Consumers continue to increase the amount of time spent communicating online. Therefore, it is important to find instant messaging services, e-mail providers and search engines that fit the needs of individuals living fast-paced lifestyles. The comfort, ease and availability of the individual services should be tailored to work best for you. With all the options out there, it shouldn't be difficult to find services that meet a variety of preferences. Here are tips to help you choose a Web mail provider and search engine.

Choose a Web mail provider that fits you personal needs.

• Many of today's services are free of charge. Make sure you are not paying for a basic e-mail account.


• Research various account providers. Choose one that offers a display and set-up that you like and feel comfortable navigating.


• Look for an account that offers an adequate amount of free storage. One gigabyte (GB) is the standard amount offered by most providers.


• Research various spam filters. A junk-mail or bulk mail folder should be built into the Web mail system. Unwanted mail should not have the opportunity to clog your inbox.

Choose a search engine that provides the best results and is easy to use.

• Test drive a variety of Internet search engines before committing to one.


• Complete similar content searches on various search engines to find one that suits your needs and user comfort level.


• Try a search engine that aggregates results from major search engines simultaneously, such as Dogpile, which ranked highest in the J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Residential Online Service Customer Satisfaction Study.SM Other search engines of this type should list the search engines it queries on the Web site homepage.

Instant messaging services, search engine/search function and portals are examined through more than 10,000 responses from consumers who participated in the 2006 Residential Online Service Customer Satisfaction Study.

To view the ratings for online service providers, Internet service providers and providers of other telecommunications services, visit the Online Service Ratings on JDPower.com.

Source: J.D. Power and Associates 2006 Residential Online Service Customer Satisfaction Study^SM