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Welcome to this week's edition of the Computer Kindergarten Newsletter.
Today is Sunday, July 15, 2007
In this Issue:
Special Feature: Magazine Subscription Renewal Scam
Featured Computer Term: Outlook Express Compacting Messages
This Week's Topic: Cookies
Question: Email and Internet Privacy at Work
Websites of Interest: Safe Search Engine for Kids; Dealing with Emergencies; Medical Dictionary Online
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Special Feature: Magazine Subscription Renewal Scam
From worldstart.com; used with permission
According to ConsumerAffairs.com, a number of scammers are sending magazine subscribers across the country VERY realistic-looking subscription renewal notices -- some of which offer deep discounts for re-subscribing by a certain date.
The logos, typefaces, print quality and paper stock used to create these phony renewal notices are so close to what the actual publishers use that few (if any) consumers can tell the real deal from the fakes.
But there's often one obvious tip-off: Some scammers offer ridiculously LOW renewal prices. One scammer requested just $5.00 to renew a yearly magazine subscription that cost many times that.
Not surprisingly, people who fall for this ruse don't receive renewed subscriptions and never see their money again.
Such scams operate under a variety of different company names, which makes it hard for law enforcement agencies to catch the culprits. According to ConsumerAffairs.com, "Sometimes the scammers pretend to be from a collection agency, collecting money on behalf of the magazine."
Naturally, legitimate magazine publishers aren't too happy about having their money siphoned off to scammers and getting unfairly blamed for the problem. Therefore, many recommend that readers follow these tips to avoid getting ripped off:
1) If you don't remember the renewal date of your magazine subscription (how many of us do?), check the renewal date on the mailing label of your magazine. Be VERY suspicious if you receive a renewal notice when your subscription isn't due to expire for quite some time!
(Unfortunately though, many magazines and newsletters do try to get you to renew early. So this isn't a foolproof red flag.)
2) Many magazines include a renewal notice in the final issue of your magazine, so you'll know it's genuine.
3) If you get a random renewal notice, compare the address on the form to the subscription mailing address in your magazine. The real mailing address is located on what's known as the "masthead" (usually on one of the first few pages), which also lists the publication's editors, reporters, etc. Don't send money to an address that doesn't match the one inside your magazine.
(Unfortunately though, some magazines and newsletters use a special PO box for their renewals. So again, this isn't a foolproof red flag. If in doubt, see the next tip...)
4) Contact the magazine publisher directly if you have any doubts or questions.
As you can see, this is a reasonably easy scam to avoid, as long as you're aware of what the thieves are up to.
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Featured Computer Term: Outlook Express Compacting Messages
I use Outlook Express for my email. I frequently get a window asking me if I want to compact messages. What does this mean? I have been answering no; is this correct?
Answer:
In Outlook Express, when you delete an email, it gets moved to the Deleted Items folder. When you empty the Deleted Items folder, it removes the email from there, but the email still remains on your disk
All these deleted emails on your disk means that a lot of space is being taken up by things you do not want anymore. If enough of these pile up, it also slows Outlook Express down.
What Outlook Express calls compacting is actually the program permanently deleting all these emails that you no longer want. You should allow it to compact when it wants to; the fact that it is asking you to do this means there are a lot of old emails accumulated that you can get rid of. Just click to allow it to run the compacting process and follow any prompts on the screen.
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Today's Topic: Cookies
Question: I hear so much about cookies. What are they?
Answer:
A cookie is a piece of information unique to you that your browser saves and sends back to a Web server when you revisit a Web site (the Web server is the computer that hosts a Web site that your browser downloads or sees). The server tells your browser where to put the cookie on the server. Cookies contain information such as log-in or registration information, online shopping cart information (your online buying patterns in a certain retail site), user preferences, what site you came from last, etc.
The main purpose of cookies is to identify users and possibly prepare customized Web pages for them. When you enter a Web site using cookies, you may be asked to fill out a form providing such information as your name and interests. This information is packaged into a cookie and sent to your Web browser, which stores it for later use. The next time you go to the same Web site, your browser will send the cookie to the Web server. The server can use this information to present you with custom Web pages. So, for example, instead of seeing just a generic welcome page you might see a welcome page with your name on it. This can be very convenient if you shop frequently at a particular website; the cookie remembers your information such as name, address, credit card number, and you won’t have to input that information each time you purchase something.
To see all the cookies that your browser has stored on your computer, click the Start button, choose Run, type Cookies in the Run box, and press Enter. Each cookie is stored as a separate file that includes your username, an @ sign, and the name of the site that stored the information. You can double-click on any cookie to open its file in Notepad, and you can use the Delete key to get rid of any cookie you decide you don't want or need.
Contrary to popular belief, cookie files cannot get other information from your computer. They can collect only information that your web browser can give them.
Cookies do take up space on your computer. If you want to clean up every now and then, you can delete all cookies. To do so, click Start, click Control Panel. Click Network and Internet Connections. Click Internet Options. On the General tab, click on the button that says Delete Cookies.
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Question: Email and Internet Privacy at Work
My family and I were having a discussion about workplace privacy. My son says that the business is allowed to read employees’ email and monitor their internet use. Could this be true?
Answer:
It does seem to be true. Courts have ruled that, since companies own their computers, employees have no right to privacy at work. Employers can listen in on phone calls, read incoming and outgoing email, and look at the internet history on your computer (that would show all the websites you visited).
The Wall Street Journal has a good article on this topic, which you can view at this link:
http://www.careerjournal.com/myc/killers/20050701-coombes.html
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Websites of Interest:
Safe Search Engine for Kids
Here is a search engine that should be bookmarked in every parent and grandparents browser. zoo.com gives search results from yahoo, google, wikipedia and many more sites, but the results are censored with any inappropriate content removed.
Dealing with Emergencies
Would you know what to do if something happened to someone you know? At this very informative site, you can learn how to deal with many different kinds of emergencies.
http://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/Dealing-With-Emergencies-Overview
Medical Dictionary Online
Created by Medicine Net, this online dictionary has definitions and explanations for over 16,000 common medical terms.
http://www.medterms.com |
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