SMA OnLine News Magazine a free community-run nonprofit public service, written FOR and BY the expatriate residents, in our attempt to meet needs not being met elsewhere    

FAQs

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Why don't you have happy people images, other graphics, or even a jazzy navigation bar, why so "first generation"?

This news magazine web site was designed to load as fast as possible because our readers are busy San Miguelenses and they have many other things to do.  And  we want this site to be compatible with as many browsers as possible (by the way - we recommend the free Netscape 7.1 - see below).  And because this web-site is designed to display information, not just be another pretty face.  It's a shame we don't have the time and room for the graphic images of happy people looking up at something... what's up there anyway?   The only thing we knew about that was "up" is the Parroquia so that is the ONLY graphic we permitted on our web-site.

how can I get a better browser than the slow Microsoft Internet Explorer?

you can download a better (and and totally free) browser called Mozilla Firefox 0.8 at http://download.com.com/3000-2356-10262369.html?tag=lst-0-6   This link will bring you to CNET's download.com and all you have to do is click on "download now". This browser  is, and has been, the underlying software for all Netscape browsers. It is faster than Internet Explorer and has many better features.

An even better alternative is to download Netscape 7.1 itself, but it is a longer download. However, we really prefer it over both of the above browsers, and you can download it at http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_download/0,fid,7220,fileidx,1,00.asp

Why can I do about it when the  print on your web-site so small (or so big)?

It is the settings on your browser that makes it seem so to you.   For example, if you have Netscape 7.1, you can click on >View  and then on >Text zoom and make the text on the screen either bigger or smaller.   If you have MS Internet Explorer you can click on >View and then on >Text size and make the text bigger or smaller.   With any of the many other browsers, something similar should be available to you, too.  And you can open your pages to maximum size (the entire screen) by clicking on the middle icon (the square) in the upper right corner.  By the way, other options that you have selected yourself effects the "look" and different browsers show the same material somewhat differently.

What is the problem with your web-site (or is it the internet itself)?

Sometimes when you try to get online with us, you can't.  Most of the time the problem is NOT our web-site, but one of so many other possibilities.  First of all, it could be your software or your computer.  And it could also be your telephone system.   But, assuming you can use your email (in and out), then it may be various components of the internet itself.  Just recently, I tried to go online and check our web-site and I could not.  I tried our alternative web-site and still could not get that either.   Finally, I checked some other web-sites that I use for other reasons.  Apparently none were available.  There are lots of reasons for that possibility, but mostly it is because of the speed and bandwidth available at that time was being overused by others.  When more people are using the limited bandwidth, speed diminishes and sometimes stops altogether.  This problem could be localized to one web-site, or many web-sites.   As a result, I did nothing at that time except ignore the problem and about 30 minutes later, I tried again to access our web-site and everything was back to normal (which, unfortunately, is still not as good or as fast as I would like it). 

what is the problem with your web-site?

Everything and nothing.  If you are referring to our change of web-sites, that will happen from time to time as we find better (defined as less advertising and less annoying pop-ups).   If you are referring to the current one not being available sometimes, that happens to web-sites for generally short periods of time and for various reasons.   This is still a relatively new technology, and very expensive to operate.  So many things can and do go wrong.  We have recently done something that helps combat the problem.  We have obtained 3 "re-direction URLs" which just means that once you start using it (you can use http://shy.as/smaonline  or http://smaonline.vze.com or http://smaonline.n2v.net instead of the one you are using now ) we can, without your even knowing it, switch you from a poorly performing web-site to one of our alternative sites.  Of course, sometimes we will have to be informed, by you by email, that the site is performing poorly.   And then we will have to upload more current copies of every page and file that is needed on the new alternative site to bring it up-to-date and as current as the one we were using.  But, as soon as we find out there is a problem, we can and will do something about it.

who is paying for all of this?

As I said above, this is a very complicated technology.  The operators of host web-sites have to invest in very expensive equipment.  Certainly you've heard of the "internet investment debacle".   Well, now we are getting some of the benefits promised even though the original investors may have lost their shirts.  Now, at no monetary cost to you, you get the benefits of information provided to you by many different sources, anywhere from Google and/or The New York Times, or from your favorite porn site if you're so inclined, even from various governments, etc.    And, although not quite in the same league, also from us.   YOU PAY FOR ALL OF THEM by being exposed to the advertisements that appear on almost every web-site, the advertisers having paid the web-site hosts for that privilege.  We have chosen the least offensive web-site hosts that we could find (although that changes from time to time) AND we are NOT INDEBTED to any advertiser, even including the San Miguel local advertisers who with the technology available to them, found us and probably do not even know that have found us at this moment.  We are independent of them and gain nothing from their advertising.

That having been said, you might consider reducing the clutter and advertising on screen for this and other web-sites by obtaining utilities to combat such annoyances.  For more information, click on computer tips were you will find help in ridding yourself of pop-ups, banner ads, illegal entries onto your system by evil hackers intent on doing malicious damage, and other annoyances and trespassers of all kinds.