COMPUTER CORNER
COMMUNICATIONS INFO
In response to many questions asked of the Communications Convenor
The CBC has an absolutely excellent section of their web site that will tell you far more about Internet security than you will find here. Please take a look at this.
Be aware though it will be time consuming to go through it all.
So it is suggested you treat it like a tutorial and do one section at a time.
It is well worth spending a few minutes a day to go through the whole thing.
Find it here.
Further questions or other info you'd like to see here?
Call Communications Convenor (Doreen Lankshear-Smith) at 807-577-3345
Or email her at doreenls@web.ca
SECURITY ON LINE
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Common Sense demands that you are suspicious of any email from someone unknown to you. NEVER open an attachment with an ".exe" extension unless you confirm with the sender that it is a genuine attachment.
- Many viruses will replicate themselves by e-mailing everyone in an address book. The sender is unaware that this has been done. SO even if the sender is known to you, if the subject line or content of the message does not sound like the sender you know, email them to ask if they sent the message and attachment. If they reply no, delete the message.
- You can check up on a suspicious attachment by going to the Norton or McAfee web sites. They maintain a list of viruses, worms, etc. with descriptions of the harm they can do. SO as well as contacting the sender, if it is someone known to you, go to these web sites to check on the attachment. Norton & McAfee also maintain a list of hoaxes. Many so-called viruses are hoaxes, which are more an annoyance than anything else. Many hoaxes are mass forwarded by well meaning friends, but before you do this make sure it's not a hoax.
Norton List of viruses
Norton List of hoaxes
McAfee list of viruses
McAfeelist of hoaxes
- If you have an alternative E-mail program to Outlook Express, use it. Most e-mail viruses target Outlook Express users and the Microsoft address book. Netscape comes with an e-mail program and address book, which is a free download.
- Whichever browser you use, keep it up to date. They are free downloads from Netscape or Microsoft.
- YOUR BEST DEFENCE is an up-to-date virus checker. Norton & McAfee are the best known and most widely used. Both allow setting for automatically updating on line, so once installed you do not have to worry about them being up to date. They can be downloaded on line with a credit card number. Be sure your browser has 128 bit encryption for security before giving you credit card number. Find this by clicking on Help-About Netscape(or Explorer). Or you can purchase these from a local computer store. They include free on-line updating for a year.
Norton downloads
McAfee downloads
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FIREWALLS
You may want the added security of a firewall if you spend a lot of time on line and especially if you access the Internet by broadband (high speed ADSL or Cable). Commercial firewalls are available, but a perfectly good one, ZoneAlarm, is available for free download if it is for personal use. There is a charge for ZoneAlarm Pro for commercial use. Download the free Zone Alarm
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FILE ATTACHMENTS
Many have been unable to open file attachments. When sending a file to someone by email follow these guidelines:
- Save the file in the normal way & it will save in your word processor's format.
- Save it again, but this time click on "save as" under the File menu at the top left of the page. This will bring up a screen where you have a choice of how to save it. The original will be saved with the extension .wpd for WordPerfect or .doc for a Word file. With "save as" if you click on the downward arrow next to the long slot for typing in the file name you will find a multitude of different formats that you can save it in. They are mostly alphabeical, so click on the "Rich Text Format (RTF)". You may want to save these RTF files in a separate folder on your C drive. You could call it ConvertedFiles or whatever you want. Then if you need to send that file again or can't remember if you converted it you can look there for it. Alternatively if you save it in the same place as the original "wpd" or "doc" file that's okay too, as long as you remember where you save them.
- When your recipient tries to open an RTF file it will automatically convert the file to the word processing software used by your recipient. When you receive files not created in your particular format it should give you the opportunity to "convert from" and pick the format it was created it - then convert it to your format. The best way though is to convert to RTF before you send a file.
- If you know your recipient uses the same word processor (WordPerfect, Word, etc.) as you do, you do not, of course, need to convert the file to RTF.
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DOES YOUR CONGREGATION/PASTORAL CHARGE
HAVE A WEB SITE YET?
FAQ
Q. Why do we need one?
A.
- To be in the 21st Century.
- To attract the young.
- To have up-to-date information about your pastoral charge available to those in your community and to friends across the country, across the world.
- If committees know their activities are going on line they will do more, keep up to date, etc.
- Some pastoral charges put sermons, order of service, bulletin content on line. Shut-ins can access this information. (Seniors are the fastest growing group of Internet users) You can also put music clips of hymns on your site, add links to other sites of interest, advertise upcoming events. If you have a web cam you can even broadcast your service over the Net. Shut-ins can join in even if they have no web cam.
- To keep up with other congregations and faith communities.
- It will give an incredible momentum to your congregation.
Q. Okay, we're convinced. How do we go about this?
A.
- Find a young computer whiz (maybe one on the fringes of your pastoral charge) who will be delighted to be consulted and build your site. He/She will likely have friends who will help and they all may end up in your congregation. Don't forget to suggest they build in a Youth page.
- Failing the above, go to www.forministry.com. They offer free web sites and give you instructions how. Nipigon/Red Rock Pastoral charge made their web sites this way.
- Check out what other churches have done. In addition to the Nipigon/Red Rock sites check out others in the Presbytery. Find them by clicking on the words "27 pastoral charges" on the Presbytery home page (you will have to scroll down). All the web sites within the Presbytery will by hyperlinked i.e. you click on the name and you will be taken there. Knox Shuniah's tour of the Mid-East and Africa was depicted on their web site as the tour proceeded. Westminster, Thunder Bay and Knox, Fort Frances have great web sites. If there are others not listed and linked on the Presbytery site, it's because you haven't told us. Note: Email addresses have "@" in them. Web sites begin with www. and/or http
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TIPS ON AVOIDING JUNK MAIL
- Configure your browser to "disable" or "ask first" about accepting cookies. (Cookies are small programs that some sites put on your computer which can give them information about you. This can be acceptable for interaction with trusted sites who will not sell information about you. The more recent browsers can keep track of sites you visit and whether you will accept cookies or not.)
- Netscape users configure cookies by going to Edit-Preferences-Security (or Advanced, depending on the version of the browser) - Cookies. Then check the appropriate box/boxes.
- Internet Explorer users configure cookies by going to Tools-Internet Options-Privacy Move the slider accordingly. Or go to security tab.
- Be very careful who you give your e-mail address to.
- Get a 2nd email address (e.g. the Web based freebies available from Yahoo, Netscape, Microsoft etc.) and use this address if you are unsure about the person/company/web site etc. Periodically check the email going to this 2nd address. Hopefully any junk mail will go there and not to your primary address.
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CALLS ON LINE WITH NO LONG DISTANCE CHARGES (IT'S LEGAL)
There are a number of free programs which enable you to send instant messages and voice talk with one or more persons on line. Your computer must have a sound card and a microphone. "NetMeeting" comes with Windows. You may need to install this from your Windows CD. This is good for one-on-one communication. Supports audio, video, chat, file transfer and sharing.
Most programs enable transfer of files, sharing a computer screen, instant messaging etc.
One of the best of the free ones for multi users is
Yahoo Messenger - this is an excellent one for audio conferencing. It also supports instant messaging, audio and video if you have a web cam. Great for family communication across the globe.
Others you may want to check out include:
Things to be careful about:
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There are a multitude of such programs available for download. Beware that for some there is a charge.
- Also be aware of the difference between PC-to-Phone calls (they cost) and the free PC-to-PC calls.
- Most of these programs have public chat rooms. When signing up for any of the programs pick a nick name for yourself. With many you can enter a chat room as an invisible observer. While most chat rooms are genuine interest groups, there are some badies out there too, so be careful.
- You cannot avoid the ads - some are more intrusive than others. Think of them like newspaper ads. You have programmed your mind not to see them unless they are advertising something you're in the market for. Same thing will happen on line. Remember too it's the ads that make a lot of the freebies possible. Our newspapers would cost a lot more without the ads.
- All communicants must be using the same program.
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HIDING E-MAIL ADDRESSES FOR SECURITY REASONS
How many people have your e-mail address that you don't know about? This is one way to get/increase the amount of junk mail you receive. So protect the addresses of your friends when you send out pretty pictures, jokes etc. to a list of recipients. One way to do this, without special software, is as follows:
Start by making a new entry in your address book, naming it as an organization or group. So for example, for the Joke List, you make a new entry called JokeList and in the email address section put in your own email address. Now address the email to Joke. Blind copy all the rest of the recipients. Then save the list as a group, which will of course be called JokeList.
This does not mean that you don't trust your friends/recipients if they should pass it on to their list, but this has a ripple effect and somewhere along the line there will be a teenage computer nerd looking to collect e-addresses to turn in for cash - or to send out unwanted mail.
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Further questions or other info you'd like to see here?
Call Communications Convenor (Doreen Lankshear-Smith) at 807-577-3345
Or email her at doreenls@web.ca
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