not include the 40-45 million children currently surfing the net. Of those online, 94% use e-mail. This increase in Internet usage gives spammers more people to target.
- Spamming is inexpensive. Spammers can buy cheap CDs with millions of e-mail addresses on them. Or, with a little know-how spammers can use the Internet to get addresses to send to.
There is hope on the horizon. Internet Service Providers, government officials, and others are working on ways to combat spammers. Lawsuits, new legislation and software programs that filter out unsolicited e-mail ads before they reach your inbox are just a few of the new weapons. In fact, twenty-six states have already passed anti-spam legislation.

So what can you do to protect yourself? There are several ways that you can keep from being spammed:

Try to keep your e-mail address private. Don't display your e-mail address publicly if you can help it. for example, never post your permanent e-mail address in online newsgroups, chatrooms, Web site forms, or online service membership directories.
When you do submit your e-mail address to a Web site, check the privacy policy first. Make sure that the policy states that your address will not be sold or used for anything other than what you are requesting.
Take the time to read the entire form whenever submitting your address. Some sites give you the option of deciding not to receive updates, product ads or e-mails from their "partners" although you may have to uncheck a preselected box.
Set up another address solely for the purpose of using in newsgroups, chatrooms or to submit to Web sites. This way, your personal e-mail address is unaffected when you submit the "disposable" address online. When this address begins to receive too much spam, shut it down and get another if you wish.
Use a filtering program like MailWasher. Programs like this will help by preventing some spam messages from reaching your inbox.

If you do receive some spam messages:

Do not reply to spam. Although some spam comes from legitiment companies who will remove you from their mailing list when you ask, many only see your reply or request as proof that your e-mail address is a working one that can be used again and again or sold to other spammers. In most cases, asking to be removed from a spammer's list will lead to even more spam.
Report spam to the Federal Trade Commission. Forward the message to: uce@ftc.gov. Reporting spam to the FTC helps in the pursuit for law enforcement action against spammers.
Report spam to NATCO. Making us aware of the spam helps us find ways to prevent spam in the future. Be sure to include a complete copy of the message and the complete header.
Complain to the sender's ISP. Most ISP's do not want their service used to spam others. Be sure to include a complete copy of the message and the complete header.

If you get spammed, don't get scammed. Many spam messages can have even more negative effects that just the frustrating inbox overload. Spam scams are becoming more and more prevalent. Remember to treat the e-mail solicitations you get the same way you do telemarketing calls - with skepticism. Here are some of the most recieved e-mail scams:

Chain Letters. These get rich schemes are illegal. So remember that if you start or send a chain letter that involves money and promises a large return, you are breaking the law. Besides, these scams will never earn you a fortune, just a waste of time. The FTC can tell you more about chain letters: www.ftc.gov/chainmail.
Work at Home Schemes. Many work at home schemes do not deliver what they promise. The best rule of thumb here is the old stand by, "If it seems too good to be true...it probably is!"
Credit Repair Offers. Delete any messages that promise you that negative information on your credit report can be removed. If the information is correct, there is no legal way to do this.
Adult Entertainment Offers. Don't believe any e-mail that offers to allow you to view pages on their Web site free of charge with no credit card verification providing that you download a "viewer." Once you have downloaded this program onto your machine, it could disconnect you from the Internet only to reconnect using an international long distance phone number - at rates as high as $7.00 per minute!

Though some the above information may be alarming, just remember that knowledge IS power. Just being aware of these possibilities will cause you to be more careful with your e-mail address. If you think you are receiving too much spam already and you would rather just start fresh, call us today. For a small additional service fee of $10, you can diminish your spam frustration with a new address.

E-Mail Etiquette
- Use blank lines (press Enter twice) to separate your paragraphs. Don't use tabs, because different e-mail programs tend to interpret them differently. Use spaces if you want to indent text, but indenting the first line of each paragraph is not necessary and should be avoided if possible.
- Using smileys in personal e-mail can be helpful. Facial expressions and tone of voice are sometimes key in having something you say taken appropriately. Since we don't have the benefit of these helpers in e-mail, it is sometimes appropriate to use smileys in personal e-mail. Smileys are a string of characters that when typed together resemble a facial expression. For example, :-) looks like a smiley face when turned sideways and :-( is a frown. The following is a list of other useful smileys:

;-) - wink (slight sarcasm)
:-| - indifference
:-> - develish smile (heavy sarcasm)
:-D - suprise or shock
8-) - eyeglasses
:-/ - perplexed
:-@ - scream

Need those abbreviations interpreted? If you are new to e-mail and the internet, you may have noticed that some people use many abbreviations in chat rooms, on message boards and also in e-mail. Since no one likes to ask the writer what he/she means, here's a list that might clear up some of the most used abbreviations:

FYI - for your information
BTW - by the way
BRB - be right back
LOL - laughing out load
FDF - fall down funny
BCNU - be seeing you
TTYL - talk to you later
TTFN - ta ta for now
FWIW - for what it's worth
ROTFL - rolling on the floor laughing

If you've read these and our other e-mail etiquette tips in previous issues, congratulations! You are now up to speed in the very latest e-mail do's and don'ts!

Recent Virus Threats

Backdoor.Tkbot Learn More at norton.com... (not active as of 01/08/04)
W97M.Hopel.A Learn More at norton.com...
VBS.Waterworks.Worm Learn More at norton.com...

NATCO Technologies recommends that all customers update their virus software (please visit www.norton.com, www.mcafee.com or www.grisoft.com for instructions) and perform a complete scan to confirm that their computer is not infected.

If you determine that your computer is infected with a virus, visit your virus software's Web site for removal instructions.

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 MailWasher, Norton, Mcafee or AVG Anti-Virus. Please see the NATCO Internet brochure for full details on what is and is not covered by our free Internet Technical Support.

Learn some great keyboard shortcuts and other helpful tips at our Technical Support Bulletin Board.
Maintenance Window: NATCO Technologies performs regular maintenance on Internet equipment every Wednesday morning, between 9:00 a.m. and 12:00 p.m. 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.