Cruzio Newsletter - Number 78, August 20, 2004
1. DSL Upload Speeds Getting Faster, Same Price
2. Recycling Old Computers in Capitola
3. Free Computer Consultants Workshop Weds Aug 25
4. High-Speed Routers for Sale at Cruzio
5. Election Approaching. Need to Register?
6. Take the Cruzio Numbers Quiz
7. Buddy Bucks
8. Late Fees/Cans
9. About This Newsletter
10. How to Reach Cruzio (dial-in or tech support)
1. DSL Upload Speeds Getting Faster, Same Price
Many Cruzio DSL customers will soon see increases in upload
speed. There's no extra cost; nothing you need to do; it's just
an improvement in service that will occur on most lines over the
next few months.
Not every customer will see the full speed, as it varies
by location and condition of the line. DSL 1.5 upload speeds will
increase to as much as 384 kbps; DSL 3.0 upload maximums will
increase to 512 kbps. Enjoy!
2. Recycling Old Computers in Capitola
Saturday, August 28th, 9 am to 3 pm
Nob Hill Foods Parking Lot, 809 Bay Avenue
We have them in the garage. We have them in the closet. We move
to a new house, and don't know where to put the old computers,
so we end up taking them with us. With housing costs at record highs,
how much are we spending to store old computer junk?
If you're a Capitola resident, or have a business located in Capitola,
your city is offering help. On August 28th, the City of Capitola is
holding an "E-waste" electronics recycling day. At no cost, you
may bring old equipment to be recycled.
For more information, please go to
http://www.ci.capitola.ca.us/capcity.nsf/AboutNewsRel.html
Good work Capitola! Cruzio is a co-sponsor of this event and
Cruzio staffers will be out there helping. Look for us in our
stylin' Cruzio tee-shirts.
Cruzio would like to see an industry-wide solution to this problem --
it's a serious one. Computer equipment becomes obsolete so quickly that
it's nearly impossible to deal with the debris. The computer industry
has a long way to go, in both recycling and manufacturing practices.
We applaud Hewlett Packard for their leadership in this effort. As
consumers, let's keep asking for more.
3. Free Computer Consultants Workshop Weds Aug 25
Wednesday, August 25th, 5:00-6:30 pm
At the Cruzio storefront, 903 Pacific Avene, Santa Cruz
Not just a free event -- free food too!
If you're a Web designer, or a computer or network consultant, come
to Cruzio's free quarterly Consultant Workshop! Meet the folks at
Cruzio and see how we can help your business, including your bottom
line (you may be eligible for referral fees!)
Come meet Cruzio senior staff, technical support and customer service
representatives in person, learn about troubleshooting tools, how to
work with Cruzio, and about special services and new updates to
existing Cruzio and Internet technologies.
For more information, and to register, see
http://www.cruzio.com/brownbag
4. High-Speed Routers for Sale at Cruzio
If you want to put more than one computer on your Internet
connection, you need a router.
Because more and more Cruzio customers are connecting multiple
home or office computers, especially on high-speed DSL lines,
Cruzio has been investigating equipment options. Our indefatigable
Technical Support department has found a reliable, easy-to-set-up
router from D-Link which they particularly like. We've tested this
router, we've inspected it, we've written up step-by-step
instructions, and we are now selling the router at our downtown
Santa Cruz store.
We're selling this popular, highly-rated router well below list
price -- it's a $149 router, at Cruzio for just $89 plus tax.
Hook it up to your DSL modem. Then, connect your computers,
either wirelessly or over cables (the old-fashioned way). If you
also need a DSL modem, we sell the two as a package for $159
for an extra $29 in savings!
To read more about DSL equipment, please visit
http://www.cruzio.com/services/highspeed_access/dsl_equipment.html
To buy the router or the modem or both, come on down to Cruzio.
5. Election Approaching. Need to Register?
If you'd like to vote this year and need to register or
re-register (if you've moved, say) -- here's California's
official page for voter registration:
http://www.ss.ca.gov/elections/elections_vr.htm
You can print out a registration card from this Web site, or
pick one up at Cruzio's downtown Santa Cruz office. You need
to register at least 15 days ahead of the election. But why
wait? If you need to register, do so now!
Whatever your political views, Cruzio always urges you to vote
in every election. If you aren't sure you'll have time that day,
you can request an absentee ballot -- every voter is eligible
for one.
Many of us care deeply about our right to vote. It was a
hard-won right and is still being won: fair, universal suffrage
remains an ideal. We won't even go into electronic voting here
-- perhaps next newsletter (it's an interesting computer and
networking problem, just the kind of thing us geeks like to
opine about.)
As the election heats up, Cruzio will (as always) put up links to
informative non-partisan Web sites off our home page and (as always)
we'll link to official election returns sites on the big day. Should
be a nail-biter, so check in.
6. Take the Cruzio Numbers Quiz
We are geeks here at Cruzio. We love numbers. Perhaps you find
them fun, too. So here, for your quizzing pleasure, are some of the
interesting numbers which describe Cruzio. See if you can match
them up:
1. Years Cruzio has been in business
2. Bits per second for our higher-speed DSL (up to)
3. Cruzio DSL customers
4. Years Cruzio has won "Best Internet Provider" in local polls*
5. Average unique hits per day on Cruzio's home page, last 15 days
6. Number of Cruzio employees, out of 27, who live in Santa Cruz County
7. Number of states in the U.S.A. where Cruzio has free
dialup access for members
a. 4,077
b. 27
c. 48
d. 3,145,600
e. 26,095
f. 15
g. 10
(*Note: this is the same number of years that the "Best Internet
Provider" category has existed in area newspapers.)
(answers: 1)f; 2)d; 3)a; 4)g; 5)e; 6)b; 7)c)
If you got 1 to 3 correct: well, better luck next time. 4 to 6
correct: good work, kid. And if you got them all right, you're a
Cruzio expert!
7. Buddy Bucks
You earn Buddy Bucks when you recommend Cruzio to a friend,
family member, colleague, or even someone you barely know. If the
new customer gives us your email address, registration number, or
full name when signing up, Cruzio will give you $10 credit on
your account. No limit to the amount you can earn.
Remember, Cruzio dialup is now available nationwide -- does your
nephew in Nauvoo bemoan the lack of a decent Internet Provider?
Does your tattooist in Topeka wish for a connection like yours?
Sign 'em up.
8. Late Fees/Cans
If you're late on a payment to Cruzio, turn it into a donation
to hungry folks in our community. We will waive your late
fee if you bring 3 cans into our office for our Second Harvest
Food Bin barrel. Learn more about this charity at
http://www.thefoodbank.org
9. 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.
10. 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 locally, set your software to dial 459-6301.
Nationwide Dialup: Look up local number on our Web page:
http://www.flexpop.net/hub.php3?c=Locations&p=Numsearch
or call Cruzio toll free, 1.800.303.3302
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
Cruzio's location:
903 Pacific Avenue, Suite 101, Santa Cruz, CA 95060
Cruzio's hours:
Sales hours: 10am-6pm, Monday through Friday; 10 am - 2 pm Saturday
Technical support: 10-6 pm, Monday through Friday, 10am - 2pm Saturday
System monitoring, including customer-alerted emergencies, 24 hours
per day, 365 days per year (leap years, 366 days)
Thanks very much from Cruzio:
Chris, Peggy, Julianne, Kathy, Mark, Tapati, Alec, Stephen,
Paul, Gershom, Jessi, Michael, another Chris, Maria, James,
Juana, Krissie (congratulations on the new arrival!!), Nikkie,
Mike, Mario, Don, Bruce, Edgar, Brian, Jhonee', Derrick
and Westi; Eric (our fabulous intern);
Jake, Annika, and Carly (the kids)
Bumper sticker: "Don't believe everything you think."
When you live in the woods you get stories about bears and
vampires. For the children of freeway commuters there's the guy
with the hook hand. But here is the story that gets passed around
among the little kids at Cowell's beach:
Carly, age 7: "Once there was a little boy named Tommy and he was
surfing a big, big wave and it knocked him unconscious. He woke
up on the beach two days later in a cave behind some iron bars,
and he knew what was in that big red and green wave... the
Seaweed Monster. And the seaweed CLUNG TO HIS FLESH."
