Joe from NY writes:

I have just switched from MSN dialup to Time Warner cable. When I cancel my MSN dialup account will I lose my MSN e-mail address, my Windows Live e-mail or my favorites? My browser is IE9.

Good news! According to MSN representative Sophie from this thread ^[1], you will not lose your e-mail address and your favorites will still say if they are in Internet Explorer. I would still recommend calling MSN and verifying that information with them – just in case!

This does bring up a good point, which is never use your ISP’s included e-mail account. Why? In today’s world so much of your online communication is tied into e-mail (either receiving statements and notifications, or being able to reset a password) that it’s dangerous to keep your e-mail locked into a service you have to pay for. If you move, change providers or can’t pay for the service anymore you risk losing your link to your online accounts.

What free e-mail providers are a good alternative to using your ISP’s e-mail?

• Gmail by Google – http://www.gmail.com ^[2]
• Windows Live Mail by Microsoft – http://www.live.com ^[3]
• Outlook E-mail by Microsoft – http://www.outlook.com ^[4]
  
• iCloud E-mail by Apple – http://www.iCloud.com ^[5]  (Especially good if you have a Mac or iPhone/iPod/iPad)
• Yahoo E-mail by Yahoo – http://mail.yahoo.com  ^[6]

P.S. Remember to use a secure password with free online accounts. A password like “my dog is named alice” is far more secure then 5835abcd because it has more letters for someone to randomly guess.

~Tim