I check the first six of these accounts on a regular basis; (Most are redirected to one of my primary mail hosts) so it really doesn't matter which one you use. I tend to use various Robs World! addresses for matters related to my web site. I use the Vaessen.net addresses for family related and specific purpose correspondence. I use the mac.com/MobileMe addresses for mailing lists. A few of the addresses are used on and off for specialized purposes and projects. I use the Vaessen.name address(es) for contact within the Vaessen family. The hotmail and yahoo addresses are web based e-mail accounts which I don't check very often.

You may have noticed that these email addresses, and many of the email addresses at my web site, are in the form of graphics. I've pretty much given up on standard mailto: links and textual email links of all sorts. Most are vulnerable to the email address harvesting techniques used by spammers. If you're interested in protecting your email address(es) from evil spambots, you may want to read about how I converted ascii text into a .png image file. I don't always use image files for email links; lately I've taken to using a few different JavaScript solution, which seems to be working rather well. As I move forward with updates, I'll likely replace my 'png' email graphics with these JavaScript links, as they seem to offer some protection from most of the webscrappers/spam spiders.

My guestbook:
Long ago, I had a guestbook. People even signed that guestbook. Then something changed, and guestbooks became magnets for spammers. A place where some low-life could tell people about his latest get rich scheme, architectural porn, or discount viagra. That's about the same time (three years ago) that my guestbook stopped working. I spent some time troubleshooting it, looking for alternatives, and contemplating the usefulness of said guestbook. In the end, I decided to leave the guestbook broken, and not replace it. Well, times have changed (a little). With the help of a 'distant' relative (thanks Jan), I've located a guestbook with relatively good spam protection. It's not hosted on someone elses site, it's not covered with advertisements, I was able to configure and customize it with relative ease, and best of all; It's Free!

So, the new guestbook is was up and running. Hopefully it'll stand up to the legions of spammers looking for a place to deposit their steaming heaps of spam (so much for that hope!). I encourage you to leave a little note, a small blurb regarding your experiences, a delightful disertation on the merits of "Rob's World!". I promise I'll read your note, and others may as well. My public bulletin board (guestbook) is back out of service - Spammers started posting crap on my new guestbook (as of 14 Dec, 2011) as soon as I opened it up for public comment. At the moment, I'm planning to try a new approach, a php bulletin board; instead of a guestbook. If/when that happens, I'll update this paragraph. So until then, you can only read the old posts.

Facsimile:
The correct spelling for 'Fax'. I can send and receive faxes directly from my computer/multi-function printer. Thanks to my new multi-function printer (an Epson Artisan 800), I can now send and receive faxes without having to disconnect and reconnect my phone line. That was a pain in the butt having to reconfigure the phone line (from telephone to computer and back again) in order to send or receive a fax.

Chat:
I use Apple's iChat for most of my chat requirements. It's audio, video, chat and file transfer capable (if you've got a Mac you can even initiate slide shows, screen sharing, and media streaming through iChat). The video conference capabilities are great. I chat with my friend Rob in Japan on a regular basis (for free). With all the enhanced capabilities, it's way better than the telephone. iChat uses Apple's MobileMe network as well as AIM and Jabber for chat connectivity. With the introduction of OS 10.7 (Lion) all the separate Chat accounts are merged into a single interface. You can contact me on iChat with my mac.com/me.com address , my AIM name (vaessenrobert) or my Jabber.com or Jabber.org address (rvaessen). If you connect via AIM, GoogleTalk, Jabber, Yahoo!, MSN, Facebook, Apple's iChat/Messages service, or any XMPP compatible client, we can chat. If you're on an XMPP compatible client, we can even participate in an audio/video chat (if you've got the hardware (video camera/microphone)).

Newsletter:
I try to send out an electronic newsletter once a month. I try to get the newsletter out during the first week of each month, but sometimes it's a little late. The newsletter covers what's going on with Kim and I, as well as the latest happenings at Rob's World! If you'd like to receive this newsletter, just send an email to newsletter-subscribe at robsworld.org. Additionally, if you're currently receiving the email, and you'd like it to stop please send an email to newsletter-unsubscribe at robsworld.org. I will honor all remove requests.

Encryption:
I am currently (as of 03 Dec, 2011) using MacGPG2 (spun off from GnuPG as a Mac implementation) v2.0.17-9 and the GPGMail plugin / mailbundle (v2.0a21 (for Lion/OS 10.7)) with Apple's Mail.app (Version 5.1 (1251/1251.1))) for encryption, decryption and message authentication / signing. If you would like to correspond in secret or authenticate my email, please take note of my Public Keys.

Thanks:
If you're one of the many individuals who have left comments in my guestbook (back in service as of 15 Feb, 2007), or sent me e-mail with your comments and suggestions, I'd like to thank you for your input. It has been most instrumental and constructive. You're input has helped me build a better web site.

Sincerely;
Robert L. Vaessen