Welcome to this month's edition of WebTV Tips . We are happy to say that since we first published Club WebTV, membership has continued to grow. And, with our newest set of features, we're more popular than ever before! To welcome all of our newest members, this month we will be providing some tips about Club WebTV. We will also tell you how the WebTV Network can help you fix problems with web pages. In addition, last month's tips focused on how to find other people on the Internet (and how to be found). This month, we will follow up on that with some notes about privacy on the Web. And finally, we will answer your questions about one of our newest features, OpenISP.

Index of Tips:

1. How do I become a member of Club WebTV?

Club WebTV is the name of the official on-line newsletter for all WebTV Networks subscribers. If you are viewing this on your television, you're already in the club! You're pioneers participating in the newest developments of Internet communication and television technology. Club WebTV, the official online newsletter of WebTV Networks, is written just for you. Each issue contains articles written by WebTV Networks staff, including words from some of the founders, as well as helpful tips and tricks to make your WebTV experiences the best possible.

2. How do I find the current issue of Club WebTV? How do I find previous issues of Club WebTV?

You can find the current issue of Club WebTV at any time by choosing Using WebTV from your home page. To find previous issues, go to the column in the current newsletter titled Everything Else and scroll to the bottom of the page.

3. I'm having problems with a web page. Can you fix it?

WebTV Networks provides you access to the Internet. In addition, WebTV Networks creates and provides all of the initial web pages that WebTV Network users encounter, like your Home Page, your Mail, and your Favorites folders. So, how can you tell the difference between a web page that is part of the WebTV Network and the rest of the Internet? Here's one way:

· Go to the page or screen you're wondering about.

·Press the info key on your wireless keyboard (or choose info from the Options panel with your remote control).

· If the info that comes up on your screen says "Address: WebTV Network," then you know it belongs to us. Otherwise, it should show a URL (web address) which will usually begin with http://.

You'll find that even the Search page and the pages you get to from Around Town are actually other web sites out on the World Wide Web.

When you have a question about a WebTV Network web page, contact WebTV Customer Care. When you have a question about another web page, contact the webmaster for that page. Usually, web sites on the Internet provide an e-mail address through which you can contact them. Look on the web site for links titled Contact us, Feedback, Help or something similar. If you can't find a way to contact the web site, go ahead and contact us, and we'll see if we can find a way to help you out.

4. I'm concerned about personal privacy on the Internet. What can I do to protect myself? What information does WebTV Networks provide to outside sources?

Internet privacy is one of today's hottest issues. According to the Electronic Privacy Information Center, "Internet users routinely report that privacy protection is one of their greatest concerns." This group performed a study on the privacy policies various web sites had, whether or not they collected personal information, and how to protect yourself. You can read this study on their web site. They concluded that "one of the simplest and most effective solutions to on-line privacy is to continue the practice of anonymity. Anonymity is already widespread on the Internet -- virtually all of the sites that we surveyed allowed users to use the site without disclosing who they were."

Here at WebTV Networks, we are also concerned with your privacy. WebTV Networks offers very little information to outside sources. Although we do record all activity on the WebTV Network, we do not share this information except in aggregate to better understand the needs of our customers as a whole. Specific information about users is not collected, analyzed or shared. In addition, WebTV Networks will not share specific customer information with anyone without the consent of the customer. Advertisers and other WebTV Networks partners cannot obtain information about a specific customer from WebTV Networks without the consent of that customer.

On the Information Superhighway, just like on the streets where you live, the best defense is to be aware. Pay attention to the information you provide on the Internet and only provide personal information to trusted sources. Remember also that whenever you post to a newsgroup, or find yourself in a chat room, your e-mail address may be associated with that post. In addition, if you are listed in your local phone book, your phone number and/or address may be listed with a number of online resources. Use the same care on the Internet that you would on the phone or in person. If you have any questions about Internet privacy, or are having a specific privacy problem, a WebTV Customer Care agent can give you assistance.

5. I read about a new feature, OpenISP. Should I be using this feature? What if I don't have it?

OpenISP is one of the WebTV Network's newest features, allowing you to connect to the WebTV Network through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) of your choice. This feature does not change the way the WebTV Network looks. You will see the same service on the screen, and your e-mail address will not change.

This feature can save some customers a lot of money, but it is not useful to everyone.

OpenISP can save you money if: