JMB Website Supporters Secret Site Access FAQs
Updated 1/1/2011
Welcome to JMB Website Supporters (JWS) All the information you're likely to need to access our "secret" members-only website is in the Welcome Letter you received from us when you signed up. It contains the site URL (the site's location on the Web), and info about your username and password. Please keep it where you can refer to it on a permanent basis. VERY IMPORTANT:
- Your username is the email address you gave us when you joined "JWS". It should always be typed lower-case. If you forget or want to change your password, click the appropriate link above.
- If you are a member of AOL, be aware that AOL has some operational eccentricities. The "FAQ" below includes several AOL-related questions which will help you.
- If you change your email address for St. Maarten and St. Martin Weekly News, you must also notify JWS at the address given in your JMB Website Supporters Welcome Letter. Changing your email address for Weekly News has no effect on email address records for JMB Website Supporters members.
- Please DO NOT unsubscribe from the Weekly News email list when you subscribe to JMB Website Supporters; the Weekly News list invariably contains important info exclusively for members in every issue.
- OUTLOOK USERS: 1) Select Actions from the top menu bar, then select Junk E-mail followed by Junk E-mail Options; 2) Select Safe Senders, then Add; 3) Type jmbcommunications.com and click OK.
Here's more: ABOUT THE SECRET SITE:
Q. Where is the secret site?
A. The location is http://www.jmbcommunications.com/secret
Q. How do I get to that site?
A. The same way you get to any other site, like www.cnn.com or www.microsoft.com -- just type the full site name in the Web "Address" window in Microsoft Internet Explorer or Firefox (recommended) or whatever other browser you're using. There's also an orange link to the secret site atop the new site's Table of Contents, at the left below the site's masthead.
Q. Do I need to look for the "secret site" in any search engine?
A. No. Although you may find this FAQ page in a search engine, you won't find anything about the secret site or its contents there. It is a private, passworded site, and access is provided only to paid members of JMB Website Supporters. Even search engines can't access its contents.
Q. What button do I click on in the main SXM site to access the secret site?
A. Click the orange link to the secret site atop this new site's Table of Contents, top left below the site masthead. That takes you to this page; Secret Site links are just below the masthead.
SECRET SITE ACCESS
Q. Do I need a username and password?
A. Yes. Your username is the email address you gave us when you joined JWS, entered all in lowercase. If you forget your password, click the links below the masthead on this page for a new one from our automated system.
Q. When I try to access the secret site, my browser says it can't find it. Now what do I do? (Also contains AOL-related info.)
A. Our site is "hosted" by ultra-reliable Linux (NOT Microsoft) servers -- we do not use Windows for hosting -- so our site is up about 99.9999% of the time. If your browser isn't finding it, first be sure you typed the site name correctly -- and all in lowercase. If you're using the browser integrated within America Online, you might want to switch to Firefox or Microsoft Internet Explorer (MSIE). The AOL browser sometimes acts funky, and so does Internet Explorer (Microsoft designed it -- enough said). The best browser is Mozilla Firefox; download it at www.mozilla.org. It's much more secure than Internet Explorer, and when you install it, it can copy all your Internet Explorer "favorite" bookmarks.
Q. I'm doing those things but the site still doesn't load. Now what? (Also contains AOL-related info.)
A. Browsers like Internet Explorer (MSIE) store the graphics from websites you visit in a directory called "cache." When that file gets big, which is inevitable, your browser may load sites slowly or stop altogether, at which point you need to empty the cache. In MSIE, do this by clicking TOOLS, then INTERNET OPTIONS. In the Temporary Internet Files window, click Delete Files. If you've never done this, it may take a few minutes. Once the cache has been emptied, it's best to do a "cold reboot" -- shut down your system, then turn off its power for a minute, then start up the system normally. Shutting down your system and doing a cold reboot is also a good way to solve many other Windows problems (except if you're using Vista). In Internet Explorer, click TOOLS, INTERNET OPTIONS, then under "Temporary Internet Files" click Settings, and check "every visit to the page," the top selection.
Q. Been there, done that, still not getting in. Where do I go now?
A. Try a different computer or a different browser. Here is a good one -- Firefox. That will solve your problem.
Q. When I go to the "secret site," it's asking for my username and password. What are they?
A. Your username is the email address you gave us upon joining JWS. Your new password was emailed to you that day as well. If you forget your password, use our automated system to recover it -- just use the links at the top of this article. The site will validate your membership and then give you a new password. If your membership has expired, you will not get in (after the brief grace period expires). If your membership has expired and you want to reinstate it, go to our Membership Subscription Reinstatement Center.
Q. I'm entering the username and password but they've suddenly stopped working. What happened?
A. Your username and password must be typed in lowercase. If you change your password, we advise you to use one with a mix of letters and numbers, but all must be in lowercase. If your username/password suddenly stop working, chances are you overlooked paying your membership subscription renewal. Access stops once your subscription expires. You can renew at our Membership Subscription Reinstatement Center.
Q. I have the right username and password but they still don't work. (Also contains AOL-related info.)
A. Both are case-sensitive. Always type them in lowercase. Also be sure to type your username and password in the spaces provided instead of cutting and pasting it in. Cutting and pasting can introduce extraneous code to the password and cause it to be rejected by the system. If you use AOL, we strongly recommend you "minimize" the AOL program after signing on (by clicking the "-" symbol in the upper right corner of your screen), then access the Internet through MSIE (Internet Explorer). The AOL browser sometimes shows you its stored "cached" images of web pages, including our secret site sign-in page. If you put your username and password into a "cached" page the data goes nowhere and neither do you. This saves AOL some bandwidth costs but wastes their customers' time. That's why we suggest browsing with the MSIE or Firefox browser, not the browser built in to AOL.
NON-RECEIPT OF MEMBER EMAILS:
Q. I don't get your email any more. What happened?
A. Some ISP's have installed "spam filters" which occasionally block good email; be sure "accounts @jmbcommunications.com," now our main send-only outgoing email address for Website Supporters emails, is in your "allowed" list, to prevent it from being blocked. We also occasionally send member emails from susan @jmbcommunications.com, tracy @jmbcommunications.com, and jeff1620 @jmbcommunications.com . Hotmail, Earthlink, Yahoo, GMail, and AOL users particularly must add these send addresses to their whitelists of acceptable senders. (We injected spaces in these addresses before the "@" here for spam prevention purposes; when you "whitelist" them in your mail program, delete the spaces please.)
Q. I'm going to install a "mail-blocker" program like Mailwiper or Spamarrest® to stop spam. Is there anything I have to do to be sure I still get JWS emails?
A. Yes there is. Since accounts @jmbcommunications.com is a send-only email address, we get no word of failed deliveries or "bounces.". We count on you to tell us when your email address changes (see below). If you use a "mail-blocker" program, that program may email us to ask if we exist, and it will send you our emails only when we respond affirmatively. We won't receive such emails because "accounts@" is a no-respond, outgoing mail-only address. You need to be sure you plug accounts @jmbcommunications.com into your "acceptable email addresses" list to continue to receive our emails. Our staff is small and we cannot spend time answering "Spamarrest" or "Mailwiper" or similar address verification emails. Please also "whitelist" jeff1620 @jmbcommunications.com, susan @jmbcommunications.com, tracy @jmbcommunications.com, and accounts @jmbcommunications.com and you should have us covered.
Q. Does that mail-block info apply to the Weekly News list as well?
A. Yes, although that list is managed differently. The Weekly News list comes from Jeff1620 @jmbcommunications.com. That address receives NO incoming mail whatsoever, and it/we cannot process change requests from mail-blockers -- again, our staff just isn't big enough. So be sure to white list Jeff1620 @jmbcommunications.com among your "Acceptable email addresses", to continue to receive our free emails. See next item.
Q. I use Microsoft Outlook. Do I need to do anything special to be sure I receive your mailings?
A. Yes: 1) Select Actions from the top menu bar, then select Junk E-mail followed by Junk E-mail Options; 2) Select Safe Senders, then Add; 3) Type jmbcommunications.com and click OK.
Q. Will you change my email address for the Weekly News and the Timeshare Owners newsletter emails?
A. JMB Website Supporters (JWS) and the "Weekly News" and "Timeshare" lists are entirely different animals. We don't touch email addresses for the newsletter lists. Instructions on unsubscribing old addresses and subscribing new addresses come with the weekly newsletters. However, if you want to change your email address for JMB Website Supporters mailings, email us at the address we gave you on the secret site and we'll make the change (see below). You cannot change your email address for JMB Website Supporters emails by yourself.
Q. I get JWS mailings. Should I cancel the free list?
A. NO! If you do, you will not get the latest SXM news. A great deal of material of importance just for JMB Website Supporters members is in most of our "free" newsletters, with links to the secret site. Please stay on the "free" list.
Q. My email address changed. How do I notify JMB Website Supporters?
A. Follow the instructions at the bottom of each JMB Website Supporters email. We give you a special way to contact us for email address changes. We can change JMB Website Supporters email addresses only; again, if you subscribe to our "free" newsletters, you will need to unsubscribe/resubscribe by following the instructions in each free email.
Q. Why do you need my street address when you sign me up?
A. As JMB Website Supporters has grown, we're getting many duplicate member names and very similar email addresses in our membership database. When you ask us to change your email address, we need to verify who you are, and we use your street address to do that -- just to be sure we're updating the correct record. (We will never ask you for your mother's maiden name or the last four digits of your social security number; they are none of our business. See our privacy policy by clicking the link near the bottom of the Table of Contents, to the left.) We also want address info so we can ship anything you may order from us. Also, if for some reason you stop receiving emails, before we can start you up again we need to verify membership. We use your ground address to do that via postcard. See next item.
Q. What do you do with all this information? What's your Privacy Policy?
A. We never rent or sell any membership information to anyone, for any reason. For our complete privacy policy, click the link near the bottom of the Table of Contents, to the left.
Q. Your emails talk about "renewals." How much are renewals, and when do I pay?
A. When you join, you pay an initial membership fee, currently $49. Renewals are much less, especially when you select our lowest-coast multiyear renewal option. Each year, we'll send you an email before your membership anniversary so you can renew on time. There are big discounts for renewing for multiple years.
Q. What happens if I don't pay my renewal?
A. We send over a herd of deer who eat all your trees and shrubs, stare into your windows at night, and knock over your gas grill. (Does anybody really read this stuff?) OK, here's the real answer: If you haven't paid by your renewal date, we will remove you from our membership roster. You will no longer have access to our airfare alerts, our secret members-only website, or any of our more than 65 member-only benefits.
Q. I have no trips planned now. Can I suspend your mailings, then start them up again later? Will I have to pay again to re-join?
A. Once you've joined, you're a member, and you'll stay a member provided you pay renewals on time. Should you want to stop receiving our emails temporarily, just email us at the address provided and let us know. We'll remove you from the list, then put you back when you want us to -- no charge. We do this only for several months at a time -- we don't have the staff to do this if you're simply going on vacation. We reserve the right to stop offering mail list suspensions if they get out of hand, or to charge for ding them.
Q. Is there a separate charge to advertise my SXM timeshare condo for rent or for sale?
A. Not currently. This is currently a free service for paid-up members.
Updated 1/1/2011
The following is designed to confuse the daylights out of email harvesting software used by spammers: http://www.jmbcommunications.com/contact/address.blah
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