Tuesday, December 4, 2007

USING AN ONLINE INFORMATION SERVICE

USING AN ONLINE INFORMATION SERVICE

These services are supported by users. Users pay an access fee to

use the service. You can pay either a one-time access fee, a fee per

minute/ hour you are online, or some require you to pay a monthly

access fee. Anyhow, the charge usually includes an instruction

manual, as well as some online credit.

Sometimes the cost for connect time will vary depending on the

speed of the modem you are using. For example, you will be

charged less for a 1200-baud modem than you would for a 9600-

baud modem. They might also charge more or less depending on

the time you are calling. You might be required to pay a fee for

special access to some of the files, doors, or conferences.

However it is worked, the charges are most easily billed to your

credit card.

Choosing A Service

When you are choosing an online service, you will need to do a little

research. You should make a note of the things you are looking for in

an online information service. When you have decided what you are

looking for, you will need to "shop" around and look at several of the

services and find one that best fits your needs.

Many online services offer starter kits for new users. The starter kits

offer a variety of things to you. It will include registration information,

tutorials, users guide and several other useful items available.

If you can't decide on a service, then just sign up for one that sounds

interesting to you. Try it for a few weeks/months and see if it is what

you want. If it isn't, then quit that one and try another one. It won't

take long until you find the one that suits you best. If a service only

charges you when you log on to it, then it won't hurt you to use it when

you want to, and don't if you don't want to use it.

Keeping Costs Down

You probably have noticed that the major disadvantage of online

services is the cost. You can run up quite a bill if you aren't careful.

Rates very from $2.50 per hour all the way up to as much as a

hundred dollars or more if you are accessing a special database.

The best way to keep the cost down is to limit access time, and don't

waste time while online.

You will want to look over the user's manual for a few hours before

you use the OIS (Online Information Service). This will give you an

understanding of the system and how it works, and will save you

some money by saving time online. You should find out if you can

skip the menu screens so you don't waste time searching for things.

You can also save on costs by taking advantage of the OIS's billing

information. You might be able to access the OIS cheaper after 11

pm, or on weekends. You might find it cheaper to operate at a

slower modem speed.

When chatting only, you should have the modem speed at 300-baud;

it will not seem any different, but you will be able to notice the

difference in price.

If you are going to access a database, you need to set your modem

at its fastest rate. Sending information at a fast speed will save a lot

of money. You should also use the highest speed when up and

downloading files. Most online services will give you a better rate

when you operate faster.

Tips and Techniques

A lot of the services have a variety of commands that are similar.

This makes it easier to explore additional services. Each OIS will

have its own unique functions, but most will generally operate the

service and follow the commands. Most of the OISes use either

BTNA, SprintNet, or other packet switching networks to route calls

from users around the country. You can get local access numbers by

calling the customer service number.

Before you sign up, call the support line and ask them whether or not

there is a demo account that you can log onto so that you can get

information and try the service out. You should also find out if there

are activities for you online that do not cost anything, such as online

help, checking and billing information, and filling out questionnaires.

When you log on for the first time, you should make it a quick visit.

You should log on and look at some of the menus, and get a feel for

the service.

Make sure that you capture a command list so that you can read

them later offline. After you do that you should log off. It will do you

some good to print out a list of the commands and post them near

your computer for future access.

Most of the OISes are set up in pages. A page is a menu or a

screen.

Find where the page identifier appears on the menu. This may be a

number or a header. This will allow you to jump from anywhere in the

service to any other place. Areas that are frequently used will have

special commands, such as: GO MAIL will take you to the mail

menu. You can press T and you will be taken to the main menu.

Log-off commands will vary from one to the other. Most of the time it

will either be BYE, EXIT, or QUIT. But, if you enter these commands

at a submenu, you might just be taken back to the previous menu.

You will need to test it out and find out what works.

If you remember one thing I say, it should be this: NEVER TELL

ANYONE WHAT YOUR PASSWORD IS! This is a no-no.

Remember this: No authorized representative will EVER ask you for

your password. If someone does, then tell them that if they needed to

know it, then they already would know it. If someone gets your

password, they might log on and spend a lot of your money, and you

WILL have to pay for it. One way to make sure that you don't give it

to the wrong person is to make sure that anytime you type the

password it shouldn't appear on the screen.

Most services will just show something like "********************" as

you are typing in your password. As you type, the screen will show a

new asterisk. If you give out your password, then change it

immediately.

ELECTRONIC ADVERTISING SERVICE

ELECTRONIC ADVERTISING SERVICE

The July 25 issue of TIME Magazine devoted its cover story to a new

medium that is currently being used by over 25 million people and is

growing by 2 million new subscribers every single month.

This new medium is at the core of what are called Electronic Bulletin

Boards - a system by which people with computers can get

entertainment programs, make travel reservations, play games, get

stock market reports, watch the news, even buy & sell products -

using a computer.

Anyone with a computer can access any Bulletin Board by simply

plugging an ordinary telephone line to the computer. Take note of the

following:

> With a regular telephone line, people can (using a standard

telephone) send and receive spoken words and sounds.

> With a regular telephone line, people can (using a fax

machine) send and receive copies of printed images,

whether text, photos, or or designs.

> With a regular telephone line, people can (using a computer

with a Bulletin Board system) send photos, graphic designs,

moving pictures and sound - just like television.

TYPES OF BULLETIN BOARDS

There are bulletin boards for nearly every subject matter. There are

bulletin boards for pet owners, bulletin boards for school teachers,

for doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs and many other fields of interest.

Of course, the most popular type of commercial bulletin boards are

those that accept advertising, where people from all over the country

buy & sell a variety of products and services.

In fact, one of the fastest-growing features offered by bulletin board

services today is called the Classified On-Line, a multi-category

advertising service filled with classified ads placed by individuals

and businesses.

HOW YOUR ADS GET DISTRIBUTED

[STEP #1] You send your 100-word classified ad to an AD BUREAU

that will electronically typeset your ad and put it in a format that is the

standard used for sending electronic advertising.

[STEP #2] After typesetting your ad, the AD BUREAU sends your it

to BRANDEL COMMUNICATIONS which serves as the CENTRAL

CLEARINGHOUSE for all classified advertising nationwide. There,

all the ads from different independent Ad Bureaus across the country

are compiled and reformatted into their respective categories.

[STEP #3] Once all the ads are compiled, they are published in a

Compact Disc (CD-ROM), copies of which are sent to over 1,000 of

the largest Bulletin Board Services in the country.

[STEP #4] Brandel Communications also places information on the

Internet, Prodigy, America-On-Line, and CompuServe as to the

availability of the Classified On-Line Listings. People who want to

receive and read your ad can do so on-line, absolutely free of

charge! Or, if they do not want to get your ads on-line (considering

that a huge file like ours can take a lot of time to down-load via the

telephone), they can order a copy of the CD-ROM for only $10 each.

That way they can enjoy reading your ads at their leisure.

[STEP #5] Copies of the CD-ROM that contains your ads will also

be available to the general public for $10 each. Mail Order

companies, telemarketing companies, and retail businesses who

want to use the CD as a giveaway, as a premium, or as a value-

added incentive can purchase copies of the CD in bulk for around

$3 each.

............................GET A FREE 100-WORD AD...........................

Write to Brandel Communications to receive a "Free Ad Placement

Form". We will place your 100-word ad in Classified On-Line for

ONE FULL YEAR at no cost to you. That's an $80 value - absolutely

free.

We will also send you a list of authorized AD BUREAUS where you

can send your ad copy for electronic typesetting. These bureaus

charge a set price of $19 for typesetting your ad and putting them in

the standard ad format.

You send them your ad and pay their $19 fee.

After the Ad Bureau typesets your ad, they send us a copy, and we

take care of the rest. AT NO COST TO YOU.

Just pay for the typesetting, and you're in business.

This is definitely the most inexpensive and cost-efficient way to have

your advertising message available to over 30 million computer

owners in the USA and Canada.

THE INTERNET E-MAIL SYSTEM

THE INTERNET E-MAIL SYSTEM

An e-mail ("E" for electronic) is a letter sent electronically. Whereas

regular mail is sent through the postal system, e-mail is sent to a

computer via the telephone line. You can send and receive e-mail from

anywhere in the world. All you need is a computer, a regular telephone

line, and a software program used for sending and receiving e-mail.

Although there's a wide variety of programs used to send and receive e-

mail, these software programs have some features in common. E-mail

programs work by helping you compose your letter and then sending it to

your recipient.

An electronic mail is generally made up of two parts: (1) Recipent(s) List,

which identifies the addressee and destination where your e-mail is

going; and (2) the Message, which contains the actual text of your letter.

An e-mail can have one or multiple recipients, and because your

messages are sent at a speed of 2400 to 14400 bits per second, it is

possible to send a one-page letter (the size of a regular bond paper) in

less than ONE second. This makes it possible for marketers to send e-

mail to tens of tousands of potential customers practically overnight.

HOW E-MAIL WORKS

One way of sending e-mail is by using an on-line service like Prodigy,

Compuserve, or America On-Line. However, a more effective way of

establishing an e-mail system is by going on the Internet. Through the

Internet, you can send and receive e-mail from any person who on-line,

regardless of the on-line service they are using.

HOW TO GET STARTED

Contact an Internet Service Provider (ISP) in your area. Your ISP will

likely charge you a flat fee of $30 to $40 a month to give you a dial-up

Internet access. This means, anytime you want to get on the Internet all

you have to do is dial the access phone number which your ISP gives

you.

Once you're on the Internet, you can send e-mail anywhere in the world,

and it won't cost you a penny. Remember, all you're doing is accessing

your ISP's computer which is a local call away. However, through your

ISP's system, you are able to send e-mail to anywhere in the USA and to

147 countries around the world.

MULTIPLE E-MAIL

By sending multiple copies of the same e-mail to a number of people,

you are able to do direct selling without any cost. There are a number of

mailing lists available on the internet itself, giving you the e-mail address

es of groups and individuals to whom you can send your information.

ONLINE INFORMATION SERVICES

ONLINE INFORMATION SERVICES

In this report, we will tell you about some of the popular online

services available. The services act as a "Super BBS" that allows

you to exchange messages and information, chat among users,

participate in several conferences, shop online for just about

anything (the computer version of "Home Shopping Club"), as well

as make airline reservations and do several other things.

Online Information Service Advantages

There are several things that online information services all have in

common with each other.

* Large Database of files for downloading

* Extensive mail files for downloading

* Numerous conferences, forums, and discussions available

* One information database, AT LEAST!

* Several games available for one player or multiple players.

* A wide variety of user-friendly services

Many of these features can be found online at no charge. Since they

charge access fees, you might be wondering why anyone would pay

for access to an online information service when they can call local

BBSes for free. Well, the reason should be obvious. To put it simply,

it is because they are BIG! There are literally tens of thousands of

people around the world who tap into an online service.

You can find information on just about anything that you are

interested in.

What? You like studying the life cycle of fish that live on the bottom of

the ocean? Well, you probably can find information about that topic

some where on an online information service. Interested in the latest

political nonsense? Yes, you can find information about politics. Just

a general question about what is available online? You can find it all

on online information services.

Many of the online information services will offer a continuous chat

conference known as "CB" or "Citizen's Band" conference. It works

much like CB Radio operates. You talk to people by typing on the

computer.

There are hundreds of online games that you can play either by

yourself or you can play against another user. The advantage of

online games is that you can play against someone else who is

online at the same time.

You don't have to make a play, and then wait a week for the next

person to log on and then play. You can play an entire game in just a

few minutes or an hour, however long it takes to play a complete

game.

You might play a game where you get into a WWII airplane and do

battle against the NAZIs, (all the other players are the NAZIs, or vice

versa). You might play a game where you and al of your teammates

are in a dungeon, and you will use your own knowledge and

expertise to navigate the team through the dungeon without being

killed. This will be an exciting game to play because each player has

different ideas, so the game will be different each time you play.

Even though these are all common on most online information

services, most of them offer databases for specific informaiton to

users.

You may also use online information services to do your shopping.

Many companies offer items for sale in a service area usually called

something like: "The Electronic Mall," "The Mall," or "Electronic

Shoppers Club" (ESC). You shop by selecting an item that you want

and selecting the quantity, and then they bill you and send you the

product.

Several of the online services offer what is called "Check-Free

Transaction Processing" from the CheckFree Processing Center.

This allows you to pay your bills electronically by debiting your

checking account and crediting the payee's account. This makes it

so you don't have to write and mail a check, and it takes care of a lot

of paperwork you would otherwise have to do. This service also

provides you with updated registers showing your account status.

Many software companies are offering online help for users, as well

as customer support. You can find conferences available that will talk

about almost any Microsoft product. These conferences are almost

always moderated by a person representing the software company

being discussed.

In general, these online information services are a good place to go

for help on a specific matter or topic; or to get involved in a quick

game of chess or checkers, etc.; or to pick up on a good buy in the

"mall".