Cruzio Newsletter - Number 3, December 21 1995
Table of Contents
1. About this newsletter
2. 28.8 lines improvement -- Many lines added
3. Busy support lines, additional lines coming
4. Cruzio's Holiday schedule
5. Using a 28.8 Modem with Windows 3.1
6. Windows 95
7. New Power Macintoshes' Open Transport
8. Cruzio Web pages -- new features and recommended settings
9. System downtime -- Sunday mornings before 8am
10. No joke this time, but a fun Web site
11. How to reach Cruzio (dial-in or tech support)
1. About this Newsletter
Cruzio doesn't like to waste bandwidth with extra email, but
we sometimes have events and announcements that users need
to know about. This seems like the most efficient way to let
people know what's happening. Hope it's helpful. Please email
support@cruzio.com with any comments or questions.
2. 28.8 lines improvement -- Many lines added
We've added a great many lines to our 28.8 pool and more are
coming. So if you have a 28.8 modem, and were frustrated by
busy signals a few weeks ago, please try again. The 28.8 number
is 459-6230.
Now that we've finished pulling in 600 new pairs of wire for
phone line expansion, will will be able to add modems as required
to stay ahead of busy signals. Please let us know if you are
getting more then a few minutes of busies on any lines.
3. Busy support lines, additional lines coming
We know that sometimes it is difficult to reach us at 423-7635,
which is our human support line (vs. the other lines, at which
you leave messages). So we're adding new support lines, which
should be in early January.
4. Cruzio's Holiday schedule
The Cruzio front office will be closed on December 25th and 26th
(Monday and Tuesday), and on January 1st and 2nd (Monday and
Tuesday). We will be open on the days between, but may close early
some days due to staff vacations, etc. If you want to come in
between Christmas and New Year's, please call ahead to check.
Also, we'll be closing at 4pm on Friday, December 22. That's
earlier than our usual 6pm closing time.
Support, via email to support@cruzio.com and from the status
line (423-7529) will continue as usual throughout the holidays.
And of course, our systems will all be up and running so
that you can use the Internet at any time of day, any day of
the year.
5. Using a 28.8 modem on Windows 3.1
If you are getting a new 28.8 modem for a Windows 3.1 system,
please be aware that the Internet Starter Kit only goes up
to a top speed of 19.2 kbps. To reach higher speeds, different
software must be used. Cruzio does not yet have one package
that we recommend. Many Cruzio users have gone to Trumpet,
upgraded to the full Chameleon, or have upgraded their systems
to Windows 95. Please feel free to contact us (see contact info
at the bottom of this newsletter).
6. Windows 95
Windows 95 includes a PPP dialer in the operating system. We
have installed and tested the new connection software and it
works well. Some notes about this software:
- You do not need (and cannot use) "The Internet Starter
Kit" PPP stack ("Custom") with Windows 95.
- You can, however, use most clients from the Internet
Starter Kit with Windows 95. The only client we've found
that doesn't work is the Chameleon FTP.
- We have step-by-step instructions for installation. If
you are upgrading to Windows 95, please ask us for the
instructions!
7. New Power Macintoshes' Open Transport
Apple has released new Internet connection software in its
latest operating system release. The software is called "Open
Transport" and it's on the new 7200, 7500, 8500 and 9500
Macintosh models. There are some things you should note about
Open Transport:
- You do not need (and cannot use) "The Internet Starter
Kit" with Open Transport.
- Open Transport does not seem to work well with only
8 megabytes of RAM. We recommend upgrading the RAM to
16 megabytes for these machines.
If you have an Open Transport Macintosh, please contact Cruzio for
instructions on setting it up. Not all the software that works
with the Internet Starter Kit for Macintosh will work with
Open Transport.
6. Cruzio Web pages -- new features and recommended settings
The Cruzio home page has improved. We have lots of new
features and better organization! Take a look, we are
at
http://www.cruzio.com
Please especially notice the new Cruzio Information Center
link on the Cruzio home page. This is a place where you can
look up common Cruzio and Internet questions, download
diagnostic tools for your PPP account, look through
the Cruzio Online Support Center for solutions to problems
you may encounter in your online journeys, and more.
The Cruzio Information Center also has information about
Cruzio accounts and services.
Note: many people have their Netscape "home page" set
to home.netscape.com, so when they start up Netscape they
have to wait a long time for the busy Netscape page to load.
Cruzio recommends choosing another page for the home page,
and we recommend using our home page which is local and
loads quickly. If you have a home page of your own, or another
favorite local page, that would also be a good choice.
To reset your home page in Netscape, go to Options->
General Preferences->Appearance in version 2.0, or
Options->Preferences->Styles in previous versions.
7. System downtime -- Sunday mornings before 8am
Just a reminder that Cruzio is down early every Sunday morning
for system maintenance. Downtime is from about 4 am to 6 am most
Sundays, but occasionally we have the system down until 8am.
8. No joke this time, but a fun Web site
Many of our users are enjoying a fun new Web site. Try
http://www.got.net/~egallant/the_road.html
It's the "Highway 17 Page of Shame". Some guys who
commute over the hill every day have started taking a
digital camera with them, and they post their experiences
each day. It's pretty hilarious. We also have a link
to this from our home page (http://www.cruzio.com) if
you are surfing around.
9. How to reach Cruzio (dial-in or tech support)
To dial in to Cruzio, check what modem speed you are
using and dial one of the following numbers:
2400 bps.................423-9995
9600 bps.................423-1987
14.4 kbps................459-6200
28.8 kbps................459-6230
To call Cruzio, use one of these numbers:
423-1162.................Our main number, to leave a message
423-7529.................Our status line, to report or check on
system problems
423-7635.................Our "human line", from 12-6 Monday through
Friday. Talk to a human being.
To send email to Cruzio, use one of these addresses:
support@cruzio.com.......for technical support
office@cruzio.com........for billing and ordering information
webmaster@cruzio.com.....for questions about Cruzio's World Wide
Web service
To reach the Cruzio Information Center, for online technical and
sales information:
http://www.cruzio.com/
Thanks very much and Happy Holidays from the Cruzio Bunch:
Chris, Peggy, John, Deana, Judy, JJ, Jake and
Annika, the Cruzio Baby (now 11 months old)
