You have probably noticed while using your computer that when you are in certain menus, there is text next to the menu options such as “Alt + Left Arrow”. This text is a keyboard shortcut that can be used to perform the desired action without having to use the menu or the mouse. These shortcuts are designed to make the time you spend using your computer more productive.

For example, if you are using Windows and for some reason you wanted to copy the entire text of this letter into another document, you could use your mouse to drag and select all of the text to be copied, click edit at the top of the window, click copy, open the second document, click edit again, click paste, and be finished. If you use shortcut keys, however, you could do the same thing by pressing Ctrl+A, pressing Ctrl+C, opening the second document, and pressing Ctrl+V. The same thing can also be done using a computer running the Macontosh operating system although the shortcut keys are slightly different.

update A deeply divided Federal Communications Commission suspended on Friday state rules forcing phone providers to offer “naked” DSL, in the commission’s first serious look at the controversial issue.

The ruling kicks off an investigation into naked DSL–selling broadband access by digital subscriber line without attaching it to other services, such as a local phone line.

The FCC voted 3-2 to suspend public utility commission regulations in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Louisiana that had forced BellSouth to sell DSL service to other telephone operators, separate from its local phone service. In the past, the two services had been inextricably linked.

That decision sends a strong message to other state utility commissions that might be considering similar rules, which were intended to encourage the widespread availability of naked DSL. The Bells–BellSouth and the nation’s three other top phone and DSL providers–have warned that slightly different naked DSL rules in each state could slow broadband growth in the United States and undermine BellSouth’s incentive to invest in the service and the underlying network.

In terms of enterprise VoIP deployment,I think much of the battle will be fought over the “form factor” - which type of device VoIP subscribers will use to access their services.

Specialized VoIP phones offer call configuration, control, management and data import capabilities that traditional phones tied in to the VoIP network via an Analog Terminal Adapter and a router cannot. Yet such phones are pricey.

According to a Reuters story, VoIP phone prices now average around $250 per set. For some budget-conscious enterprises, that could be a barrier to use.

Every major mail program such as Outlook Express, Netscape Mail, and Eudora has the ability to let you create custom filters that can be used to sort incoming messages, automatically delete messages, or block all messages from certain addresses. These filters, when set up properly, can be a very useful time saving tool because they can help to reduce the number of emails that you have to wade through or they can separate emails according to sender and content so you can only open the emails that you want to view.

U.S. regulators are expected to suspend state public utility rules that force BellSouth to let customers buy its high-speed Internet service without having to also sign up for its local phone offering.

As early as Monday, said a source familiar with the situation, the Federal Communications Commission could suspend public utility commission regulations in California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and Louisiana that forced BellSouth to sell DSL, or digital subscriber line, service separate from its local phone service. In the past, the two services had been inextricably linked.

Such a decision would send a strong message to other state utility commissions that might be considering similar rules, the source said.

The expected FCC decision would have a profound effect on the few thousand people in the four states who now get “naked” DSL from BellSouth. It would also affect the millions of homeowners who would go with a separate DSL offering given the chance, insiders believe. The possible precedent for the Bells–BellSouth and the nation’s three other top phone and DSL providers–could even affect cable operators that sell broadband and telephony on fiber-optic networks, services that are much faster than the Bells’ DSL.

MSN internet service decided to drop Macintosh users. Another reason to go with GoBigWest.

Microsoft plans to all but end its stint as an Internet service provider to Mac users, discontinuing its MSN for Mac OS X software, CNET News.com has learned.

The company plans to notify customers this month and discontinue the service as of May 31, a Microsoft representative said in an e-mail. Microsoft announced plans to get into the market in 2002 and began offering the service in the United States the following year.

Announcing our newest HOTSPOTZZ location in Park City, Utah: Koko Espresso

Koko Espresso, located in the Kimball Junction Plaza just off I-80, is described as the “Best Little Coffeehouse in Utah” on their website at kokoespresso.com. Their menu includes great coffee and tea drinks as well as fruit smoothies and fresh pastries. The atmosphere is comfortable and inviting, so stop by for a specialty drink, use the wireless Internet service and support a new HOTSPOTZZ location!