We've gotten some disgruntled notes from another website about a rash of "bounced" messages sent to their site, which results from attempts to send "alerts" to a forum participant with a phony email address.

In particular, someone posting as xxx@deepwoods.com (I think it may have been raven@deepwoods.com) has caused some undeserved annoyance at the legitimate deepwoods.com web site.

Basic etiquette guideline: if you're going to use a pseudonym repeatedly, it would be a good idea to check and ensure that a "real" version of the Internet domain doesn't exist. In any case, if you're using a "phony" pseudonym, please ensure that you've turned off email alerts.

Thanks, Ed

-- Ed Yourdon (ed@yourdon.com), March 27, 1999

Answers

A thought. If you feel you absolutly have to use a "funny" email address when posting a question, make sure to punch the button that disables auto email responses!

Or don't end in ".com", ".net", ".gov" etc.....

-- helium (heliumavid@yahoo.com), March 27, 1999.

I suggest that you set-up a free anonymous e-mail account at Yahoo, Hotmail or one of several other sites, and use that account here. This solves the above problem, and it keeps us happy since we will no longer receive "bounced" messages in our in-box when we answer one of your posts. And you will have one place to get answers to all your posts here. You may have to try a few times to find an unused account at these sites. Also, remember to delete your mail once in a while since most of these sites have a limit on the amount of mail you can keep. Just my $.02 <:)=

-- Sysman (y2kboard@yahoo.com), March 27, 1999.

Ed Yourdon:

Thanks for your advice. I use my real E-mail address and user name because I am serious about Y2K. I know many posters consider it a blast to use witty false addresses, but I think Y2K is very serious and should not be an excuse to urinate off other Internet businesses with phony E-mail addresses.

Sysman:

Good point. I have a Hotmail address, too. It's better to use a buffer E-mail address than to plagiarize authentic Internet business accounts.

Facetiously, unnervedbyreality@home.com

Sincerely,

dinosaur

-- dinosaur (dinosaur@williams-net.com), March 27, 1999.

What?

-- peepee (you're@n8.com), March 27, 1999.

They should set the e-mail response button default to "no". That would probably solve 90% of the problems.

-- @ (@@@.@), March 27, 1999.

Thanks for the warning Mr. Yourdon, didn't occure to me. I shall keep this one for a while ;)

-- Got-It (%$^&^@^&%$.!!!), March 27, 1999.

Ed Yourdon:

Sorry Ed, that was me....I was posting as Raven@deepwoods.com.As I said a few days ago,I am not familiar with posting on forums.I saw that everyone else was using an alias..& thought it must be for privacy,so I made one up.I had no idea it would cause all the trouble.I won't be using Raven again....this is my real email address & Carol Ann is my name.

-- Carol Ann (JCclass69@aol.com), March 27, 1999.

Ed... Sorry if we have caused you difficulty with the aliases most of us use here. One reason for not using the real email address occurred not long ago (last October) on another BB that was concerned with survival.

That BB had a sudden influx of trolls and/or irresponsible kids whose idea of a good time was to harass the regulars on the board. Their idea of 'funny' was to utilize the regular poster's real email address and subscribe to as many free email catalogs, porno posts and pedophile networks as they could. Some of the trolls posting on that site had rather recognizable styles...and I have thought that I recognized one or two here over the last month but maybe not. You think you have problems....try explaining to the wife that YOU did not subscribe to some of the things that showed up on the mail.

For those of you that might wish to know it, my real email address is:

James Moore (RiverMystFarm@webtv.net)

(The web tv doesn't do hot links or at least, I can't do it with this thing)

-- Lobo (Hiding@woods.xxx), March 28, 1999.

Also check for domain names here, especially if you plan to sign up for one. Otherwise, as recommended, its best not to use the standard dot endings. (InterNics changed the name to Network Solutions) ...

http:// www.networksolutions.com/

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), March 28, 1999.

Hmmm.......how do I turn off the auto email alerts? I don't see a button.....

-- Sheila (sross@bconnex.net), March 28, 1999.

Another way to ensure a non-existent domain name is to use a special character other than "-" (dash). The only valid characters for domain names are alphanumeric and "-".

-- No Spam Please (No_Spam_Please@anon_ymous.com), March 28, 1999.

Sheila - test response post about removing email alerts:

Post a new reply to this msg - look all the way at the bottom [Submit] button.

-- Robert A Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), March 29, 1999.

Sheila - test response post about removing email alerts:

Post a new reply to this msg - look all the way at the bottom [Submit] button.

Continued...

Look at the "inserting message" page that comes up when you submit your latest posting. There is a link there "email_alerts" that is underlined. Push that link.

You are now on a new page - the upper section lets you "Add a Alert". The lower section is to "Edit Previous Alerts" -> that's what you want to do -> so enter the email address that the database "knows" you by.

If it currently is your "real" email address, use it.

If you previously entered an alias address you want to change, enter the current alias.

In either case, hit the [Submit] button. You'll go to a screen with the "current status" of your email updates, and a choice to "disable", or "re-enable" them. (In your case, toggle the action collumn to read "disable".

This should turn off your email replies to previous threads.

-- Robert A Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), March 29, 1999.

Sheila - test response post about removing email alerts for new messages:

When you enter a "new message" - look carefully at the header page - just check "off" the "email reply" section. You will not receive replies each time a user posts a response to your message.

More clear?

-- Robert A Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), March 29, 1999.

Thank you Robert! This is my test.....looking for the "email off" button as soon as I hit submit......

-- Sheila (sross@bconnex.net), March 29, 1999.

DUH!! sorry......I goofed and have to do this again.....

-- Sheila (sross@bconnex.net), March 29, 1999.

RObERt!!!!!! YoU SEeM LikE A KnowLEdgeaBle FEllOW!!!!!! Do yOu thiNK tHaT DieTER ShoULD trY "IDiOTJAckASS@infIDEL.coM"??????? woUlD THaT SOLve AnY PROBLemS?????? tHAnK yOu aND GoOd morNIng!!!!!!

-- Dieter (questions@toask.com), March 29, 1999.

No.

-- Robert A Cook, PE (Kennesaw, GA) (Cook.R@csaatl.com), March 30, 1999.

Dieter,

Sorry, infidel.com is unavailable...

Registrant:
Infidel Intricate Innards BBS (INFIDEL-DOM)
24050 South Woodland Rd.
Shaker Hts, OH 44122-3314

Domain Name: INFIDEL.COM ...(more)...

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), March 30, 1999.