A: Some websites that ask for your email address give or sell it to other companies that send you "Spam" or "Junk Mail." The best way to keep this from happening is to be careful who you give your email address to. Once you already have junk mail coming, you can often stop it by following the mail's Unsubscribe instructions. If you still have a problem with junk mail, your email software may be able to help. Below are several tutorials to teach you how to use the filtering tools of your email software.

Outlook Express
http://www.nwbright.net/Outlook_Express_Mail_Rules.htm
Another example:
http://www.newbie.org/reference/email04i.html
Another example:
http://help.gatorlink.ufl.edu/outlook.html

Netscape:
http://www.newbie.org/reference/email04h.html

Q: I get disconnected while I am reading or writing email, or when I leave the computer for a few minutes. Why?

A: This is most likely what is called an idle timeout. It is set so that if you connect and then forget and leave or something that you don't stay connected all day. If you do not pass any information back or forth for 15 minutes then it will disconnect you. If you are reading or writing email or looking at one single web page you are not passing information.

If you are passing information within that time limit and you still get disconnected there are a few things that may be causing that. Make sure if you have call waiting that it is disabled. Sometimes there can be line noise if the phone lines are old that can disrupt your connection. Also, it could be that your baud rate is set too high, or that your initialization string can be set to better work with our modems. (See the init string info in the answer to the next question.)

Q: I often get disconnected while downloading a file. What can I do?

A: There are many things that can affect the success of a download. Some things you might want to try to improve it are to set your baud rate down in your modem settings. This will make a slightly slower but more stable connection which is preferable for a download. Also try it at different times of day, the best times for a download are when the net as a whole is not too busy, like late at night or early in the morning, for instance. Also, if you know what kind of modem you are using you can search the web for for different initialization strings, this is the string your computer uses to tell your modem how to communicate.

This is usually a trial and error process. The first string to try sets your modem back to default and it is either AT&F or AT&F1. Give those both a try. If those don't work some good sites to find initialization strings beyond that for your specific brand of modem are:

Craig's 56k Modem Site

(In Win95's Dial-up Networking, the place to put your init string is called "Extra Settings" in your modem config properties.)

Q: What if I want webspace on your server?

A: It is easy to set up. For the first 5 megs it does cost a little, just get in touch with the front office and they will get it up that same day. You can reach them at 223-9939 or billing@fiber.net.

Q: How do I get to my webspace?

A: To upload files to your site, simply ftp to ftp.fiber.net/users/(yourusername) with your username and password. Any file you call index.html will pull up as a homepage in your browser when you go to http://www.fiber.net/users/(yourusername).

Q: What is a Domain Name?

A: Basically it is a name that you have registered on the web, for instance, www.whatever.com. Most companies like to have their own domain name so that they can have a web address of www.yourcompany.com and email addresses like yourname@yourcompany.com. It adds a presence and professionality that you don't get with www.yourisp.net/users/yourcompany.

Q: How do I get a Domain Name?

A: Please go to Domain Management for more information.