Q. Is this really free Internet access?
A. Yes. It is free and unlimited.
Q. How long do you plan to have this service available?
A. We currently have no plans to discontinue the service.
Q. What do I need to connect to your free service?
A. Almost any modern computer and operating system should work. If you can connect to any other ISP, you should be able to connect to us.
Q. Can I connect to SoCalFree.net and stay on it indefinitely?
A. Feel free to stay online as long as you'd like. However, our system may disconnect you after extended idle time or connect time.
Q. I need help signing up. What should I do?
A. We suggest looking at our examples in the support section. Due to the fact that this is a free service, we do not offer technical support.
Q. Since the service is free, can I do anything I want with it?
A. This service is designed for web browsing only. You will not be able to set up a server on your own machine, nor will you be able to connect with telnet, ftp, ssh, SMTP, etc. In addition, you may not do anything considered socially unacceptable on the Internet, such as send spam or harass people, nor may you break the law.
Q. Can I do other things besides visiting web pages?
A. Some other activities may work but we do not guarantee it. In order to keep our costs low, we must block most services that use a lot of bandwidth. Our goal is to serve the maximum number of customers at the lowest cost.
Q.
What about chat programs?
A.
We currently support AIM, Yahoo Messenger, and MSN Messenger. Q.
Do you provide me with an e-mail address?
A.
No. We recommend using one of the browser-based free e-mail services such as Gmail or Yahoo! Mail. Q.
Do you have to let me use SoCalFree.net if I sign up? A.
No. We reserve the right to refuse or discontinue service to anyone at any time
for any reason. Q.
Do you monitor and/or sell my personal internet activity? A.
No, we respect your privacy. Q.
How long have you been in business? A.
The parent company of SoCalFree.net has been around since 1988. Q.
How long have you been providing a free service? A.
The parent company of SoCalfree.net started providing free UUCP connections in 1988 when it received a grant to provide the service. Q.
How do you make money on giving this service away for free? A.
We don't make any money on this service. It actually costs us money. Q.
Why do you provide the service if you don't make money and it actually costs you money to provide the service? A.
We provide the free internet as a public service. We have been promoting Internet use since 1988. When we started, UUCP was free. Many of our users are low usage internet users and it isn't worth it to them to pay for internet service. Many of our other customers can't afford the $19.95 monthly service fee that other providers charge. Q.
What does the parent company of SoCalFree.net do and how can I support them? A.
Our commercial side of the business is a voicemail company. Since the majority of voicemail calls are made during the business day and the majority of internet dialup usage is at night, we have extra capacity at night for SoCalFree.net. If you would like to support the parent company, go to the Telemessage web page and switch to Telemessage voicemail instead of using SBC's home voicemail. Purchasing Telemessage helps support SoCalFree.net Q.
The parent company seems like a real great company. How else does it support the community? A.
We provide free internet service to teachers and to active duty military personnel thru SoCalFree.net. In addition, we provides free voicemail to active duty military personnel with our USNavyPhone service.
Q.
Is there anything I can do to help the cause? A.
Sure. We need to come up with a way to allow SMTP outbound mail but still prevent someone from sending out SPAM. We also need someone with Unix, database and web design experience for a project.
Q.
Does SoCalFree.net sell any of my personal information? A.
No. Q.
If I give you my personal e-mail address will I receive spam from you? A.
No. Q.
You don't have a local number listed in my area, do you have any more numbers? A.
Unfortunately, no. However, many of the long distance carriers offer unlimited or discount long distance. You can simply call one of our numbers in Southern California. Q.
My phone doesn't have any letters on it. What number corresponds to FREE? A.
3733. For example, 619-364-3733. Q.
My friend would like to sign up for your service but they don't have access to the internet to fill in the sign up form. Can I sign them up? A.
Yes. Just fill out the web signup form and give them their username and password. Q.
I am moving and changing my contact e-mail address and need to up date my personal profile. How do I do it? A.
Sign up for a new account and discontinue using your old account. Q.
I forgot my password. Is there a way of retrieving it? A.
No. Sign up for a new account. Your old account will be deleted for non-use. Q.
Do your modems support V.92 and Modem On Hold? A.
Our current modem bank does support these features and they are enabled. However, we have never tested them. Please note that in the future we may add additional modem banks and it is not known at this time if they will also support V.92. Q.
I am trying to use Kazaa or one of the other music trading software packages and it is not working. Why is it not working? A.
Due to bandwith restrictions, we do not support any music trading software or any streaming audio programs. Q.
Why doesn't FTP, telnet and ssh work?
A.
We do not support FTP, telnet, and ssh. Socalfree was designed for only basic web browsing. Q.
I want to disconnect my account, what do I do?
A.
Nothing. It will be deleted for non-use automatically. Q.
My computer doesn't automatically set the DNS srvers. What servers should I use?
A.
Right now, use 198.147.225.10 and 65.106.1.196. This can change from time to time, so check back here every once in a while. Q.
Only simple WEB browsing works. Other things I try don't work. Why is that?
A.
We only support simple WEB browsing. If it doesn't work, we recommend using a pay service. Q.
How do I find out which of your telephone numbers is local to me?
A.
We recommend either looking in your telephone book, calling the local telephone operator, or calling your local telephone company business office. Q.
Do you plan on adding more local telephone numbers?
A.
Not at this time, but keep checking the list. Q.
I can't find a number in my area code. Does that mean there are no local numbers in my area?
A. A different area code doesn't necessarily mean it is a toll call. In fact, just because a number has the same area code doesn't mean the call is local. Many times a number in a different area code is a local call. We suggest calling your phone company to find out which of our numbers is local.