Cruzio/The Internet Store Newsletter - Number 34, May 17, 2000
1) DSL $200 rebate offer extended!
2) A different kind of Math class
3) This week at Cruzio: E-commerce and Self-employment workshops
4) Classes next month: E-commerce and Web Design
5) DSL installation update
6) Alert reader catches Cruzio newsletter typo!
7) About This Newsletter
8) How to Reach Cruzio (dial-in or tech support)
1) DSL $200 rebate offer extended!
Cruzio was delighted to receive word from Pacific Bell that we could
extend our DSl rebate offer, originally due to end early this month. We're
now offering the $200 rebate until June 28th, 2000.
DSL is an extremely popular service for Cruzio customers. In fact,
Cruzio has been signing up more people for DSL in our area than
many larger providers. We're proud of our service and want to emphasize
that the e-mail and other outages, frequently to be seen in the
newspapers, don't involve us. Cruzio provides its own, excellent,
e-mail service.
We were, however, a bit embarrassed that we'd just finished warning
customers that the special was about to end. We didn't mean to hurry
people unnecessarily; Pacific Bell contacted us just 2 days before the
previous deadline. So we apologize for the rush. Customers can order
DSL until June 28th and still qualify for the rebate.
For more information on Cruzio's DSL special, please see:
http://www.cruzio.com/support/dslspecial
And for general information on DSL, see:
http://www.cruzio.com/support/dsl.html
2) A different kind of Math class
We've all been laid out to doze by the droning of a high school
algebra teacher. But mathematics can be far more interesting.
We may someday solve problems in ecology and world hunger by
looking at mathematical models.
Internationally famed Chaos mathematician Dr. Ralph Abraham is
teaching that kind of math at the Invisible College. Starting on
June 12, he will be leading a series of five Monday night classes
in the Cruzio classroom in downtown Santa Cruz, discussing the
principles of Chaos mathematics and its use in environmental issues.
The cost for all five classes is $50. (Dr. Abraham teaches at
UCSC too. Think of the difference in tuition!) No prior mathematical
knowledge required. All are invited to attend.
Math Musings is another of the classes held by the Invisible
College, to which Cruzio lends facilities. For more information
on the topics presented at the Invisible College, please see
http://www.invisiblecollege.com
3) This week at Cruzio: E-commerce and Self-employment workshops
In the next few days, some interesting events are occuring at Cruzio:
Thursday, May 18th, 2000 12:30-2PM at Cruzio
"E-commerce: Building a Successful Presence on the Internet"
Join Cruzio Senior Staff at this popular workshop to learn how
to create a successful Internet presence for your business: getting
a web site, registering a domain name, using ShopSite, Cruzio's
E-commerce solution, and generating visitors to your web site. All
Brown Bags are $5 to attend, lunch is $6 extra.
To register, visit http://www.cruzio.com/support/business/brownbags.html.
Friday, May 19th, 2000 11-1PM at Cruzio
"Self-Employment Forum & FREE Luncheon" Sponsored by Cruzio,
The Internet Store, and the Santa Cruz Regional Cluster Project.
As part of a study on self-employment and small businesses in
Santa Cruz County, the Santa Cruz Regional Cluster Project wants
to know how the region can better support self-employment. Attend
this FREE lunch and workshop to give the Project feedback on that
topic and others. to sign up, please RSVP to Rosemary Smith at
(831) 477-5649, fax her at (831) 477-5636 or via e-mail.
The Cluster Project is a collaborative effort among business,
government, education, environment, and non-profit leaders to
support retention and creation of quality jobs and to better
prepare local people for employment opportunities.
And next month:
June Business Brown Bag, Wednesday, June 14th 12:30-2pm
Grow Your Business Workshop: Join Cruzio staff and community business
leaders to discuss starting or growing your business. To register, visit
http://www.cruzio.com/support/business/brownbags.html
4) Classes next month: E-commerce and Web Design
As we mentioned last month, Cruzio has the timing all figured out for
Christmas 2000. Learn all about E-commerce now, at our workshops
and classes. Cruzio provides a very thorough and practical grounding in
the subject. A beginning store is simple to set up. Then, over the
summer months, develop your store. Play with different ideas and
graphics. Make adjustments and improvements. Correct typos.
By winter, it will be "The Grasshopper and the Ant" story all over again.
Your friends will be hurrying to put together a Web site at a time when
their non-Web sales are keeping them busy. But you, who have planned, will
be sitting back sipping a Pina Colada, or non-alcoholic beverage of your
choice, watching the money roll in through your Web store. Ah, summer!
In June, Cruzio will be offering:
Tuesdays, 6:30-9pm: "Using the Internet", packed with tips and
tricks for speedy, fun Internet usage.
Wednesdays, 6:30-9pm: "Publishing on the Internet I", Zingy
instructors John, and Kathy guide students through
the process of creating Web sites for their family, hobbies
or businesses. Our most popular series.
Thursdays, 6:30-9pm: "E-commerce", Three of our top-rated instructors
explain how e-commerce works in a practical, real-world
way, followed by an in-depth look at ShopSite, Cruzio's
shopping cart solution, and plenty of hands-on practice.
Every student creates a working shopping cart before
the end of the series. Taught by Mark, Kathy, and John.
Coming up in July:
Thursdays, 6:30-9pm: "Publishing on the Internet II", A
continuation of the first "Publishing" series, where
the effervescent Mark and John present more sophisticated
and effective methods of creating web pages.
5) DSL installation update
In the last newsletter, we described some delays in DSL installations.
Some customers are waiting weeks just for an installation date
from Pacific Bell. We have been hammering away at this problem, so
here's the update:
Not all customers see delays in DSL installation times. Folks living
in the City of Santa Cruz or nearby are experiencing the longest waits.
The main cause of the delay is that telephone company equipment is
inadequate to the tremendous demand for DSL, both from Cruzio
customers and those folks who, strangely enough, have chosen some
other ISP service. The central office has been out of DSL "ports"
for many weeks, and installations have dribbled in very slowly
to all DSL customers using that office. No ISP has an advantage; we
all use the same software to draw from the same available pool of ports.
More ports were ordered by Pacific Bell for their office, but the
equipment (called a DSLAM) was faulty and they are still waiting for
usable equipment to come in. In the meantime, DSL customers are
getting DSL on a very slow, first-come, first-served basis.
Cruzio will update you on the situation as soon as we have further
news. Again, we are hoping that things will soon improve.
6) Alert reader catches Cruzio newsletter typo!
Alert reader Nancy Dooner pointed out that Cruzio sent out
two newsletters, both numbered #32! Kudos to Nancy for excellent
editing skills from which we will hereafter draw inspiration.
Note: Cruzio has numbered this newsletter #34, and #33 will
forever be an anomaly in the annals of Cruzio newsletter history.
7) 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.
By the way, we would love to have a regular, predictable schedule
for this newsletter...but we simply do not send it unless there is real
news enclosed. Thus the haphazard datelines.
8) How to Reach Cruzio (dial-in or tech support)
To reach the Cruzio Information Center, for online technical and
sales information:
http://www.cruzio.com/support
To dial in to Cruzio, set your software to dial one of the numbers
below (note: we've expanded and joined modem pools, so you may be
using another number. If so, don't worry, it still works just fine).
56k: 459-9408
33.6 kbps and under: 459-6230
To call Cruzio:
459-6301............Use this number to check Cruzio's system status,
pay your Cruzio bill, find out more about our hours and location,
or to reach someone in customer service and technical support.
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
Thanks very much from Cruzio:
Chris, Peggy, John, Julianne, Patton, Kathy, Mark, Martin,
Georgette, Jay, Tapati, Hilary, Temoc, Brittany, Alec, Rachael,
Barbara, Raelani, Priya, Stephen, Paul, Tim, Gershom, Myesha,
and Kelly (the grownups); Jake, Annika, and Carly (the kids)
I saw my two-year-old, Carly, removing dozens of books from a low
bookshelf (this is not unusual). I asked her, "What are you doing with
those books?" and she replied, "I'm makin' pancakes!"
Of course.
