NEWS DishPlayer Upgrade
WebTV and Echostar have just released an upgrade for the DishPlayer that includes fixes for many bugs and v.90 modem support. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Wolverine_X]
Cyber-Extortion Results in Prison Sentence
A 52-year-old "pillar of the community" in Tampa, FL, was sentenced to 21 months in Federal prison last week for threatening to destroy the reputation of teenage girls on the Net if they wouldn't "cyber" with him. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice News Staff]
WebTV Solves "Try Again" Access Glitch
WebTV suffered a glitch and some embarrassment after an erroneous file caused more than 20,000 to be with out WebTV service. WebTV has fixed the problem, but not before facing a tradeshow nearly empty-handed. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice News Staff]
MIDI Company Sues Homepage Builders
A company that sells MIDI sequences is aggressively pursuing legal action against website owners whom it says have the company's copyrighted MIDI sequences on their home pages. Even members of the WebTV community are finding themselves the targets of the company's lawsuits. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Laura Buddine]
Dot Com Death Spiral Continues As Analysts See Little Relief
The death knell continues to toll for numerous dot.com sites as the continuing cash crunch causes money woes for even the big guys. When will it end? Some think it will be a long time before the Internet recovers. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nancy McPoland]
Audio Interview with WebTV's Mark Mullen
Microsoft showed Ultimate TV at Digital Hollywood. Mark Mullen, Sr. Director of the WebTV Studio sat with Net4TV to discuss Ultimate TV, WebTV, the Echostar DishPlayer, Java, and Smartcards. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dexter Davenport]
Tidbits:CueCats, Mouse Traps, and Blooming Algae
It's a zoo around here as we round up the odd happenings on the Internet from cracked cats, dirty mice tricks, to vacation-spoiling algae. If you haven't seen it elsewhere, it might be here. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nancy McPoland]
WebTV to Pay for Misdialed Long-Distance Charges
A glitch in WebTV's software caused a number of WebTVers to receive large telephone bills for numbers their WebTV should never have dialed. WebTV says it is their mistake and they will pay. But users have had trouble getting money. Learn how you can get your money back! [10/12/2000] [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dexter Davenport]
Buzzed in Amsterdam 2
The iTV conference goes on in Amsterdam, and now the question is, can Liberate deliver on the deals it snaked from Microsoft TV? Maybe the horse will sing. [Published 10/08/00, Written by G. Nat URL]
Hoax Alert: WebTV Will NOT Charge for Instant Messenger
An e-mail is circulating in newsgroups and in e-mail that says WebTV will begin charging $4.99 a month for its Instant Messenger service. WebTV confirmed that this is not true. [Published 10/12/00, Written by Dexter Davenport]
FEATURES Prescription Drugs: Low Cost or Free
Prescription drugs can take a huge bite out of a family's budget; for some people they are simply not affordable. Here are some ways to save money on the drugs your doctor orders. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Roxanne Rae Garrett]
Transparent Images, Easy Navigation
Now, you too, can use that transparency switch on your images; and here are helpful hints on making your site easier for visitors to navigate. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Donna (Editor)]
Hepatitis C: A Sleeping Dragon
The author of this article knows first hand the seriousness of the Hepatitis C virus - he is currently undergoing Interferon/Ribatron therapy for the disease. [Published 10/08/00, Written by sleepover]
Net4TV Presents: FITNET 67
Discover for yourself how physical activity can be the number one energizer in your life. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Tim Lane]
Hoax Report: Political Pranking
From rumors of vice-presidential replacements to bogus Veteran's benefits, the hoaxes keep arriving in our inbox. Our readers sent in some doozies this issue, and we check them out in our regular report. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nancy McPoland]
How To Run Your Own Poll on Your Home Page or Email!
Want to find out what your friends think? Here's how to run your own polls on your homepage or in your email and newsgroups. It works great with WebTV, it's free, and you don't even have to know any HTML! [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dudette]
World Wide Web of Deceit: Let the Investor Beware
While the Internet has revolutionized stock trading in the six years since its inception, it's also become a breeding ground for the scam artist and can be filled with pitfalls for the unwary investor. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nancy McPoland]
Smart Home, Part I :Intro to Home Automation
Home automation has made its way from dream to at least a partial reality, but as we see in Part I of our new series, it still has a ways to go before the average homeowner hooks up. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nancy McPoland]
Surfari: Grow Your Own U.S.A.
How we live as a society depends on the mentality of resourcefulness. Yes, deep pockets and shallow minds control our political system and pass scary laws like the E-Signature Act. Major decisions are made without our knowledge or consent. And it's our own fault! [Published 10/08/00, Written by Rogi Riverstone]
Surfari: Paper Power
The online world produces more wasted paper than ever before in human history--odd, when one considers the vast amounts of data which can be stored in paperless cyberspace. Don't throw that paper out! Learn papermaking and papier machŽ. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Rogi Riverstone]
COMMUNITY The Hidden Children Of America
Being an child advocate is a difficult position to take. It is not popular with the courts. There are too few family judges. Caseworkers are overwhelmed. But is it worth it? YES! [Published 10/08/00, Written by Arlene aka Florida Blue]
Smoky Jim's Scrap Book
If you have a joke you would like to share, or a story to tell, Jim would be happy to hear from you. You will find he has a broad range of interests, is a gifted poet, and a master storyteller. [Published 10/08/00, Written by CountryBlue22 aka Linda ]
Georgette From Milwaukee
Georgette wanted no part of the Internet but her brother gave her no choice. He purchased the WebTV for her as a Christmas gift! A do or die situation. But once it was hooked up, she discovered a whole new world. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Bee]
Syberco's Planet WebTV
Jim's site is so helpful and has everything you could want when you are developing and designing web pages. It is really a "no-brainer" for those who need it all in one place. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Nelson Tankus]
Halloween Contest for Sigs and Homepages
Have you been haunted with creating the creepiest e-mail signature? Were you possessed to build a horrifying website? Well, exorcise your demons send your Frankenstein's Monster to us! Enter our Halloween Home Page and E-Mail Signature Contest. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Ghosts and Gobblins]
Rock And Roll with Phil
Before he retired from the U. S. Air Force, Phil traveled all over the world. At one time this father of 4, grandfather of 4 owned 2 race horses. More recently he met a lady online Ð and married her 3 months later! [Published 10/08/00, Written by Bud]
Aunt Katy is in the House
Phyllis got her first WebTV so she could use e-mail to stay in touch with family members. It didn't take her long to begin discovering it was good for more than that! [Published 10/08/00, Written by Linda Anderson]
Better Homes: October's Homes
This issue's Better Homes take you on tour -- of a site with background graphics in every shade and color; a homepage fluttering with butterfly graphics; and a place with Native American and kitchen graphics. [Published 10/08/00, Written by RainSong]
Chien Cooks: Salads
Salads are a year around main stay of a good diet. They combine lots of bulk and good flavors with very few calories. Add anchovies, pastas, cold meats, odd cheeses, and wonderful dressings for a yummy salad. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Patricia Kirton]
OPINION AND EDITORIAL Editorial: Welcome to Issue 67
Net4TV is growing and adding new services, including on-line shopping. We need your help to make Net4TV the best community on TV. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dexter and Dudette]
The Root of All Evil
Having a lot of money isn't evil. At least Dexter would like to put the theory to a test. But in the meantime, he's been pondering the fate of cash- flushed dot.coms and the virtues of frugality. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dexter Davenport]
Dudette's Digital Toys
Dudette doesn't want Dexter to have all the fun, so she plays with the newest digital toys for Christmas, including Internet appliances, and calls the winners and the losers. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Dudette]
Reach Out and Slap Someone
Uncle Bob believes that once voice recognition is perfected and integrated into PC packages it will become the ultimate killer app. But first, he's waiting on the computer repairman. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Uncle Bob]
VOX POP -- Reader Opinions WebTV Should Tell Users About Problems
This reader couldn't figure out why his printer would not print. He found out too late that it was a WebTV glitch. Now he's stuck with two extra print carts. [Published 10/08/00, Written by RACCOON_1]
Frustrated with Being Told the Wrong Thing
This reader feels that the recent Try Again problem is ridiculous, but not as bad as getting inconsistent answers to your questions. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Hamax]
Box Swap Woe
Mary is having trouble getting her box replaced in WebTV's box swap program. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Mary]
Lessons in (Bad) Customer Service
Scalderon had a bad customer service experience that featured those immortal words that always signify that your conversation is not going well: "Well, Sir...." [Published 10/08/00, Written by scalderon]
I Like WebTV, But There Are Times...
She really likes WebTV. They make her box do new things all the time. But there are some bad times, such as porn Spam in e-mail and the Page Too Big error. [Published 10/08/00, Written by teraybear]
In Defense of WebTV CSRs
Leni & Jill take exception to the idea that WebTV's customer service representatives give bad service. They've had good experiences. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Leni & Jill]
QOW: No to Online Voting
Many readers found the idea of voting online to be a bad idea because of fear of hacking, the digital divide, and voter fraud. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
QOW: No Online Voting, But Maybe Some Day
Other readers feel that online voting is a good idea, but that it's not yet time for it. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
QOW: Yes to Online Voting
Many readers believe that online voting is a good thing that could increase voter turn out. Besides, they argue, it's inevitable. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Box Swap Problems Abound, Pt. I
WebTV's CSRs apparently don't read memos. Our readers tell us of the problems they've had turning in dead boxes for new ones under WebTV's box swap program. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Box Swap Problems Abound, Pt. II
Well, it seems the CSRs have little to do but tell WebTV users that Net4TV makes up our news stories. Oh, we also do a darn convincing imitation of their product managers. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
To Wait on Hold Forever, Press One...
We often get e-mails describing what people want to do with their misbehaving WebTV units. This reader has had it with hold times and is ready to hammer his point home. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Reader]
Print, Darn It!
Readers are still reporting all sorts of problems with their printers. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Got Raid? Readers Report Bugs
Readers report the lack of upgrade on new WebTV units, problems sending e-mail, and getting the Page Too Big error. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Sonic.net and Tripod Not Working
A reader reports that Tripod won't work. Another reader says Sonic Net doesn't work, but that he has a good idea. He doesn't. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Readers to WebTV: It's YOUR Phone Line
WebTV had a bit of a melt-down two weeks ago. Our readers tell us about Spam Avalanches, and the machinations of getting connected. This time, it was THEIR phone line. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Retrograde: Of MPEGs and Big Pages
Our readers experience the joys of the This Page is Too Big error and the loss of MPEGs on the Original Classic. The solution? Retrograde. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Mail Bag: Wolves, Eyeballs, and Duty
Randall gives WebTV the eyeball, M~M dances with wolves, Stun 1 wonders where all the English majors have gone, Pat Shannon shares a story of the idiocy of experts, Mary makes my day, and Will S reminds us of our duties. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Mailbag: Pagers, Banks, Coping, and Holding
Dexter tells Shiela Killian to hold the phone, ~~Kay~~ takes a hardline for censorship, }i{~Maryanne~}i{ touts Marie's sigs, Bikr wonders where the pagers went, W. Brown wonders about Bank4TV, and Linda copes. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Readers Respond to WebTV CSR
In the last issue of Net4TV Voice Vox Pop, Michael Black let a lot of WebTV users have it right between the eyes. This time, the WebTVers respond. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
Mailbag: Users Comment About WebTV
Readers coment on WebTV and its service. A petition is being circulated to get WebTV to listen. WebTV gets a little help in customer retention. A reader shares a site that dramatizes the "Real" WebTV. [Published 10/08/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
WebTV Phones Home, Via Mars
As unbelievable as it sounds, WebTV users have been receiving phone bill that range from hundreds to thousands of dollars, all because their WebTV decided to phone home, via Mars. [Published 10/12/00, Written by Net4TV Voice Readers]
