Email is a great way to stay in touch with friends, family

RVers can stay in touch on the road with friends and loved ones back home by email. Sending electronic messages was probably the first thing we learned with our new computer.

But there are dangers lurking out there in cyberland. Do you wonder why you get viruses or junk mail? Every time you forward an email there is information left over from the people who got the message before you, namely their email addresses and names.

The following are some tips about keeping your emailing habits safe and more enjoyable:

• When you forward an email, delete all other addresses that appear in the body of the message.
• Whenever you send an email to more than one person, do not use the "TO" or "CC" columns for adding email address. Always use the "BCC" column for listing the email addresses. This is why people you send emails to only see their own email address. If you don't see your BCC option, click on where it says TO and your address list will appear. Highlight the address and choose BCC. When you send BCC your message will automatically say "Undisclosed Recipients" in the TO field.
• Remove any "FW" in the subject line. You can rename the subject if you wish, or even fix spelling.
• Always hit your Forward button from the actual email your reading. Have you ever received those emails that you have to open 10 pages to read the one page with the information on it? By forwarding from the actual page you wish someone to view, you stop them from having to open many emails just to see what you sent.
• Have you ever received an email that is a petition? It states a position and asks you to add your name and address and to forward it to 10 or 15 people or your entire address book. The email can be forwarded on and on and can collect thousands of names and email addresses. The completed petition is actually worth money to a professional spammer because of the valid names and email addresses contained therein.
• If you want to support the petition, send it as your own personal letter to the intended recipient. Your position may carry more weight as a personal letter rather than a laundry list of names and email address on a petition.