Bits & Bytes; An occasional newsletter from MCS

April, 2005

Taking control of Spam

After considerable research and testing, we have found a highly effective way to deal with obnoxious, voluminous, unsolicited e-mail (spam). It's a great program called MailFrontier that identifies spam and removes it from your inbox. The program works with either MS Outlook or Outlook Express and it works very well indeed. It instantly took one of our clients from about 250 junk e-mails per day to virtually none. The cost -- just $99 -- includes the program itself plus onsite installation and training for one computer (add $49 for each additional PC at the same location).

Those comfortable installing and configuring new software can download the program and pay for it directly at www.MailFrontier.com. Otherwise, give us a call and we'll come to your home or office and help you... Can the spam!

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What to do with that old PC
  (An appropriate topic for Earth Day)

So you finally broke down and bought a new computer and now you want to know what to do with the old one. New PC prices have never been lower, so finding someone willing to take that golden oldie off your hands has been difficult. That's why the vast majority of old machines end up in landfills. It's worth noting that computers, and especially monitors, have some really ugly stuff inside, like chromium, arsenic, lead, mercury, cadmium, PVC -- things that you don't want leeching into your ground water.

But the worst part is the sheer waste, because even the oldest computers still have value. A machine that won't run the latest games will still make an excellent word processor or fax machine. It can surf the Web, handle e-mail or instant messaging, act as a backup for data storage and perform many other tasks. So keeping an older PC in service is the best answer for everyone, including Mother Earth.

A recent article by the Tennessean's Mary Hance (aka, Ms. Cheap) included an abbreviated list of local organizations that will accept old working computers. You'll find the unabridged version (taken from the newspaper's website) below. Although Ms. Hance indicates that donated machines must be in working condition, it's possible that some of these groups have volunteers who might be able to fix them (the Boy Scouts would be a good place to start).

So if you have an old PC that you'd like to get rid of, give them a call. If you're concerned about sending it off with personal information still on the hard disk, let us know and we'll wipe it out. Or if you like, we'll be happy to clean that machine up and get it running so well that... you might just want to keep it. ;-)

Holler if you need anything.

Happy computing!

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Local organizations that accept working computers:

A. R. T. S. Artistic Renaissance Training School 931-486-0560

Calvary Hill Academy Lawrenceburg TN. 931-762-4088

Catholic Charities of TN Nashville 352-3087

CDC Class of Beech High School Hendersonville 615-512-2074

Christian Women's Job Corp Nashville 244-3669

Cityscape Cookeville 931-528-4612

Coffee County Children's Advocacy Ctr Tullahoma 931-393-3224

Cottage Cove Urban Ministries Nashville 292-2303

Country K-9 Rescue Inc. Lebanon 444-8011

Cumberland County School Supply Crossville 931-484-0248

Dekalb County High School Band Smithville 615-597-6307

Gaia Inc. Nashville 482-5957

Graceworks Franklin 794-9055 ext.21

High Hopes Inc. Brentwood 661-5437

Interfaith Dental Clinic Nashville 329-4790

Intertribal Cultural and Education 889-9636

Jackson Park Pre-School Nashville 226-8327

Justis 1 Inc. Murfreesboro 867-4141

Ladies of Charity Welfare Nashville 327-3430

League For The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Nashville 248-8828

Life Skills Class Croft Middle School Nashville 332-0217 ext.325

Lighthouse Christian School Antioch 331-6286

Little Lights Christian Pre-School Watertown

Live Music in America Inc. Cookeville TN 38502

Mending Hearts Nashville 228-0544

Metropolitan Action Commission—Dudley Head Start Nashville 862-8885

Middle Tennessee Council Boy Scouts of America Nashville 615-383-9724

Nashville Ballet Nashville 297-2966

Neighbors Together Crossville 931-456-2435

Outlook Nashville Nashville 834-7570

Phoenix Homes Inc. Nashville 886-9998

Pleasant View Christian School Pleasant View 746-8555

Prevent Child Abuse Tennessee Nashville 383-0994

Project C.U.R.E. 837-7575

Regional Intervention Program Nashville 963-1177

Senior Center of McMinnville 931-473-6559

St. Ignatius Mission Antioch 367-0085

Ten Thousand Villages Nashville 385-5814

Tennessee Hemophilia & Bleeding Disorders Foundation Brentwood 615-373-0351

The Dickson Co. Help Center Dickson 441-0076

The Hands of God Recovery Ministries 615-227-4734

Tusculum Elementary Nashville 333-5179

Urban Housing Solutions Nashville 726-2696 ext 14

Visitation Hospital Foundation Nashville 385-2363

Whites Creek Church of Christ Nashville 876-0499

Wilson County Youth Ranch Mt. Juliet 758-2005