Posted by Ernest__CT on 1/31/08 6:00pm
Msg #233418

Comcast email customers beware (and a question)

Long story, but I'll try to keep it short.

If you move, etc., and _close_ your Comcast account, you will loose your [e-mail address] address. You will _not_ be able to "move" your email address to another Comcast account.

This does _not_ mean that if you move from one city to another city (or maybe even state) _and keep your Comcast account_ that you'll loose your email address (necessarily).

Now, the question: Has anybody had any experience with a firm such as Go Daddy or another hosting company's email forwarding? For example, you own a Site called WWW.GoodestNotaryWhatAm.Com and use the email address [e-mail address] which automagically forwards to your [e-mail address]?

Thanks, all, as ever!

Reply by Les_CO on 1/31/08 6:50pm
Msg #233422

I have Comcast. (I have no choice, if I want cable) I have a (cheap) site on Yahoo. I forward all my email to my Comcast address.
The only problem is that Comcast from time to time "blocks" the mail because of their spam program. A real pain! If I were to do it again I'd use godaddy.

Reply by MikeC/NY on 1/31/08 6:53pm
Msg #233423

This is the biggest argument against using an ISP-specific email address vs using something like Yahoo or Gmail, or your own domain - portability.

It depends on the hosting site, but if the old email account has a POP mail server (which Comcast probably does have), you can usually configure the new email account to pull the mail from the old server as long as you keep the old account open. There should be an email configuration option on your web site that allows you to do this - you provide the POP server address along with your email account and password, and the web site host does the rest. You're not actually "forwarding" the mail, you're going out and getting it.

The problem, of course, is that you have to keep paying to keep that old email account active. At some point you need to make sure that EVERYONE you deal with knows your new email address, and that can be a real PITA.

Reply by Ernest__CT on 1/31/08 7:41pm
Msg #233432

Comcast email capability ceases when you drop the cable

Thanks for the idea, but when one closes their Comcast cable / Internet / etc. account the username goes away, supposedly permanently.

Comcast did give us reasonable service, including POP email, but for reasons having zero to do with Comcast itself we no longer have a Comcast account.

Changing one's email address is a HUGE problem!

Reply by CaliNotary on 1/31/08 11:09pm
Msg #233475

"This is the biggest argument against using an ISP-specific email address vs using something like Yahoo or Gmail, or your own domain - portability."

Amen to that. I kept Earthlink for way longer than I wanted to for this very reason. Finally I just decided to bite the bullet and go through the hassle of changing everything just to be able to dump their crappy internet service without having to still pay 10 bucks to keep a basic account open simply for the email address. Lesson learned, now I'm with gmail.

Reply by RickinVA on 1/31/08 7:26pm
Msg #233429

FWIW, I use a forwarding service for my personal email. It usually works well. I have 2 very cheap, ISPs and one of them is my business account. The other has emails to my personal accounts forwarded to it, and my email client, Eudora, POPs it for any traffic. If push comes to shove, I would add a new email address to the forwarding service and use that, but I would still have to have an ISP to collect any emails. If you need more info, contact me by email or phone. This forwarding service costs me about 10 bucks a year. Well worth it since I NEVER have to tell anyone to change my email address! The two ISPs cost less than 12 a bucks month total, and I could get rid of them if necessary and use my BB provider.

(Please, email only; not Not Rots PM.)

Rick

Reply by Gerry_VT on 1/31/08 7:50pm
Msg #233433

Email forwarding (and the limitations thereof)

I have two associations that I belong to (neither having anything to do with notaries) which offer email forwarding. I give one of these addresses to anyone I want to stay in touch with over the long haul.

The limitation is that these only work for incoming mail, not outgoing mail. So my correspondents become confused when I tell them that my email address is [e-mail address] but my email to them comes from [e-mail address]. (All email addresses are made up.)

Reply by Joan_OH on 1/31/08 9:08pm
Msg #233444

After 3 or 4 cable company buyouts in 5-6 years, I went to gmail. Everytime someone takes over the cable company, you get a new email address - usually just a few days after you order 1000 business cards!

I had comcast, bought out by Time Warner. I went from [e-mail address] to [e-mail address]. Comcast forwarded my comcast.net to my oh.rr.com for a year. Occasionally, I still get some comcast mail. I ALSO get mail to [e-mail address] but it is for another joan. They still forward MY mail, but I also get some of hers, including her Victoria Secret orders, Verizon bills, airplane tickets bought for her by her son to Florida (hated to give that one up), pdf's of Wedding invitations for Mom to look over before sending to the printer. The best was the job rejection letter I got, then 6 months later, someone new in the personnel office emailed and said, I know so & so rejected you, but I would like to talk further, then later an itinerary and directions to their Florida office because they were flying her in for an interview!!!! I couldn't just let that go. I had visions of this other Joan not getting this job because she was "ignoring" emails that she most likely didn't get. I emailed the interviewer and told her I was not the intended recipient of the email and to please call this other Joan because apparently Comcast gave her my email address.

Never Again. I will stay with Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, whatever. I only use my RoadRunner as a backup.

Joan-OH

Reply by NCLisa on 1/31/08 9:14pm
Msg #233446

I love GoDaddy, but hated their email forwarding. I would only get 1 out of every 2 loan packages. Not a good way to do business. It's far easier to buy a domain name, and get a hosting site, and use that email addy for everything. I don't use my internet providers email services for anything other than junk mail.

Reply by Ernest__CT on 1/31/08 10:01pm
Msg #233465

That sounds like a huge red flag! n/m

Reply by Tony_FL on 1/31/08 10:50pm
Msg #233469

Re: How about AOL?

I have an AOL address for my business purposes. Works great, I have been using it for over a year now and have never failed to receive any of my emails or attachments.

It is available FREE of charge (no you don't have to load their software or subscribe to their services) and accessible by POP, IMAP and Web access.

Just something to consider.

Tony Myers
[e-mail address]

Reply by MistarellaFL on 2/1/08 10:50am
Msg #233525

Re: How about AOL?

But, if you ever have a premium account, you can't take it with you to another premium account. But, you can access it thru the free service.

Reply by Laura Vestanen on 2/1/08 11:04am
Msg #233533

Hi, Ernest

Another tip to add to your stack -

Comcast also interferes with POP3 and STMP email accounts. (Not certain if I got the second name right. Should be close.) After lots of conversations with Comcast techs, one in-person service person told me off the record that Comcast does this deliberately to drive market share their way.

So if you use a new service, make certain the mail, addresses, etc, are all kept on a server. Yahoo, Gmail, etc, all keep theirs on a server. If you are using Outlook, you are not downloading your email to your computer rather than accessing it on a server.

1&1.com is has pretty cheap hosting and server-based email. You get your own domain name which looks far more professional than a Gmail, etc, account.

Good luck,
LauraV

Reply by NCLisa on 2/1/08 11:08am
Msg #233536

Im a huge fan of hazelwebhosting. I now have 3 domains hosted there. I tried IXwebhosting but had over 400 spam emails a day to wade through, reminded me of AOL and their spam. The 2 businesses are hosted on hazelwebhosting, and the domains where I don't need to get email are at IXwebhosting.

Reply by BrendaTx on 2/1/08 11:24am
Msg #233546

**You get your own domain name which looks far more professional than a Gmail, etc, account.**

At one time I would have totally agreed with that statement, however, I think sometimes having a Gmail account (for the notary) says “Hey, you CAN’T overfill my email account…even if you try…send all the edocs you want to send.”

Reply by Jennifer Bernard on 2/1/08 2:08pm
Msg #233618

Ok, you guys have scared me with that being said i just got a gmail account!!!! And I like it... I never knew what features it had...(Happy I'm at the tail end of business cards!!!!)