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Ames Adventure Outfitters
Newsletter -
February 2005
E-Mail Hoax
- Tsunami Seafood Virus Is A Hoax
E-mail
can be a great tool for relaying information to friends, relatives, and
business associates. However, the Internet can also be the source for
the proliferation of misinformation. One recent example is a
tsunami-related hoax that has been rapidly spreading across the globe.
It's been referred to as the Zulican Virus E-mail Hoax.
The message of the Zulican Virus E-mail Hoax warns consumers not to eat
fish or seafood products. The reason — the December 26, 2004 tsunami,
which laid waste to a number of coastal areas in the Indian Ocean
region, resulted in dead and diseased fish. The diseased fish, so the
e-mail claims, contain a virus call Zulican. If consumers eat the fish,
they will be exposed to the Zulican Virus.
The Zulican Virus e-mail message is a hoax. There is no known seafood
virus called Zulican. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the
Canadian Food Inspection Agency, or the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention located in Atlanta, Georgia, don't give any credence to this
bogus virus.
The next time you receive an e-mail message that you think may be a
hoax, do some quick research before forwarding the message on to family
and friends. There are sites on the Web dedicated to alerting Internet
users of Internet hoaxes. A few hoax information sites to bookmark in
the Favorites list of your browser include:
http://truthorfiction.com/
http://vmyths.com/
http://urbanlegends.about.com/
Each of the above sites includes search tools to research archived
hoaxes by name or subject.
E-mail Acronyms
Question: I receive e-mail messages from friends that contain
acronyms that I sometimes can't interpret. For instance, what are the
meanings of "IAE," "GMTA," "URW," and, "FBOW?"
Answer: Those are acronyms used mainly in chat rooms. Here's a
list of some commonly used e-mail/chat room acronyms and their
accompanying meanings:
AAMOF - as a matter of fact
AFAIK - as far as I know
BTW - by the way
DWL - dying with laughter
FBOW - for better or worse
FOAF - friend of a friend
GFETE - grinning from ear to ear
GMTA - great minds think alike
HAND - have a nice day
HTH - hope this helps
IAE - in any event
IMO - in my opinion
IOW - in other words
JIC - just in case
LMK - let me know
LOL - laughing out loud
LTNT - long time no talk
MTCW - my two cents worth
NAP - not a problem
NRN - no reply necessary
SLFN - so long for now
TAFN - that's all for now
THX - thanks
TTFN - ta-ta for now
TTYL8R - talk to you later
URW - you are welcome
YW - you're welcome
This list is by no means exhaustive and other variations are possible.
Great Sites To Check Out This Month
Helping
Tsunami Victims
http://usafreedomcorp.gov/content/about_usafc/newsroom/announcements_tsunami
.asp#DONATIONS - As the entire world knows, a 9.0 earthquake
unleashed devastating tsunamis on coastal areas throughout Asia on
December 26, 2004, killing well over 225,000 people and leaving a
million people homeless. If you'd like to provide financial assistance
to victims, this site provides links to reputable organizations involved
in the financial and humanitarian efforts in this region.
Find Out What Happened In History On Your Birthday
http://historychannel.com/today/ - Are you curious to know what
happened in history on your birthday? Simply head to this site and
select the month and day of your birth. You'll then get a full listing
of interesting things that have occurred on your selected day throughout
history. This would be an interesting website to show your kids or
e-mail to your folks.
It's More Than Just Fun With Crayons
http://crayola.com/ - Here's a fun
site for the kids as well as for the young at heart. The site includes
over 1,000 fun arts and crafts ideas. It also has dozens of fun,
customizable e-cards that you can e-mail to your friends. For parents
and teachers, the site provides lots of helpful lesson plans for a
variety of curriculums, ages, and themes.
Racing On A Snow Shovel
http://angelfireresort.com -
Does flying down a snowy mountain at high speeds while sitting on a snow
shovel sound exciting to you? If you answered "yes" then New Mexico's
Angel Fire Resort is the place for you this month. Each February Angel
Fire Resort hosts the World Shovel Race Championships. Over 200
participants compete in various classifications over a three-day period.
If shovel racing isn't your thing, you'll enjoy watching the races,
viewing the snow shovel sculpture contests, and listening to the live
music each evening.
Computer Corner
- Back Up (Export) Your Address Book
Periodically backing up the contact information located in your e-mail
client software's address book can be a prudent move. You'll be glad you
did if you ever have a major problem with your computer. Also, if you
decide to switch to a different e-mail program that has better features,
you can easily import your contacts into the new program.
To back up your Outlook Express address book, follow these steps:
- Start Outlook Express and open your address book by clicking on
its icon on the Outlook Express toolbar. Or, from the Outlook
Express "Tools" menu, drop down to "Address Book."
- After your address book opens, go to its "File" menu, then to
"Export" from the resulting drop-down menu, and select "Other
Address Book" from the submenu. The "Address Book Export Tool"
window will appear.
- Select "Text File (Comma Separated Values)" as the format and
click your cursor arrow on "Export."
- Give your exported address book a name.
- Select the location where you want to export your address book
using the "Browse" button. When the "Save As" dialog box appears,
choose a location, and click "Save."
- You will come back to the "Address Book Export Tool" window.
Click the "Next" button.
- Select the fields you want to include in your copy. If in doubt,
select them all.
- Click "Finish" and then "OK."
- Click the "Close" button on the "Address Book Export Tool"
window to finish up.
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