Tom Spring from PC World is here to help us all with some spam fighting tips for the new year. My favorite: use IM instead of spam. Of his list, it's the one I use most often; my boss is often in Romania and it's our most efficient method of communication. Of course, I have to stay up late, but that's not hard.
His other tips include:
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Be prudent with email newsletters - consider subscribing to RSS feeds instead.
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Strive for inbox efficiency - by providing short, specific information in your email subjects.
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Get organized - with a desktop search program.
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Combine free web-based email (like Gmail) that provides spam filters with your client-side email program (like Outlook) to eliminate most spam before it arrives in your inbox.
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Resolve to fight spam - by becoming a Spam Cop.
And here's a tip from me: IMAP is great, you can use filters to send most of your spam into a separate folder so you never have to even download it in the first place. Works wonders.
1. I know it seems like common sense, but sometimes it bears repeating:
If you receive spam, DO NOT CLICK on the "opt out" link or send a response asking to be removed from their mailing list. By doing so, you've just confirmed that your e-mail address is live, and you can watch your spam quadruple by the end of the week.
You'd be surprised how many internet-savvy people STILL send responses to spam e-mails. Sigh...
Posted at 4:51AM on Dec 19th 2005 by Carol