Frequently asked Questions about general stuff
Glockler.com
- www.glockler.com
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Answered by Chris Glockler
This page has not been cleaned up grammatically in any way. Also, this page only
represents what I have found to be helpful. If you do not have a good experience
based on the content in this page, glockler.com and its owners can not be held
responsible.
| Can I ask a computer or web site question? | How can I get my USPS address removed from junk mail lists?
Back in August of 2005, we were getting a lot of junk mail, including about 10
credit card pre-approved offers each week. It was offensive! So, I went to
USPS.com and they didn't help me at all, most likely because they want people
to send bulk mail and get the postage revenue. I did a search on
the web for junk mail removal, and many sites references
Direct Marketing Associates (DMA) mail preference service,
and an opt-out service for pre-approved credit/insurance offers. Even the
FBI's web site recommended them. The services take a little while to go into
effect but once they do you have less junk that you have to sort through. However,
they don't remove you from your local company mailing lists (penneysaver, etc).
You have to manually contact
them. Here's all of the information you need.
The first two links are the most useful, but he other sites give you ideas for
getting off of other national mailing lists, etc.
One of the sites mentioned above mentioned filling out a change of address card for
a previous resident at your address stating "MOVED - address unknown" -- However,
mail forwarding is a completely manual service carried out by the carrier
as I am told, and mistakes can easily be made.
When we moved into a new house, we signed up for mail forwarding for my
wife's maiden name at our old address, because there was one company we didn't
have her name changed with yet. We eventually got the mail that we wanted, but
we also started to get more mail addressed to her maiden name than we had been
getting before. The Post Office must've sold the name/address. So, I did what the
web site mentioned. However, the post office assumed that "laurie farrell" and
"laurie glockler" was the same person, and started rejecting most (but not all)
mail to either laurie, including at least one birthday card and three mailings
from the DMV. Their assumption was correct, but it was not the intent. We had to
remove the name from the mail forwarding service.
Now that the members of DMA are asked to remove your name, you can start sending
letters to companies that aren't. Many companies will remove
you without problem, realizing that if you don't want to receive their mail, you
probably won't buy from them anyway, so they'll save postage. Now if only
e-mail spammers were that bright and didn't try to trick anti-spam software!
- Mail that was sent "first class" or
"address service requested" is easy. Just circle those words and write
"refused - return to sender" with an arrow to the return address.
Presorted bulk mail mail is different. Because the company paid less money for
postage, attempting to refuse mail in this manner will apparently just result in
the post office throwing out the mail.
- Sometimes you have to write a letter.
What I have done is attempt to find mailing list removal information on the
company's web site and remove that way. That will be faster and easier.
If that doesn't work, I send a letter to
the return address of the mail, or the customer service address if that isn't noted.
I also write "attn: customer service - mailing list removal" on the envelope.
The letter itself must include your address and the mailing label that they used.
Here's a sample letter that I have sent:
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John Smith
1 Way St
Schenectady, NY 12345
May 14, 2008
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GEICO
1 GEICO Plaza
Washington, DC 20076-0001
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To Whom It May Concern:
Please permanently remove
the above address from your mailing list(s) and
do not share the name/address with other
companies. Attached is your mailing label. Thank you.
Sincerely,
John Smith
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I also save every letter that I send places, just in case. I include a textbox under
where I attach the mailing label so that I can save the exact name that is on their
mailing list, just in case each my wife and I are on the list and I need to send
another request.
Note: I sent a request to LL Bean asking them to remove my wife's name (maiden)
from their list, stating that no person by that name lived here. They did,
but they added my name to the list. The lesson is don't attempt to explain it,
just request the removal.
Anyway, I hope this helps. Do not contact me with any questions... I don't
accept unsolicited mail! All of my information is either shared here or included
in the above links anyway.
| What type of cordless phone do you suggest?
First of all, I recommend having at least one corded telephone in the house
in case your power goes out. We have 1 on each floor.
Secondly, I recommend avoiding GE, uniden, and sony telephones,
specifically their cordless models. I have had the best luck and heard
the best feedback about panasonic telephones. they're the only thing I buy.
There are three types of cordless phones currently, 900MHz, 2.4Ghz, and 5.8Ghz.
- 900MHz are really cheap, and do not interfere with computer
wireless networks. The range of these phones isn't that great, which
means these phones aren't usually "expandable" nor would you want an
expandable 900MHz telephone.
- 2.4GHz are reasonably priced and have great range,
but they tend to get interference and
interfere with with other 2.4GHz wireless devices, such as computer networks.
Some of the newer 2.4GHz phones don't seem to interfere with computer networks
as much, but that might just be a luck-of-the-draw thing.
2.4GHz can be "expanded" which means you can hook up 1 base unit to the
telephone line, and purchase additional hand sets/chargers for elswhere
around the home, without an additional telephone jack.
Expandable phones are really nice - depending on the phone, you can
use the expanded phone systems as an intercom between other phones that
are part of the same system, and
each phone might have an flashing light on it to tell you there is a
message on your answering machine, and then listen to it. My panasonic has
these nice features.
- 5.8Ghz phones are usually very expensive, but they have good range
(about the same 2.4GHz), and they do not interfere with wireless networks.
These phones are the best if you can afford them. We have a 5.8GHz Panasonic
telephone/answering system with 4 additional handsets scattered througout
the house.
When I was looking for a cordless phone in 2005, I noticed an AT&T model had
a battery backup in the base unit, presumably in case the power went out so that you
could gracefully say goodbye to the person or switch to a corded phone.
As far as phone service to use these phones on, I prefer analog despite
the expense. I use IDT
local/unlimited package which costs $40/month plus about $16/month in taxes
in my area.
I could switch to digital phone and save about $30/month, but I have not
been impressed with the sound quality from the people that
I've talked to who have digital phone. It often sounds like they're on a
cordless phone that is too far from the base station. Not to mention that
digital phone requires broadband cable internet service. You could do it over
DSL, but DSL requires you to have a regular phone line, so there's no point.
You have to think too... How often do you lose your internet connection?
Sometimes it blips out for a half second and you may not realize it. When
your phone goes over the internet, you'll notice it. When was the last time
your analog phone service was interrupted? It's been a while, hasn't it? :)
Another disadvantage of digital phone is that it requires electricity. Yea,
so do cordless phones they'll tell you, but in the event of a cordless phone
you can just buy a $10 corded phone to use during power outages. With digital
phone you'd have to purchase a UPS and/or a whole generator. UPS starts at $30
for the basic model which will last for a couple of minutes, and generators
start at
$500 for respectable models. I'll stick with analog phone for now. :)
| What type of two way radio do you use?
I use a Cobra FRS/GMRS radio with 22 channels and 37 sub-channels (privacy codes).
If you're going to get a radio, spend the extra couple of dollars on a set
that has privacy codes. People on the same channel without privacy codes will
be able to hear you, but you won't be able to hear them. You'll especially notice
a difference when driving through or near a city.
FRS stands for family radio service or something like that. The key word is
"family." As with any communication device, you have to be careful of what
you say as others may be listening. FRS radios work up to two miles,
keeping in mind that hills, trees, etc interfere with the signal. I believe
two miles is only accurate when on water. You do not need a license for FRS.
Many FRS radios these days include a few GMRS channels.
These channels are a higher wattage and allow you to talk over greater
distances. Each radio is different, but my GMRS channels allow communication
up to 6 miles. (some or less, some are more). When buying a radio, anything
that offers distances greater than 2 miles or has more channels than 14 is GMRS. HOWEVER, you need a license
To legally use the GMRS channels on your radio, and they're not cheap.
Some say that if you play it
smart while talking on a GMRS channel, no one will report you and you'll be
OK because the FCC doesn't typically enforce that. But, it's still breaking
the law.
With respect to other features, I've noticed the cheaper radios do not have
many options, so you may be forced to live with a feature that you don't
like, such as a "roger beep" which sends a tone to the other party when
you've let go of the talk button. I also like my radios that have (and
came with) an option microphone/earpiece. that comes in handy when you
need to be quiet for whatever reason, such as you're driving and you have
sleeping children in the back.
Why would you drive with a radio when you have a cell phone? When you're
in large groups, it's faster to communicate with everyone. Plus,
it's more fun. :)
As far as brands, Motorola has been the best known name in two-way radio communication
devices for a while, but my first pair of FRS was motorola broke within 2-3
years. Cobra is almost as well known, and I now have two pairs of cobra radios.
Personally, I would avoid the other brands, unless you're familiar with them.
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