There are some common problems that occur from time to time. I'll try and list them here, along with specific problems that occur less frequently.

• Dec 15, 2001. Re-implementing IslandNet's PEP EMail filter. Totally sick and tired of all the SPAM that comes down the pipe. IslandNet advises that the cutoff should be 100 spam points, but I see some player TRN files being ranked that high, so I'll use 200. If you do not hear back from Robo, you can try resending your TRN with the phrase "PLEASE ACCEPT" to bypass the filter. If you are actually a spammer taking time to read this... this will not help distribute your spam to Robo players. Only Robo players can use the robomaster email address of fellow players.
• Mar 1, 2001. Lost EMail possibly due to flooded email servers thanks to the EMail viruses over the past few weeks. Robo can't get infected, but he can be effected when service providers get hit. Any player who is experiencing missing EMail should immediately send robo@robomaster.ca and email with the subject "REPORT EMAIL". Robo will respond with a note that contains IslandNet msgID codes and Robo message subjects. Match the messages to the ones you received, and report any that were missed. Any reports of missing email that do not include IslandNet msgID codes will be ignored.
• Aug 13, 2000. Found out that IslandNet is no longer refusing all "open relay" connections. I guess the volume was so high, and the complaints so loud, that they stopped automatically blocking. What they do instead is insert additional headers, and tell interested subscribers (like me) how to block them ourselves.

  I have inserted the required PEP commands to delete all "open relay" and suspected SPAM mail. A number of recent incidents where there were a thousand junk mail notes for all the 'robomaster.ca' addresses, and Robo burned an hour of connect downloading them all, has prompted me to take this action.

  If you do NOT hear back from Robo, send your mail with the words PLEASE ACCEPT in the subject. This will bypass the PEP process. If you are a spammer and are reading this, these instructions will do you no good, as Robo only forwards mail from other players.

• Nov 18, 1999. IslandNet is refusing connections from IP addresses that have been linked to 'open relay'. They are using the MAPS service of http://www.mailabuse.org to identify servers that use 'open relay', permitting SPAMMERS to widen their bandwidth and hide themselves. If your mail routes through such a server then NONE of your email will reach me. You can either contact me via a friend who CAN reach me, or use the suggestion link at http://www.robomaster.ca to contact me.

  Received this from a Robo supporter (the link requires a numeric IP address which you can get by PINGING your SMTP server address):

  I have included here a link I came across at the spam blocking site. If someone suspects they are being blocked they can enter their (or any address for that matter ) address and it will tell them if it is in the database of suspected spammers.

  Hope this helps anyone who has this problem.

  http://www.mailabuse.org/cgi-bin/lookup

• Sometimes Robo crashes for various reasons. Power failures and memory corruption appear the most common causes. Robo does have a UPS connected, but it only supplies 7 minutes of power... just enough for me to power it down if I am home and awake. The memory corruption has been happening less frequently now that I have left the system in VGA graphics mode, and have NOT installed the video driver for my video board.
  When Robo does crash, and the web pages stop being updated (you can tell the last update from the RUNNING tag on most of the main pages), then that means he is NOT picking up EMail. When Robo is not picking up the EMail, then I am not receiving any notes. Sending me a note asking me to fix Robo is a bit of a waste, since I will only receive the note AFTER I have fixed him, and he starts to collect my mail again.... Catch 22.