Geobytes 'm... Frequently Asked Questions

Overview

What is Geobytes
Geobytes is the most advanced Spam killer available today. It utilizes two unique technologies that are only available in the Geobytes Spam solution.

Why not download a free Bayesian Spam filter, or use mail rules such as those available within Microsoft Outlook?
The problem with Bayesian filters and rules based filters is that the "Filter" will generate "false negatives" as they call them - which means that the filter will occasionally mistake a legitimate message as Spam, and accordingly miss filter it into the junk folder. Knowing this the users of these filters have two options - 1. Ignore it - and just accept that some legitimate email will be lost, or 2. Regularly check their junk folder for missed messages.

Most users choose the second option as they really don't want to lose any legitimate messages. The problem with the second option is that the user is still exposing themselves to all of the Spam, with the only difference being that it is now in a different folder. This is the problem with all filters
- even if they are 99.9% accurate (miss 1/1000) then the users still needs to expose themselves to 100% of the Spam. (In reality, not many, if any, Bayesian filters are even close to 99.9% accurate, but even if they were, you would still find yourself looking through all of your Spam, so what is the good of it?)

This "need to check", can also mean that bugs in HTML email will still be activated and spammers will still know that the account is active, in which case their Spam problem will just continue to get worse and worse.

If only it was that easy...

How Does Geobytes work?
Geobytes ‘m… sits between your email client and the mail server. So you use your general email program just as you did before. Geobytes ‘m… can run in either Advanced mode or Basic mode and will automatically select the correct mode based on your mail server.

What does Geobytes look like?
You can view some screen shots of Geobytes ‘m… from our Screen shots page.

What is the difference between the trial and full version?
Only the amount of product activation time - the trial version will only function for 14 days while a subscription will function for 365 days. The setup file however is the same for both versions.

Does Geobytes work with hotmail?
Geobytes 'm… only works with POP3 compatible mail readers such as Outlook, Outlook Express, Eudora etc. However it does work with emails that are sent to you from any kind of mail system - you can receive messages from hotmail just fine.

What happens when an email arrives - how does Geobytes handle the message?
An email destined for you arrives at your mail server.
Geobytes ‘m… checks several criteria to determine how to handle the message and whether it is a legitimate message that should be delivered to your inbox.

Firstly Geobytes ‘m… checks whether the message contains a valid CaseKey. If so the message is delivered to your inbox.
Secondly, Geobytes ‘m… checks the location of where the message originated and then determines whether this is within your Spamborders. If so, the message is delivered.
Thirdly, if the message is from a verified sender the message will be delivered.
Lastly, if the message does not contain a valid CaseKey, or the location is not within your set borders, the message is held in a pending messages store and the sender is sent a verification request. Upon successful verification the message is placed in your inbox and the sender is issued with a valid CaseKey so that they never have to verify again.

What happens if a Spammer verifies or gets hold of one of my CaseKeys?
Simple, just delete that CaseKey and their messages will no longer be delivered.

What is the difference between Advanced and Basic modes?
The only difference is where the messages are held – either on 's local post office (on your computer's hard drive) while in Basic mode or remain on your ISP’s post office while in Advanced Mode.

The advantage of Advanced mode is that Spam messages are not downloaded across your link. The messages remain on the ISP’s post office until it can be determined whether the messages are Spam. Once this determination is made, Spam messages are removed directly from your ISP post office, while legitimate messages are delivered across your Spam free link.

Sometimes you will not be able to take advantage of this Advanced feature and will need to have all your mail pulled down to your local post office. This may be because your mail store exceeds the limit that your ISP allows. In the Basic mode all messages will be pulled down to your local post office and will be held there until a determination is made as to the legitimacy of the message.

Can I receive attachments while using Geobytes ?
Yes.

Does Geobytes work with mailing lists (eg e-zines) and automated emails?
Yes, it works exceptionally well with lists and automated emails.

One of the disadvantages of using a traditional sender verification system is when the user wants to subscribe to an e-zine. It is common for e-zine providers to use automated subscription processes which are not capable of responding to the sender verification system’s request for verification, making it necessary for the user to manually white list the e-zine provider. Further, in many cases white listing the e-zine provider’s email address is not possible as many e-zine providers frequently change the “From address” that the sender verification system uses to verify the sender.

With Geobytes ‘m… there is no need to pre-approve the e-zine provider’s email address or try and guess what the From address might be.

With mailing lists, you simply issue a CaseKeyed email address to the e-zine when you sign up and that is all that is required.

With automated emails, such as when purchasing or placing an order online (like at amazon.com) you just place your order using a CaseKeyed email address and the order information will be delivered directly to your inbox without any further intervention required on your part.

I received an email and I am not sure why it was delivered. Is there any way to tell?
Yes, if you view the headers of the message you will see there are two extra header fields which tell you how the message was delivered. The extra headers are X-GeobytesDeliveredBy and X-GeobytesLocationCode.

Setup

Which operating systems does Geobytes work with?
Windows 98, Me, NT, 2000, XP and Windows 2003.

What email programs does Geobytes work with?
Geobytes ‘m… works with all POP3 email clients such as on Eudora, Outlook, Outlook Express, Pegasus, Mozilla, Incredimail, and any other email program that supports the POP3 protocol.

Geobytes ‘m…works independently of other email programs so it doesn’t matter which one you use. The only requirement is that your program should work with a standard POP3 server.

What are the minimum requirements to run Geobytes ?
64 Mb of RAM, 20Mb of disk space, and an Internet connection.
For information see the System Requirements table on the Download page.

Does it run under Linux?
Geobytes ‘m… is not available for Linux at this time.

How many email accounts does Geobytes support?
You can configure Geobytes to retrieve mail from up to 5 email accounts to which you have access, even if different accounts are on different servers or with multiple ISPs.

Which mail protocols does Geobytes support?
At this stage only POP3 is supported.

How do I install Geobytes ?
Double click on the downloaded file and the installation wizard will begin. If you are using Outlook Express 6 as your email program, then will detect this and will be setup automatically. You can see what this setup wizard look like on our Automatic setup page.
If you are using an email reader other than Outlook Express 6, then you will be taken through a very simple setup wizard and when finished the program file will start. Geobytes will be included in the Startup program group so it starts whenever you log on. You can see what the setup wizard looks like on the Set Up M page.

How do I configure my email program?
If you are using Outlook Express 6 then will automatically detect your setting and setup your mail reader for you. If you are using any other email reader, you will need to make a few simple changes to the server settings in your email program. Basically all you need to do within the email reader is set the server settings for POP3 and SMTP to localhost. Instructions are available on the Set Up M support page. There are also specific instructions available for setting up Outlook 2002, Outlook Express 6 and Eudora 6.

Do I need to get a new email account to use Geobytes ?
No - Geobytes works with your current email accounts. You do not have to configure any new email accounts, and you do not have to forward your email to any central service for examination.

What if I change ISPs or email providers?
If you change your ISP or email provider you will need to update your server information in your Account settings.

Pricing

How much does Geobytes cost?
You can purchase Geobytes for use with either a single account or up to 5 accounts.

The following pricing is valid until February 1:
$29.95 for 1 account, $49.95 for 2 accounts and $99.95 for 5 accounts.
All pricing is in US dollars and is for a 12 month subscription period.

Pricing after February 1 will be
$29.95 for 1 account, $49.95 for 2 accounts and $99.95 for 5 accounts

How can I pay?
You can purchase from our secure site using Visa, or MasterCard or you can pay with PayPal.

Do you offer a Money back guarantee?
Yes. If for ANY reason you want to cancel your account within 30 days, we will refund your payment in full.

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