A hearty welcome to all the spam fighting filters and programs created to rescue us from the deluge of unwanted e-mail! There is practically a "solution" for everything. But as with most online "solutions" filters and programs are only tools that users need to make some effort to use properly to reap the benefits.

You have to learn how to use these programs to your advantage or you can experience the unexpected downside. How can there be a downside when we're talking less spam you say? Unfortunately, all too often legitimate and expected e-mails are being eaten by filters and are ending up in the trash!

Twice this week I received terse e-mails from new clients awaiting my response on certain issues. Because they were new to working with me, they didn't know that I usually respond within an hour to most e-mail. My responses were not returned as "undeliverable" so what happened? Where are they? In both instances I called my clients only to find my messages had inadvertently landed in their junk or trash folder because of their ISP's filtering systems.

When communicating with clients and in my day-to-day communications, I do not go to extremes to alter certain words that may trip filters in my day to day communications. With folks I know, that shouldn't be an issue because they are supposedly expecting my e-mail. In addition, I always instruct new clients and subscribers to add me to their address book, approved or white list.

Plus as I am sure you'll agree, you've seen all those funky ways of spelling certain words with characters or spaces that are unnatural. I believe they ruin the flow of your message because the reader can't help but take pause to notice.

Before you send off a terse e-mail complaining or assuming no response, be sure you have covered the following:

1) When you know you will be communicating with a specific person on a regular basis, make sure you add them to your approved list or address book as soon as possible. Many onliners now use Web based e-mail such as Yahoo! and MSN that allow them to control who they receive e-mail from. Just as the majority of ISPs now give you the ability to filter e-mail based on level of spamminess or by adding e-mail addresses to your list so they can get through. Be sure to use these tools to avoid trashing wanted e-mail.

2) Same goes for Web sites or eZines you sign up for. Add their dot com to your list as soon as you sign up. Most legitimate eZines use a double-opt in subscription process that requires you respond or click on a link within an e-mail from them before you get formally added to their list. If you don't get that e-mail to respond to it-you will not be added.

3) Before you empty your trash or junk folder-go through the trash! Take a quick peak and look at the Sender: and Subject: fields to see if names are familiar or for a topic that is expected. Otherwise you risk wanted e-mail going out with the trash!

Three simple little steps can help ensure the e-mail you do want lands in your inbox. The e-mail you are waiting for may have already arrived!

About the Author:

Judith Kallos is an authoritative and good-humored Technology Musewho has played @ http://www.TheIStudio.com for over a decade. Check out her popular Software, Programming and Web Design Cheat Sheets @ http://www.LearnAndThrive.com

RELATED ARTICLES Internet Theft and Fraud My friends in the web hosting business have recently informed me that the big problem this year (2004) is security and fraud. I have read that currently the F. How Spammers Fool Spam Blacklists - And How to Stop Them Effectively stopping spam over the long-term requires much more than blocking individual IP addresses and creating rules based on keywords that spammers typically use. The increasing sophistication of spam tools coupled with the increasing number of spammers in the wild has created a hyper-evolution in the variety and volume of spam. BUSTED: Anti Spam Forces Bankrupt Super-Spammer Scott Richter Microsoft scores one for the good guysScott Richter, the self-proclaimed "Spam King," just can't seem to get enough attention. Admittedly responsible for sending literally billions of Unsolicited Commercial Email messages (UCE), Richter made headlines again recently when his spam-fed cash cow, OptInRealBig. Invasion of the Email Snatchers They're sneaky. And stealthy. How Spammers Fool Rule-based and Signature-Based Spam Filters Effectively stopping spam over the long-term requires much more than blocking individual IP addresses and creating rules based on keywords that spammers typically use. The increasing sophistication of spam tools coupled with the increasing number of spammers in the wild has created a hyper-evolution in the variety and volume of spam. Block Ads, Defeat Pop-Ups, and STOP Page Hijacking You're not alone!Who hasn't surfed the web looking for information only tohave their session interrupted by those annoying pop-upwindows displaying everything from banner ads to newslettersign-up's?Though pop-up windows and other methods of influencing auser's online experiences originally had positiveintentions, they now seem only to annoy and manipulateusers at every turn.For anyone who ever felt extremely irritated by onlineadvertising, the following advice should help. Why Your ISP Takes Bribes From Spammers The lifeblood of the spammer is email. They need to be able to send lots of it on an ongoing basis to stay in "business". Bayesian Spam Filters Explained In a word Bayesian spam filters are "intelligent". Bayesian spam filters are intelligent in so far as they're capable of comparing two sets of information and acting on the result. How Spammers Fool Bayesian Filters - And How to Stop Them Effectively stopping spam over the long-term requires much more than blocking individual IP addresses and creating rules based on keywords that spammers typically use. The increasing sophistication of spam tools coupled with the increasing number of spammers in the wild has created a hyper-evolution in the variety and volume of spam. Spam eMails Are Not Just Annoying - They Are A Main Distributor Of Viruses Why is someone from India, Africa, or elsewhere writing you for information about your bank account with shady promises of depositing thousands of dollars within? (Many, many people have fallen for this real scam.) It's costing us ALL money - more on this in a bit. How To Analyze A Rip-Off Scheme This review is taken DIRECTLY from a piece of "junk mail." It is or the program that starts out with the heading: "Before You Decide To Throw This Away, Please Read The Enclosed At Least Once - Then Decide. The Vanishing Mail Am I Just Being Paranoid Or Are The Robots Out To Get Me?It all started in the early part of the twenty-first century.In the early days of email we were thrilled with its speed and reliability, far superior to "snail mail" but there's always somebody who has to go and spoil things for everyone else. Getting Back To Basics. While we all agree that there`s way too much spamming/junk-mailing going on in our email boxes, there are a couple of things we can do to reduce the amount of mails we actually have to sift through, without having to resort to paying for expensive software that can be a real pain to set up properly. Firstly, and this is a great, little known tip. Beware of the Newest Activity Online: Phishing No. I'm not talking here about the outdoor activity enjoyed by many. Internet Tip of the Week: Information Overload We receive so much information on the Internet, especially via email, that many times we have difficulty separating the good "stuff" from the junk. Most of us put unsolicited email (spam) in the junk category. Anti Trackback and Comment Spam Methods What is spam ? Spam is text or URL, in one or several exemplars, neither being waited nor wished, not having, neither directly nor from its shipper, no relationship neither with the recipient nor with a possible resource related to the recipient. How does spam appears in blogs ? Through the comments' body and commentator's URL. Stuffing the Spammers! I'm really, truly fed up with spam. Every day when the spam arrives and Norton Security moves it into the Norton Anti-spam folder of my Outlook email client, I wonder how anyone can be so incredibly stupid as to waste their time sending me such garbage. Take Back Control of Your Inbox: Eliminate Annoying and Potentially Harmful E-mails Are you tired of spam stealing your time, your money, your bandwidth and your hard disc space?The time you devote each day to sort and delete spam from your inbox could be put to much better use. In the European Union alone, the working hours employees are spending on sorting and deleting spam is costing the companies and estimated 10 billion euros every year! By manually sorting out spam after it has reached your inbox you are loosing time and money, as well as bandwidth and space. The Business Of Sending Spam You all tear your hair out in frustration every time you see your inbox crammed full of spam again. Have you ever stopped and asked yourself where you get so much spam? This isn't to suggest that spam is your fault but. I Love Spam! What's the big deal? All you read on the internet is spam, spam, spam. Spam protection this, spam protection that.