Castellini on Computers - Computer help for beginners » Yahoo

Changing email addresses – It’s not that difficult

Rick — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:19:45 +0000

AOL made billions of dollars for years because computer users are afraid to change their email addresses. All week long, I hear, "Oh, it's too hard to change email addresses now." Or, "It will take forever to change my email address with everyone."

Come on folks...were using computers! You don't have to fill out a change of address form and march it down to the postal office. You don't have to send out a post card to every person you know. You don't have to fill out a change of address for all your bills and utilities.

Changing email addresses is actually pretty painless and can be cathartic as well. In fact, think of it as going into the digital identity protection program. Here's how to make it a smooth transition:

Microsoft and Yahoo ink 10 year deal

Rick — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 17:04:25 +0000

The biggest tech headlines this week belonged to the long awaited deal between Yahoo and Microsoft. It wasn’t a buy out/takeover like Microsoft attempted a few times the past couple of years, but a business deal this time. Yahoo agrees to use Microsoft’s search technology instead of their own and they will share ad revenues [...]

How to attach iPhoto images to Gmail & Yahoo Mail – Video Tip

Rick — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 01:34:06 +0000

Currently, iPhoto only lets you send photos via email from within iPhoto if you use the Apple Mail program. For web based email users like Gmail, HotMail or Yahoo email, follow the easy steps in this tip. Start a new email as normal in your Gmail, HotMail, Yahoo mail, etc. Complete the address, subject, and body of [...]

You are ignoring Web 2.0 – 12 articles to catch you up

Rick — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 01:26:43 +0000

Over the past few years, I have written and talked much about Web 2.0 or as it is sometimes known, cloud computing. You have ignored those articles and haven't visited or tried the Web 2.0 offerings that are changing the way we use computers. Today, I'm going to give you a second change to get up to speed, because I will be writing more and more about Web 2.0 in the coming months, and I want you along for the ride!

Listed below is your HelpMeRick.com reading assignment for the day.

Save time and clicks when deleting mail online – Video Tip

Rick — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 01:47:24 +0000

If you use MSN email, HotMail, Gmail, AOL email, Yahoo email or other online email services, you can save a bunch of time and clicks when you select files for deletion. These past two weeks I have seen many people painstakingly click the selection box one at a time when cleaning their email folders. Instead, [...]

Sending email blindly (BCC) – Video Tip

Rick — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:27:32 +0000

Here is a tip to cut down on those hideous email headers and help take a huge bite out of email spam. If you are planning on sending an email to more than a few people, use the BCC or "blind carbon copy" function. Instead of addressing them all in the "to" section of your email, use the BCC instead. This allows you to still send the email to all the people on your list, but the recipients will not see any of the people to whom the mail was addressed! In the follow video, I demonstrate how to use the BCC in Outlook 2007, Windows Mail (Vista version of Outlook Express and same method as Outlook Express), Mozilla Thunderbird, Yahoo email, and Gmail. Please, watch this video, learn the technique, use the technique, and forward this tip to all your friends using the BCC method!

Participating and/or Moderating Email Discussion Groups

Rick — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 08:54:32 +0000

Last month, John, a GJ User Group regular, suggested I lead a discussion about email discussion groups, sometimes known as mailing lists. I thought it was such a good idea, that I made it this month's User Group topic. Email discussion groups allow emailers with a particular passion for a hobby, political leaning, medical infliction, educational purpose or any other common thread to share ideas, debate, and dialogue via email. Many discussion groups have left email and exist entirely online as discussion forums which allow for even more instant feedback and easier ways to share links, photos, videos and more.

To find discussion groups you can join, try these four techniques:

The association or organization's web site that heads up the cause, hobby, etc.
Search for your interest followed by email discussion group (ex: African violets in dry climates email discussion group)
Go to and search Yahoo! Groups
Go to and search Topica

Unfortunately, discussion groups can be a hunting ground for email spammers to gather up email addresses. I recommend using a different email address than your every day address for these groups. When you sign up, you will generally have the option of receiving updates every time someone writes to the group, a daily digest of all posts for the day or a weekly digest of all the new posts for that week. For busy discussions, the daily digest is best. If you are fanatical about your group, go for the immediate notifications. You also have the option of changing how you receive messages at any time.

If you want to create your own email discussion group or list, use either the Yahoo! Groups or Topica services. Yahoo and Topica have matured over the years and merged with other smaller services morphing into easy to manage, powerful systems.

Can your email be read like Sarah Palin’s?

Rick — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 13:55:57 +0000

Not likely. In the Sarah Palin case, her Yahoo email account was not hacked...her password was hacked. That means the hackers guessed Sarah Palin's password (maybe it was hockeymom). Seriously, it could have been that easy. More likely, however, the hackers used sophisticated programs that were used to crack the password.

The number one defense you possess to safeguard your email, bank account, or any other online account is a strong password.

A strong password contains a mix of upper and lower case letters, numerals, and special characters like (# @ ! * & _ - + ).
Never use the same password for all your accounts.
Never use words that can be found in a dictionary (these are the easiest to hack)
Change your important account passwords often.

I know, I know..."It's too hard to remember.". Write it down! No one said you have to memorize it. Write it down, but keep it in safe place and don't forget where you put it. OR, you can use any number of password manager programs. Read my Password Mania tip for more info.

If you aren't running for Vice President of the free world, you automatically reduce your chances of being hacked by almost 1 billion times. But, don't get lazy and leave your account information open to the chance of being hacked.

Bresnan Email Woes

Rick — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 20:18:24 +0000

Although this tip targets one particular Internet provider, ANY computer user will benefit from the advice I give at the end of the article. In Western Colorado, a company called Bresnan provides a large swath of the cable services...including cable Internet. Overall, I have no problems with the Bresnan service. They run an extremely speedy and pretty stable Internet connection.

However, my beef with the service has always been their sub-standard email service.

Only 50 megabytes of space per email address (most services offer 1000 megabytes and up)
Horrific spam filtering...filters legit email, and lets a lot of spam through
Web mail application is among the worst I've seen

Over the past few weeks, Bresnan customers have been pleasantly surprised to see that all of the sudden 99% or more of their spam messages have stopped arriving in either their screened mail folder or their inbox. They were happy. What they and I didn't start to figure out until this week was

Zoho now supports Yahoo or Google accounts

Rick — Wed, 14 May 2008 23:13:08 +0000

If you haven't had a chance yet to try out the Zoho.com online productivity applications and you have a Yahoo or Google account or email address, you can now use that account information to sign-in to any of the Zoho.com applications. This new feature from Zoho gives literally millions of computer users the opportunity to see what online applications are all about without going through any new sign-up process.