[AccessD] OT - Spam Blocker

For my money it is still helpful to place the spam in a separate folder for
scanning.  It just seems easier to look at a page of messages about loans,
pills and penis patches and pick out the one good message.  And believe me,
Bayesian filters are VERY good at deciding that something is spam.

I use Outlook filters to further classify my email, sorting things into
folders.  Newsletters, AccessD messages, stuff from friends and relatives
etc.  Train the Bayesian filter on ONE EACH of these messages and it's good
to go.  I guess it decides that the address is good or something, not sure
really.  So the spam goes into the spam bucket and really is spam, VERY
occasional "not sure" (and you can play with the numbers to decide the % is
tagged not sure), and whatever is left in the inbox after spam filtering and
my rules is also about 50% spam, though these amount to 1 or 2 a day.

Until someone on the list turned me on to Bayesian filters I wasn't
convinced, but they really do work.  This C%oc&k crap gets shoveled right
out as spam.

John W. Colby
www.colbyconsulting.com

-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of Stuart Sanders
Sent: Monday, October 20, 2003 12:14 AM
To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT - Spam Blocker


My main problem with anti-spam stuff is the 99% accuracy issue.  What if the
1%
it filters happens to be an urgent email I need.  So in order to prevent
losing
such an email, I still have to scan down the list of filtered junk.  If
that's
the case, then why bother at all.  So I've ended up just scanning down my
inbox
and ctrl clicking each spam and hitting delete.

A couple of things that can help if you are not already too inundated or
have a
new email.
- *never* put your email as a link on your website.  Robots wind their way
around the internet looking at websites to harvest email addresses off.  Use
either a graphical image of your email address or use a web based form for
receiving enquiries
- checking out a new site and it requires registration then use a throw away
address.  I use a yahoo email address for this

Probably many other tips users of DBA lists could come up with.  Maybe
someone
can write up a summary and create a spam help page on the DBA site.

Stuart



> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of
> William Hindman
> Sent: Monday, 20 October, 2003 4:39 AM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: Re: [AccessD] OT - Spam Blocker
>
>
> ...I mostly use hotmail and have several filters set there
> ...but hotmail
> also frequently routes good mail it can't classify into its
> "bulk mail"
> catchall so I still have to scan it ...plus, there are lots
> of spam scams
> that hotmail isn't sophisticated enough to catch such as
> B-I-G D-I-*-K, etc
> :(((((
>
> William Hindman
> So, then, to every man his chance -- to every man, regardless
> of his birth,
> his shining golden opportunity -- to every man his right to
> live, to work,
> to be himself, to become whatever his manhood and his vision
> can combine to
> make him -- this, seeker, is the promise of America.
> -- Thomas Wolfe