Internet Frequently Asked Questions

QUICK LINKS:  DSL SETUP & PERFORMANCE     UNDERSTANDING WI-FI WIRELESS ACCESS      USING EMAIL      INTERNET SECURITY       ABOUT THE INTERNET        GET BACK TO FULL ACCESS (this links to another page)

DSL SETUP & PERFORMANCE

What is the netptc.net mail server address?

Is there a way to find out my Ponderosa Internet speed performance?

Yes. Click on the Ponderosa Internet Speed Test for a quick bandwidth check at:  http://speedtest.netptc.net/

How can I be sure I am getting the optimum performance between the network and my modem?

"Ponderosa One", is a one-time, one jack, data-only conversion which will give you the optimum broadband performance, and eliminate the need for inline filters (see below). Ask us for details on this service. 

What is the function of a DSL inline filter and where do I install it?  

Even if you have working Internet access today, you may experience significant improvement by installing the simple inline filter on each of the other devices which are connected to your telephone service (telephone, fax, satellite TV receiver box). Unfiltered, these devices can create crossover noise to impede your DSL service. Ponderosa provides filters for your convenience. Confirm your filters are installed correctly by viewing these examples: View the inline filter installation guide.

UNDERSTANDING YOUR WI-FI WIRELESS ACCESS

What will I need to use Ponderosa high-speed Internet service?
     ■ Hardware: PC, Internet Gateway, USB port, NIC card or wireless card
     ■ Software: Windows 95 or better operating system

What is the best location inside my home for my Internet Gateway?
See this document for inside placement considerations.

What should I do if I experience wireless signal problems?

See this document for typical issues and troubleshooting tips. 

USING E-MAIL

How do I address mail?
To send mail, you must know the correct address and fill it in at the To: prompt. Simple Internet mail addresses consist of a Username, an @ symbol, and the address, which will consist of at least two words, separated by periods, For example, this is a correctly formatted address:

To: jsmith@netptc.net

There is never more than an @ symbol in an address. Occasionally, you will encounter an alternate form of address that uses exclamation points instead of an @ symbol or one in which there are several levels of addresses in which one or more % symbols act as secondary @ functions.

How do I find someone’s e-mail address?
Most online services will not give out personal information like e-mail addresses. On the other hand, some people register them and make them widely available. Other e-mail addresses are collected from usage.

Is e-mail secure?
Whenever you send e-mail, it is relayed through successive sites, and is theoretically accessible to a couple of dozen or so postmasters and system administrators, who have access to everything that passes through their machines. As a practical matter, so many thousands of messages pass through their machines that the chances of anyone looking at any particular message are pretty small.

If you are using an e-mail account on your employer’s system, the courts have said that employers have a right to monitor e-mail on their systems. You’re probably run a somewhat higher risk of e-mail being read than you would with a large commercial provider.

On the other hand, suppose you have attracted the attention of an employer or law enforcement authorities for some reason. It is relatively easy to set up "sniffer" software to monitor every word of every message looking for your name or for certain keywords or combinations of words and to forward all such messages for special attention. If the organization’s security isn’t good and tight (many places aren’t), it is also possible for hackers outside the system to set up "sniffer" software in an e-mail system, too.

What this all adds up to is that unless you have reason to be a particular target, your chances of having mail intercepted and read is very small, but still exists.

If I want my own web site does Ponderosa offer web site design?

Ponderosa Internet does not offer in-house web design and programming development. Here are some tips on locating a Web designer:

• Do it yourself! There are many software tools available and at varied price/feature ranges.

• Explore the Web and locate a Web site design that you like, then ask them who their web designer is. Sometimes the Web designer is listed on the site.

• Contact your local Chamber of Commerce to find local Web designers in your area.

• Prices for professional Web design can range from, $25 to $130 per hour.

• Purchase a Web site design software package and do it yourself. There is a learning curve, but it is the least expensive option.

INTERNET SECURITY

What is a firewall?
Firewall refers to the concept of a security interface or gateway between a closed network and the outside Internet that blocks or manages communications in and out of the network. The security may be provided by passwords, authentication techniques, software, and hardware may provide the security.

What are cookies, and should you disable them?
If you clicked on the NY Times link, and it was your first visit there, you were asked to register and provide some information. If it was not your first visit and you had already registered, you were probably not asked to register again. How could they tell that you were a repeat visitor? The answer is that they planted a cookie on your system with information about you. When you connected, your cookie files were checked to see if you were a registered user, and you had elected to store your username and password in the cookie. This is an example of a persistent cookie, which remains on your system for a long time. Only the service that installed the cookie has access to it (beside yourself). It is either in a cookies.txt file on your browser’s disk drive or in a separate file of its own. Cookies may or may not be encrypted.

How can I protect my family from inappropriate content?
The use of software to block pornography and undesirable material from children is a controversial subject. There is plenty of material on the Internet that presents nudity and sexual activity, both in text and pictures, although the media has tended to overstress its presence. Some of this material is clearly obscene by United States legal definitions, such as pedophilia. Some of it is clearly protected by the law, although perhaps unsuitable for children to view. Since the Internet knows no national boundaries, material that is illegal in the US can be retrieved from other countries where it may be legal. There is little that US legislation can do to prevent the accessibility of such materials.

The issue of censorship is a highly controversial one. Under the US Constitution and court interpretations, freedom of speech protects a lot of material that some find objectionable, particularly for children. The courts have ruled repeatedly that the goal of protecting children cannot be used to enact means that will also block materials from adults. Since it is difficult to impossible to block obscene materials from appearing on the Internet, and since it is impossible to get agreement on what should be blocked, action is left to individuals and families to find their own solutions. Schools and libraries with Internet access also have to deal with these issues in legal ways.

There are a number of approaches using software that can be used by parents and schools and libraries to restrict undesirable materials. Some are based on maintaining a list of sites that should be blocked on the basis of their content. Since such sites come and go very rapidly, this approach requires frequent updates to the software to be effective. Other software uses an on-the-spot evaluation of site content by analyzing vocabulary to determine what should be blocked. Some software uses a combination of these techniques.

The criteria used to block sites vary widely from one software package to another. Some packages are very restrictive, and have fallen under criticism for blocking too much. Others are designed to give the parent or administrator maximum control of what is blocked. Do you want to block sexual material only, or do you want to block out sites dealing with drugs, violence, and hatred, too? Do you want to restrict language usage in both directions? Do you want to control newsgroups, FTP sites, chat rooms, and message bases? Do you want a record of what sites your children visit? 

Ponderosa offers an effective Parental Control Solution in our SecureIt Plus Security product.