|
Modem Access Numbers: Moses Lake, Warden, Wilson Creek, Othello, Royal City, Ephrata, Soap Lake and any other area which can access the Moses Lake telephone exchange as a local number: (509) 765-9701 Quincy, George, and those who can access the Ephrata, Washington telephone exchange as a local number: (509) 754-4067 Email Server Settings: POP3 Mail Server: mail.gcpower.net SMTP Mail Server: mail.gcpower.net SPAM and what to do when you cannot get mail from somebody: SPAM is a computer word used to describe unsolicited and unwanted email. Today, if you have an email account and have been on the Internet, you have probably experienced receiving some SPAM. It is a fact of life on the Internet. Some SPAM is harmless. Some SPAM is destructive and evil. Some SPAM was sent out to do harm to those who receive and open it. At Grant County PowerNet, we have a mailscanner computer installed which scans and tests all mail coming into Grant County PowerNet user mailboxes. If your email address ends in gcpower.net then your incoming mail is scanned by our mailscanner computer. The mailscanner computer has an anti-virus program running on it which checks incoming mail for viruses and disarms them if possible This does not mean that you should abandon owning and maintaining a good anti-virus program for your own personal computer. We scan and clean incoming email to reduce the chances of a widespread viral outbreak among our networks, but we are not assuming the ultimate responsibility for cleaning your mail. That responsibility still belongs to you. Along with checking the incoming mail for viruses and spyware, the mailscanner computer also tries to detect, mark and discourage SPAM email. We use several special software tools on the mailscanner computer to do this but it is not a perfect science and never will be. The best SPAM scanner service in the world, perhaps Postini, can reduce SPAM but at this time of writing no one can completely eliminate it without completely blocking all access to your email account. SPAM control is a matter of balance. Balancing the strictness of the rules and scanning software against the outcry from email subscribers about blocked mail. A happy medium which satisfies everyone does not seem to exist, but we do try. We work constantly to improve the system. For those who are having trouble getting mail from Aunt Sally in Wisconsin or Uncle Bud in Florida, here is a brief list of things which may be checked and which may solve the problem they are having sending mail to you. (1) Make sure that they are sending mail to your correct email address. Don't assume anything. It is really surprising how often we receive mail delivery complaints only to find that people are sending to the wrong address. This includes checking your own email setup to make sure that you have the correct return address in the program you use to send mail to other people. If you have it wrong and they reply to your return address, they will get it wrong and it is your fault. This is very common. (2) Make sure they have their email sending program (Outlook Express, Outlook, Thunderbird) properly configured with a correct return email address so that they will not be flagged as a SPAMMER trying to use someone else's address. (3) Have them go to this website: www.spamhaus.org and make sure that their Internet provider's mail server is not on the list at zen.spamhaus.org. Our server rejects mail being sent from people on this list. If they are being blocked by the list, they need to contact their Internet Service Provider to repair the problem. (4) If they have done all of the above and still cannot send mail to you, then have them get and use a HOTMAIL or a GMAIL account to send it. We do accept mail from both of those sources and we check them often to make sure they work properly. Computer Setups and Configuration for Dial-Up or Zipp Fiber Access: If you need help getting your computer configured to connect to our services, you can bring it to The Computer Place in Moses Lake, Washington for a free setup or checkout. The address is 202 West 3rd Avenue. Please plan on leaving the machine with us for an hour. If you are a Zipp Internet subscriber, you may also bring your machine and your firewall in to The Computer Place any time during regular working hours to have it checked or adjusted to make a proper connection. Again, there is no charge to have your machine checked out for our Internet access. If your machine needs repairing to connect to our services we will let you know. If you choose to have your machine repaired by the staff at The Computer Place, you will receive a labor discount on the repair. This is one of the benefits of being a Grant County PowerNet subscriber. You always have the option available of taking your machine to the repair shop of your choice. Regular Technical Support Hours and Assistance: If you are having trouble with your Zipp Internet Service connection please call us at (509) 766-1345 during regular business hours for technical assistance. We will contact the PUD for you and handle getting your connection checked out. Our regular business hours are 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM weekdays. After Hours or Weekend Technical Support Assistance: If you need assistance after regular business hours, please call our after-hours tech support number (509) 771-1210. Technical Support Information: Fiber Optic Services: If you are having trouble with your fiber optic connection you should first call us at (509) 766-1345 or if it is after regular business hours you should call (509) 771-1210. You should not call the PUD unless you have already contacted us or are unable to get assistance through us. We serve as your first point of contact in getting problems resolved. This is in accordance with the policy set by the Grant County PUD. Responsibilities: We are responsible for your access from our equipment to the end PUD gateway device on the outside of your building. You are responsible for the premise wiring (CAT 5 Cabling) that connects your home to the PUD gateway and everything that is contained within it. If needed we will come to your location and check out the connection at the PUD Fiber Gateway box. There is no charge to you for this check. We will plug in a notebook computer and verify that the gateway is configured properly to give you service and that a computer system can access the Internet through the gateway. If the PUD gateway provides access to our computer, then the problem resides in your cabling, your equipment or your configuration. If you need us to repair your cabling, equipment or configuration, we will do so at a discounted network service rate of $50.00 per hour. This discount is one of the benefits you receive for being one of our customer. Our regular network service rate is $90.00 per hour. There is a minimum on-site repair charge of $50.00 for any repair done to your equipment. Each service call is treated as a separate incident and is billed accordingly. Dial-Up Services: If you need us to come to your location to configure or check out your dial-up Internet service we will charge you a discounted hourly rate of $50.00 per hour including all travel time. Checking Your IP Network Connection Computers communicate over the Internet with each other using a network protocol called TCP/IP. TCP/IP stands for TRANSPORT COMMUNICATIONS PROTOCOL / INTERNET PROTOCOL. To check on or get information on your TCP/IP connection to the Internet in Windows XP do the following:
If your computer is working properly and is connected to the Internet, IP information about your connection should be displayed. If no information is displayed, you have mispelled or incorrectly typed the command, you are not properly plugged in, or you have a configuration problem in your computer or your Windows operating system. If you get an address automatically from your Internet router/firewall device or directly from your Internet provider, you can release your current address and then renew it by doing the following:
If you get an address automatically from your Internet router/firewall device or directly from your Internet provider, you can release your current address and then renew it by doing the following:
You should see your current IP Address. To see all of your IP information add the /ALL to the end of the IPCONFIG command. To see if you are connected to our Internet service do this:
Or this:
You should get a reply back from those addresses. If you do not, then you do not have a connection to us. This can be due to the following:
Check all of your cables, reboot your firewall/router if you have one. Reboot your computer. Try everything again. Same results, then call us. GCPowerNet HelpDesk |