Atlantic.Net Offices Closed for the Holidays
Atlantic.Net's offices and Member Services call center will be closed on Thursday, December 25th and Friday, December 26th so our employees can spend the holiday with their families. The call center will reopen at 12 a.m. on Saturday, December 27th.

Atlantic.Net's Network Operations Center engineers will continue to monitor and maintain your service during this time. The Atlantic.Net team wishes all members a safe and happy holiday season!


Give the Gift of Internet Service
This holiday, give your loved ones something they'll appreciate each and every day — a gift certificate for Atlantic.Net unlimited Internet access. We offer several rate plans for you to choose from. Give access for just one month or for an entire year. Just phone Atlantic.Net's Accounting Department at (800) 422-2936 or e-mail billing@atlantic.net to find out how you can get a gift certificate for someone you love.





Holiday Movies: A Blockbuster Season?
Movie companies thrive on the holiday season almost as much as retail stores do. So it's no big surprise that some of the year's hottest movies are debuting this holiday season. Check out some of the films that have already opened or are coming soon to a theater near you.

• Week of November 26, 2003:
Bad Santa: This holiday-themed movie isn't necessarily for the kids. It stars Billy Bob Thornton as a criminal who gets jobs as Santa Claus so he can rob malls. But of course, this criminal is taught a lesson when a little boy reminds him of the true meaning of Christmas.
The Haunted Mansion: In this movie, based upon a popular theme park attraction, Eddie Murphy stars as a father who brings his family along to a real estate meeting at a mansion that turns out to be haunted.

• Week of December 12, 2003:
Something's Gotta Give: This romantic comedy stars Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson, who plays an older man who generally dates much younger women. His world is turned upside down when he meets and falls for Keaton's character.
Stuck on You: Starring Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear, this comedy is about the relationship that develops between two conjoined twins. As their lives start to take different directions, problems occur and their happy union is threatened.

• Week of December 19, 2003:
Mona Lisa Smile: This drama has an all-star cast, including Julia Roberts, Julia Stiles, and Kirsten Dunst. It is the story of Katherine Ann Willis, a teacher at Wellesley College in the 1950s, who takes on the school and changes a few lives in the process, including her own.
Calendar Girls: This film tells the true, yet slightly fictionalized, story of 11 middle-aged women from England who posed nude for an annual calendar to raise money for medical research.

• Week of December 25, 2003:
Cheaper by the Dozen: A great comedy for the whole family, starring Bonnie Hunt and Steve Martin as parents of 12 children ranging from preschoolers to age 22. When the family is uprooted and moved to Chicago, things get crazy and the parents have to figure out a way to handle their small army of kids.
Peter Pan: The classic children's tale is coming back to life this holiday season. We all know the story of Peter Pan, the ageless boy from Neverland. This film is a classic every child should see ... and every adult should remember.

Written by Laurie Mascia

Giving GIFs This Season?
So say for this holiday season you want to send your friends and family some photos via e-mail. How do you know whether to send them GIFs, TIFFs, BMPs, or JPGs. And just what the heck is the difference between these formats anyway?

• BMP: Otherwise known as a bitmap, this is a fairly common Windows image format. However, the image only really works with Windows platforms. And if it's
posted online, it can only be seen through Internet Explorer. No other browser will be able to read it.
• JPG or JPEG: These extensions are one and the same. This format is the best compression for photographs and is the most commonly used. It is supported by just about every platform. Most likely, images you will be saving will come in this format.
• GIF: Graphics Interchange Format, or GIF, is an image type that's supported on numerous platforms. GIFs also include data compression, but because they're limited to 256 colors, the format is more effective for scanned images such as illustrations rather than color photos.
• TIFF: Also known as tagged image files, these are uncompressed and are recommended as the best solution
for data exchange between media. You won't see these files very often unless you are working with images on a more advanced level.
• PDF: A PDF file is a way to distribute formatted documents, usually including both text and images, over the Internet. In order to read such files, you need Acrobat, a special reader program you can download from www.adobe.com.

Written by Laurie Mascia



Surfin' Safari: The Holidays Are Cooking Up
The holidays always bring with them sweet smells from the kitchen. And no matter what you're celebrating, you can fill your home with awesome aromas with recipes from these Web sites specializing in holiday treats.

• Santa's.net — Find Christmas recipes from all over the world, including what to leave out for Santa on Christmas Eve.
• ChristmasRecipe.com — It's All Recipes' Christmas site, with over 845 recipes for appetizers, casseroles, beverages, Christmas food gifts, main dishes, desserts, even vegetarian dishes.
• Merry-Christmas.com — Find down-home recipes just like grandma used to make. Plus recipes from Mrs. Claus and the Heat Miser.
• Cyber-Kitchen.com — Find latkes, cakes, cookies, and more, along with a Kosher FAQ page, at this Hanukkah recipe site.
• HanuKat.com — Lots of family recipes, garnished with a little family history, make this site an interesting read.
• BetterHomesandGardens.com — Anyone in the mood for some Hanukkah brisket or a Dreidel cake?
• TheHolidaySpot.com — From okra gumbo to crab cakes, you'll find plenty of delicious dishes here to help you celebrate Kwanzaa.
• ChefMom.com — Celebrate the "first fruits of the harvest" with this traditional Kwanzaa feast.
• Holidays.net — Here you'll find a variety of fruit and vegetable Kwanzaa dishes like curried cornbread pudding and squash casserole.

Written by Laurie Mascia



Surfer Dude Answers Your Questions
He's the PC professor, the gigabyte guru, the ruler of RAM. He's Surfer Dude!

Q: When I boot up, every other time, my mouse will not work. I bought a new mouse and it is doing the same thing. I scanned for viruses and I have none. I have been told it is a virus causing this though. What is going on? The mouse locks up and only shows a frozen arrow on the desktop. I have to "illegally" shut down, which I hate to keep doing. Thanks Surfer Dude. — Janulee

A: Hmm ... Well, dudette, there are many things that can cause this problem:
1. First, it could be the port you're plugging the mouse into. Does your computer have a USB port? If it does, can your mouse plug use it? And if you're using the USB port, try using the PS2 port, which is the round plug. Of course, you might need an adapter.
2. Second, it could be your software. Did you install the drivers that came with the mouse? If you haven't, then it might help to do so. If you have, try visiting Microsoft's update site to see if they have updated drivers that might improve the situation.
3. It doesn't sound like a virus, as a virus would cause the mouse to malfunction every time, and would be easily recognized by any virus scanner. Just to make sure, a free virus scanner is available at Housecall. Check it out just one more time to be sure.
4. If the above doesn't work, there is always the possibility that you could have a flaw in your operating system, and a reinstallation might be in order. Consider this as a last resort though, as it involves deleting everything on your hard drive. Remember to back up your important info first!
5. Finally, if none of the above tips work, you might try a different brand name. Usually well-known names such as Microsoft and Logitech have the best performance record. And remember, you always have the option of taking it to a technician if you feel uncomfortable with any of this. Technicians can do the diagnosing for you, and fix the problem!

Happy holidays, dudes! I'm off to surf with Santa! — SD

Got a Question?
If you're stumped by a technical conundrum, just Ask the Surfer Dude, and we'll share the answers in future issues.


Simple Service
When the holidays are over, share those photos with all your family. Just print them up on the Canon i560 Desktop Photo Printer from Amazon.com and you'll be amazed at your ability to spread holiday cheer. You'll find more great seasonal bargains at The Surf Shop.

Tech Tip: Web Page Won't Load?
Now don't worry, this kind of thing can happen all the time! There are so many technologies used to make Web pages these days, that you're bound to run into trouble somewhere. Let's narrow down your problem:
• The page loads, but you can't see the graphics. Two things can cause this. It's possible that whoever created the Web page didn't do it correctly. It's a good idea to check your browser settings though, as it is possible to turn off Web graphics. It varies depending on your browser but, in Internet Explorer this setting is found under Tools, Internet Options, Advanced. Just make sure the option that says "Show pictures" is checkmarked.
• You're visiting a page that uses Java or Flash technology. Before you ask what those are, let me tell you. Java and Flash are two types of programming used to make those spiffy animated graphics on some Web sites. Most newer browsers support these, if they don't come with them built-in. If you're using an older browser, you might want to upgrade it first. Then you can download Java or Flash for free.
• You're visiting a secure site. For our own protection, any site that allows you to enter sensitive information (i.e. credit card, banking info) uses what is called Secure SSL. You can usually tell that you're on a secure site when you see "https" in the Web site address. But what is SSL? It encrypts the data you've input on the site so that no one can steal it during the transaction. If you're having problems visiting a site that uses SSL, you might not have a browser that supports it and you might want to upgrade. You can also check your browser settings — again in Internet Explorer, going to Tools, Internet Options, Advanced. You'll want to make sure that you're using both SSL 2.0 and 3.0. If all else fails, contact the Web site administrator and they'll be able to tell you if any special settings are needed.
• Is it just one Web page that won't load? If you're only having problems with one page, and none of the above apply, the site may simply be down for maintenance, or the creator may have taken it down permanently.
• None of the Web sites you try to visit are loading.
This can be a sign of a bigger problem. If you have a firewall program running, you want to first make sure that the security settings are not too high, You could even disable it temporarily to see if your sites start working again. If this is not the culprit, try using another Web browser if possible. If that does not help or is not an option, contact Atlantic.Net Member Services at 1-800-921-9328. We can walk you through some possible problems and resolutions.

Written by Denise Cole

Got a question for Atlantic.Net's Technical Support team? E-mail us at support@atlantic.net.




Upgrading Your Connection Can Save You Money

If you don't think boosting your bandwidth can also boost your bottom line, take a look at these cost-cutting advantages over that status-quo connection speed.

1) Save research time. While your employees are waiting for that page to load, the time clock is still ticking. How does that translate into wasted money for you? If 10 employees earning an average of $10 an hour each waste 10 minutes a day waiting for pages to load, that's a whopping $4,342 in wasted cash every year!

2) Lose the unnecessary equipment. Upgrading to DSL from ISDN or a dial-up connection frees up a phone line, which you can cancel or use for voice. That's because DSL technology allows data and voice communications to use the same line. In addition, DSL is more cost-effective than ISDN when used to connect multiple office locations together.

3) Convert to Web-based applications and back-ups. A faster connection enables your team to access and share information securely via the Internet. Hosted applications cost significantly less than purchasing, implementing, and maintaining your own hardware and software, and Web-based back-ups give you peace of mind and protection for your priceless intellectual property.

4) Reduce travel expenses. Replace face-to-face visits with videoconferences and Web-based presentations for training, sales consultations, and meetings.

5) Stop licking stamps. Postage certainly adds up, especially when you need important files to arrive the next day. Instead, exchange documents electronically and save time and shipping costs.

6) Take full advantage of the Web. Bring the full potential of the Web to your staff's fingertips. Bigger bandwidth means your team can access rich dynamic content and quickly reference online maps, phone books, directories, and other resources via an optimized connection.

7) Make telecommuting possible. Working at home becomes realistic when employees can access the info they need via the Web. And thanks to high-speed connections, you can realize the savings and convenience that telecommuting offers.

For more information, visit http://www.atlantic.net. To upgrade your connection today, contact an Atlantic.Net sales executive at 1-800-521-5881 or sales@atlantic.net.




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