Since joining the Y2K debate in 1999, the use of my email address has created the ongoing problem of spam. I have developed a rather elaborate set of Outlook spam filters that deletes 90 percent of incoming mail (apologies to anyone who tries to reach me with the words "bad credit" in the text). I'm looking for a third party solution to further reduce spam volume. Of course, I could change my email address and probably will absent some miracle product. Does anyone use a third party spam filter than works reasonably well?

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@att.net), May 10, 2002

Answers

Lots of people use SpamCop which includes the ability to report spam as well as filtered email. I don't use it myself, though, as I'm too cheap. It seems like it would provide what you are looking for.

-- (what@i.think), May 10, 2002.

I sometimes prefer spam to some of the dorky stuff that friends send

-- (lars@indy.net), May 10, 2002.

That reminds me...add Lars to my mailing list ;oP

-- (cin@cin.cin), May 10, 2002.

Hey Lars, I know how you can get a ten inch penis in just a few days - honest! Write me...

-- D. Olson (hunglikeahamster@hotmail.com), May 10, 2002.

Ken:

Out of curiosity, what do you consider excessive spam?

I've always used my home email address, and I don't have any kind of filtration that I know of. By my count, I have deleted approximately 4000 emails in the last year. However, a good number of these were notifications of participation on bulletin boards ("Joe Jingo has responded to a thread to which you once contributed"). So maybe I get 5 to 7 ads a day, mostly in character sets I don't have support for. Some of these pop up requirements for Direct-X or the like, but all are easily deleteable.

Are things much different for you? I don't find myself inconvenienced.

-- Flint (flintc@mindspring.com), May 10, 2002.

Flint, it's hard to track because the filters auto delete and the folder is emptied upon exiting Outlook. I started filtering after taking a ten-day stint in the hills. My emails started downloading and I eventually decided to have a cup of coffee rather than wait. I recall about 250 emails which would have been about 25 per day. What I noticed, though, was that commercial email is terribly redundant. It was fairly easy to find phrases like "bad credit" that would rarely be used in any personal communication.

I still find it a petty annoyance, much like telemarketers or junk mail. It sometimes feels like the last real privilege is freedom from intrusion. By the way, I missed you weighing in on the animal emotions thread. Perhaps you can offer some insight into whether a raven can feel aerobatic pride?

-- Ken Decker (kcdecker@att.net), May 10, 2002.

You'd have to ask the ravens that can't do it.

-- Carlos (riffraff@cybertime.net), May 10, 2002.