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DE-S
P A M YOUR INBOX: "HOW TO FIGHT THE S P A M WAR AND WIN!"
by http://www.MCPromotions.com
(EDITOR'S NOTE: Please forgive the spreading of the "S" word
throughout this article wherever it appears by itself. It is necessary to
keep the newsletter from being blocked. Ironic, isn't it?)
S p a m, S p a m everywhere... what's a person to do? If you're
an online entrepreneur, odds are your mailbox is filling up daily with S p a
m. The longer you've been "working" the Net and the more visible you've
become, the more you're probably receiving. I've been online about five
years now, and one of my mailboxes alone is over 85% S p a m.
First, you need to realize that S p a m is part of doing business online and
there's really no escaping it. But that doesn't mean you can't rid yourself
of it by using the right tools and arming yourself for daily battle.
There are many excellent tools, some even free that will help you fight the
war on S p a m and Win! Let's review some of my personal favorites:
1) S p a m Net:
http://www.CloudMark.com
This excellent piece of software is a relative newcomer and free to
download. It only works with Outlook and runs invisibly in the background of
your mail program. The software adds 2 new buttons at the top of Outlook's
interface named "block" and "unblock" and adds a "S p a m folder" where it
puts all of the
S p a m it finds so you can review it if you want before deletion.
If you get a piece of junk when you download your mail, just hit the block
button. This sends it and whatever the sender tries to mail you in the
future straight to the S p a m folder. It also casts your vote to CloudMark
and when they receive enough complaints on a sender that mail is
automatically labeled as
S p a m.
If, after reviewing the S p a m folder, you find something that doesn't
belong there, just highlight it and click the "unblock" button to bring the
sender back in to your inbox forever more. Right now this software only
works with Outlook, but there is talk about a version for Outlook Express
coming soon. I've been using this software for a few months and am very
pleased with
the results. Runs on Win 98/NT/2000/XP.
2) MailWasher:
http://www.MailWasher.net
Another ad-supported free piece of software that works beautifully. I've
been using this with my Outlook Express accounts and couldn't be happier.
You run Mailwasher before downloading your mail from your server. It
automatically marks mail it suspects as S p a m - then you can designate the
sender as a "friend" or blacklist him with just a click. You then click
"process mail" and any "bad" email is bounced back to the sender and the
good stuff is sent to your inbox.
You can upgrade Mailwasher to an ad-free version by sending a donation to
its creators. Believe me, you'll love it so much you'll want to send them
money for all the headaches this software will save you. It can be
configured to check multiple accounts so it's great if you're managing
multiple identities and boxes. It does not support web based accounts like
Hotmail or Yahoo, but a version is supposedly underway for them. Runs on Win
95/98/ME/NT4/ 2000/XP
3) S p a m Buster:
http://www.Contactplus.com/products/spam/spam.htm
The free version of this software is ad-supported, which means it displays
banners at the top. If you spend the 19.95 and register it, the ads are
removed. Before using your POP mail account you run SpamBuster, which looks
for junk and comes complete with a list of over 17,000 known spammers. It
checks your email periodically for new messages and provides stats and
charts of how much S p a m you're actually receiving. Also Works with AOL,
Hotmail, or Yahoo! accounts. Works on Win 95/98/2000/ME/NT/XP
4) MailShell: http://www.MailShell.com
Blocks 99% of all junk mail and works with your current email address. Free
30 day trial available. Less then 3.00 a month after that.
5) SpamKiller:
http://www.mcafee.com/myapps/msk/default.asp
SpamKiller was recently purchased by Mcafee Software who makes the award
winning virus software. Works with POP based email accounts and will run you
39.95. Like most S p a m filtering software, it checks for new email and
possible S p a m on your server before downloading it to your email client.
Filters are automatically updated and you can create your own custom
filters. You can also lodge complaints with spammers and their hosts from
within the interface. Supports Win 95/98/NT/
ME/2000 or XP.
6) JunkMuncher.com:
http://www.JunkMuncher.com
Works with POP email accounts and includes its own email porn filtering
utility. Does not support AOL or Hotmail accounts.
7) SpamWeasel:
http://www.mailgate.com/products/spamweas/sw_feat.asp
Free software that supports multiple email accounts. S p a m Weasel uses
powerful rules to identify Spam and permits a range of user defined actions
like blocking and deleting. Easy to Install and use.
8) Spamex: http://www.Spamex.com
Spamex offers disposable email addresses so you keep your real address off
spammers' lists. Mail sent to the fake address is then forwarded to your
real email account. As soon as the disposable account starts picking up S p
a m and being abused you can delete it and create a new one. 19.95 a year.
9) ChoiceMail:
http://www.digiportal.com/product4.html
A S p a m blocking system that's based on the fact that most incoming mail
is S p a m unless the sender has obtained your permission to email you. You
may preapprove senders from your address book. When an unauthorized email is
sent to you, its sender is forced to fill out a form stating why he should
be allowed to communicate with you. Then it's your choice whether or not to
receive messages from him.
Supports POP accounts and runs on Windows NT, 2000, XP, 98, ME. It does not
currently work with web-based email systems such as HotMail, Juno or Yahoo
or with MSN or AOL's proprietary email. Currently offering a 2-week trial of
their service, or buy it for 39.95.
10) S p a m Arrest:
http://spamarrest.com/
Another service that blocks the junk before it can hit your inbox. All email
goes through their server first, and if the sender is already a "verified
source" their mail travels to you seamlessly. If they are not, you'll need
to add them to your approval list to make sure you continue to receive their
emails without any interruption.
S p a m Arrest works on Eudora, Outlook, Outlook Express, Netscape,
Incredimail, and any other email program that supports the POP3 protocol.
Free 30 day trial is available and if you like it the price is only 19.95
every 6 months.
For more tips and helpful S p a m resources check out:
Elsop's Anti-S p a m Page
Excellent links and resources offered here
http://www.elsop.com/wrc/nospam.htm
Info. on More Anti-S p a m Software
http://www.spamrecycle.com
JunkBusters
http://www.JunkBusters.com
More Free Anti-S p a m Software
http://www.webattack.com/freeware/comm/fwspam.shtml
Let's face it. You can't wage your own personal war on S p a m and win, but
you can reclaim your own inbox by incorporating software that only allows
"real" mail to come through. So choose your weapon and prepare for battle by
protecting what's rightfully yours -- your Inbox.
**************************************
Merle http://www.EzineAdAuction.com
"Where some of the BEST Deals in Ezine Advertising are Made"
Buy & Sell Ezine Ads in a live auction setting! Publishers sell off your
excess inventory and Buyers pick up some Fantastic bargains. Free E-book on
how to write "glowing" ezine ads.....Download Now at
http://www.ezineadauction.com/ebooks/greatezineads.pdf
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