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Welcome to this week's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Sunday, January 11, 2009
In this Issue:
Special Feature: A Bad Economy is Good for Scammers: Gas Saver Scam
Tips & Tricks: Twenty Five Most Important Rules of Email Etiquette: 4. Keep Emails Short
Special Feature: Computer Don’t’s
This Week's Topic: Minimizing Spam - Report Spam
Question: Disposing of Old Computer Equipment
Websites of Interest: Fruit and Veggie Guru; Swing Era Radio Shows; Classmates; Science Hack
Please consider the environment before printing this email.
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Special Feature: A Bad Economy is Good for Scammers: Gas Saver Scam
The following is from http://www.bottomlinesecrets.com. Reprinted with permission.
Rising unemployment rates, sky-high fuel prices, a plunging stock market and falling home values have landed many Americans in difficult financial straits. This makes people psychologically predisposed to jump at a potential solution -- without stopping to consider whether this solution is truly as appealing as it seems.
Here is a recently reported scam that is designed to take advantage of America's current economic problems...
An ad on the Internet or elsewhere claims that your car could be getting better mileage. All you need to do is add special drops or tablets to the gas tank... or attach a special device to the exhaust pipe or elsewhere.
A huge number of supposedly mileage-boosting technologies have appeared in response to high gas prices. They usually are worthless or worse -- some actually can damage your car.
What to do: Ignore ads and emails that promise better mileage. If there were a truly effective fuel-saving gas additive, it would be huge news, not something promoted in Internet popup ads and spam.
In the next edition of this newsletter: A Bad Economy is Good for Scammers: Mortgage Scams
Visit our Newsletter Archives for previous articles on A Bad Economy is Good for Scammers
Unpaid Fuel Bill
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/111608.html
Technicians at your Home Scam
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/120708.html
Work-at-Home Scam
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/121408.html
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Tips & Tricks: Twenty Five Most Important Rules of Email Etiquette: 4. Keep Emails Short
This article is part of our ongoing series on Email Etiquette. With the help of Heinz Tschabitscher from about.com, we are taking an in depth look at email etiquette. To read previous editions of this series, please visit our newsletter archives:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/etiquette.html
The rules of email etiquette are not rules as much as they are guidelines that help avoid mistakes (like offending someone when you don't mean to) and misunderstandings (like being offended when you're not meant to).
These core rules of email etiquette help us communicate better via email.
4. Keep Emails Short
Long emails can look intimidating, and a long sequence of long paragraphs, possibly including long run-on sentences that do not seem to stop but do not seem to go anywhere either — sentences filled with extraneous words that add little to the meaning but serve to confuse with multifaceted and sometimes conflicting possible interpretations, can make the recipient read less than if the message had been only, uh, about 3 sentences — three witty, concise and precise sentences — long.
(If you did not read the preceding paragraph, don't worry.) That is why it is usually a good idea to keep emails as short as possible. Of course, this is not to mean that you should cut your messages at any price.
Write as Much as Necessary
Write as long and as much as is necessary and appropriate. It is more important for business emails to be succinct. Personal emails can be flowery and long-winded. For clarity, fewer and simpler words are still better.
Use Bullet Points
If you do have much to write:
* Break your message into bullet points.
* Begin each point with a concise summary or the action you want taken.
* Make sure important information is not hidden in your message's or any bullet point's meat.
One Action per Message
Do not lump together anything you need or want to tell a recipient into one message. In particular, start a new message for each major action you request from the recipient.
This makes it easier for the recipient to get their email handled and the necessary actions done. By setting a precedent, chances are they'll adopt the same method for messages to you — and you'll have an easier time ticking off emails, too.
To read previous editions of this series, please visit our newsletter archives:
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/etiquette.html
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Special Feature: Computer Don’t’s
Here are a few things you should never do with your computer.
Never turn the computer off when you have a program or a window open. Close all programs and windows before shutting down. If a program freezes, try to use Task Manager to close the program. Hold down the Ctrl and Alt keys with one hand and press and release the Del (Delete) key with the other. When Task Manager opens, click on the program that is not responding and then click End Task. After the program closes, then shut down the computer. (Always wait 60 seconds before restarting the computer).
Never remove a CD or DVD from the drive before it is finished. The safest way to open a drive is to eject it (rather than pushing the drive button). To do so, double click the Computer (or My Computer) icon on the desktop. You will see a list of the drives on your computer. Right click on the CD or DVD drive; from the resulting menu, left click on Eject. That will make sure the drive has completely stopped, and then the drive drawer will open.
Always turn the computer off before connecting new hardware (unless the specific hardware’s instructions say differently).
Never have food or drink around the computer.
Keep magnets away from the computer. Watch for desk accessories – some have magnetic parts on them.
Follow these guidelines and your computer should stay in good condition for a long time.
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Today's Topic: Minimizing Spam - Report Spam
For most people, spam is somewhat irritating, but to Internet Service Providers, it's a huge problem. All that spam takes a tremendous amount of resources (which, of course, increases the prices that we have to pay for Internet access). If you'd like to help stop spam, you can do so. Before you do anything else, report spam to your ISP.
Many email provides use spam filters. This means that their computer goes through each email that comes into your account and compares it to certain parameters. Some may use a very extensive list of keywords. For example, if an email has the word pharmaceutical in it, it will be directed right into the spam or junk folder.
Occasionally the spam filter may not work. That is when you should use the Spam or Junk button that many email programs have at the top of the inbox. Select the email and then click the Spam or Junk button. It will take the email out of your inbox and move it into your Spam or Junk folder.
For email services without a Spam or Junk button, check with your Internet Service Provider for any steps they may have that can be used to report Spam.
This ends our series on minimizing spam. We hope you enjoyed it and will welcome any questions or comments you may have. Please visit our Newsletter Archives for the previous articles we published on this topic:
Minimizing Spam - Create a New Address
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/110908.html
Minimizing Spam – Registering Online
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/111608.html
Minimizing Spam – Stop the Forwarding Fiend
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/120708.html
Minimizing Spam - Never Respond to Spam
http://computerkindergarten.com/html/121408.html
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Question: Disposing of Old Computer Equipment
Question: I got a new computer for Christmas and will be getting rid of my old one. What do I have to do to make sure that whoever gets it cannot find any of my personal information?
Answer:
Before you dispose of an old computer, you must make sure the information on the hard drive cannot be recovered. Deleting files, and even formatting the hard drive, just removes the information the computer uses to find the files, not the files themselves. Files that have been erased can be found again by someone with a little computer know how.
To make sure your information is permanently deleted, you should either remove the hard drive from the computer before you dispose of it, or use an erasing program, called a wiping or shredding utility.
Here are two wiping utilities that can be used:
http://www.cyberscrub.com/products/cybercide/index.php
http://www.ontrackdatarecovery.com/hard-drive-software/ontrack-eraser.aspx
For free wiping utilities, visit
http://www.download.com
Do a search for a free wiping program. Before downloading and installing a program that you find there, be sure to take a look at the Editors’ and User ratings – the more stars, the better!
Question: I just got a new computer and want to know how I should go about disposing of my old computer. Is it hazardous to the environment? Do I have to recycle it?
Answer:
Yes, there are environmental concerns. Some computer parts have hazardous materials in them that can eventually leak out and harm the environment. Check with your local waste management company or local government to find out about the procedures in your area for disposing of computer equipment.
Some of the larger computer manufacturers offer recycling programs. Here are links to the more popular brands:
Acer
https://secure2.tx.acer.com/Recycle/Page_1.aspx
Dell
http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/about_dell/values/environment/recycling _main?~ck=ln&c=us&l=en&lnki=0&s=corp
Gateway
http://www.gateway.com/about/corp_responsibility/env_options.php?rdr=v1047
HP
http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/globalcitizenship/environment/return/index.html
Toshiba
http://explore.toshiba.com/innovation-lab/green
Make sure you remove the hard drive before disposing of the equipment!
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Websites of Interest:
Fruit and Veggie Guru
At this website, not only can you learn all about fruits and vegetables, but you can find some delicious recipes for them as well.
http://www.fruitandveggieguru.com
Swing Era Radio Shows
If you like the music from the 1930’s through the 1950’s, visit this website for a list of radio shows that you can listen to right on your computer. Turn up the speakers!
http://swing-sked.wikispaces.com
Classmates
Get in touch with your old friends. At this site, you can reconnect with your old friends from high school, college or the military.
http://classmates.com
Science Hack
Do you enjoy topics in physics, biology, green energy and other areas of science? If you do, take a look at this website where you can watch educational videos on many different topics in science.
http://sciencehack.com
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