eal
R
Connections
November 2016
Reliable Internet
for
You!
No matter if you knead the dough with your
Grandma, make it yourself or just participate
in the consumption of the finished product,
holidays often stir up memories of homemade
bread, pies, and cookies.
Everyone can learn something new by watching
video tutorials online: like how to make
homemade bread or a fabulous piecrust. You
can also learn how to change the oil in your
snow blower, the transmission fluid in your car
or how to get the most value from that new app
you got for your iPad.
Videos of all types are great learning and
entertainment options. To enjoy them well,
you’ll need faster Internet, especially if your
household has a lot of devices connected to
your Internet.
Customer Service Corner
Holiday Open Houses
Please join us for our holiday
open houses:
• Nov 26, 4-6pm - Avoca office
during Holidays on Main
• Dec 2, 3-5pm - Walnut office
Holidays Observed
In observance of the holidays, our
offices will be closed:
•Thanksgiving - Nov 24 & 25
•Christmas - Mon, Dec 26
•New Years - Mon, Jan 2
Fun Holiday Facts
• It is estimated that 46
million turkeys are eaten in
the US on Thanksgiving
• If each US family reused just
2 feet of ribbon during the
holiday season, that ribbon
could tie a bow around the
entire planet
• ‘Silent Night’ is the most
popular Christmas song
Real People. Real Technology. Real Solutions.
With your fast & reliable Internet, you can
FaceTime or Skype with family members who
can’t join your gathering in person; it may feel
like they’re right there.
Ask us about our Digital TV channel lineup,
Whole Home DVR system, Watch TV Everywhere
or our bundles with Internet, TV and phone,
which give you the best value and the most
Internet speed.
Walnut
510 Highland Street
Monday-Friday 8:00-4:30
Avoca
161 South Elm Street
Monday-Friday 8:00-4:30
24/7 Tech Support 888-784-7845
Security Coverage 877-373-3320
[email protected]
www.walnutcommunications.com
Take a little extra time to protect your money, identity & information from unseen threats
As a nation we are shopping and doing
more business online, so it pays to
keep a few things in mind to protect
your money, your identity and your
information.
1) Use strong passwords and don’t use
the same password for every account
you have. Yes, they can be hard to
remember, but if someone is stealing
from you or using your identity, it would
be more of a hassle. Use a notebook or a
password manager to keep track of your
passwords; it will save you a lot of time.
2) Be cautious about the apps you use on
your tablet or smartphone. Not all apps
are created equally, and some are not
as secure as they should be. There are
too many to talk about individually, with
more coming everyday, but it is worth
reminding you to set your banking and
other similar apps to lock immediately,
just in case you misplace your device or
it is stolen.
3) Back up your data. Save yourself some
headaches and some tears and make
sure the information on your computer,
tablet and smartphone are backed up.
If you don’t know how to do this, ask a
trusted source for help – today! You will
not regret taking time to get this right.
4) Be cautious of public WiFi networks.
Yes, they are convenient, and can keep
data usage off your cellular plan, but
some public networks are unsecure.
Don’t ever shop, do banking or other
financial work on a public network. To be
safe, use your secured home or work WiFi or
a physical connection as much as possible.
Watch TVEverywhere is available with your digital TV service
Many of you have taken advantage of
our mobile television service called
Watch TVEverywhere.
work better than others for content.
Those with the most available access
include Apple iPods, iPhones & iPads
For those of you who are unfamiliar, it
and Android phones & tablets. Other
is a service which is
popular devices include
available with your
Kindles, Chromecast & Roku
“Watch TVEverywhere
Digital TV service
boxes. If you are interested
is available with your
which allows you
in which work best, contact
Digital
TV
service
which
to watch television
our office for a list of
programming from any
compatible devices.
allows you to watch
Internet-connected
television programming
device. Available
To set up your Watch
from any Internetprogramming is
TVEverywhere account,
dependent on the
you’ll need your Walnut
connected device.”
cable package you
Communications
purchase.
account number which is found on
your billing statement. Go to www.
A list of the networks offering content
watchtveverywhere.com and click
through this service is shown at left.
‘Register’. A complete list of instructions
There are some devices & apps which
can be found on our website.
Annual payment policy information notification
Just a few notes on bill payments:
•Bills are mailed to reach the
customer on or before the 1st of
each month
•Payment is due by noon on the 20th
•Final notices are sent on the 20th or
next business day. Customer has
5 business days to pay. A $5 late
fee is added at the time the notice
is printed.
•After disconnection, a reconnection
fee of $30 is charged. If necessary,
call us and make a payment
arrangement. It could save you $30
PAYMENT OPTIONS
• Auto Pay - Setup automatic payments from
bank or credit account monthly
• eBill - View & pay your account online via
our website at walnutcommunications.com
• Mail Payment - Make sure you mail your
payment with enough time to reach us
by the due date
• Call In - Avoid disconnect by calling in
• Drop Off - Drop payment at our offices
Our expert employees make our company great
As of October 1st, the merger of Walnut
other’s processes, procedures, vendor
and Marne Elk Horn was official,
relationships and technology platforms.
meaning we have signed the paperwork
and received necessary approvals to
Soon we can decide on how to use our
complete the transaction.
combined resources to
We celebrated that step
best serve customers
“Our employees are
in the journey. Yet, it’s
and make plans for the
experts
who
want
to
the bringing together of
future. We have great
our people that is most
people and we plan
make sure you have
exciting for us.
to use our collective
the communications
expertise to serve you.
technology
you
need.”
Transitions take time to
do well and we plan to
This last point cannot
do this right. I formed a transition team
be overstated. Our employees are
in July and they have been meeting to
experts who want to make sure you have
do all the things you’d expect. Together,
the communications technology you
we’re continuing to learn about each
need. And, they are valuable members
WHAT’S
AHEAD
Janell Hansen
General Manager
of our communities, who are involved in
our schools, fire departments, churches
and more, which keep our communities
vibrant.
Thanks for the opportunity to serve you.
Let us know what we can do for you.
Questions & answers about Internet, cellular, streaming & your needs
Question: My cellular data plan only
allows me to use so much info, does
my home or work Internet have limits
like that?
Answer: If you have our Internet service
then the answer is No. Our Internet is
unlimited, meaning you can use it all you
want and not pay any more per month.
Many people are confused between
amount of use and the speed of their
Internet bandwidth. Think of speed
as the size of a water hose. The more
speed, the bigger the hose. 5Mb is a
garden hose and 50 Mb is a fire hose.
Since our Internet is unlimited, you can
think of it as the ocean that will never
run out of water – no matter how big
the hose is you are using to drain it.
Comparatively, a cellular plan is like a
bathtub full of water.
Question: What is streaming and does it
use my Internet or TV service?
Answer: Streaming uses your Internet
service. Since steaming allows you to
watch TV shows or movies it feels like it
would be a TV product but it’s not. There
are a number of ways to stream video.
You can use a SmartTV, a streaming
media box like a Roku or a game system
like Xbox. Each of those devices may
have a built-in app, like Netflix or Amazon
(which are just two examples) which
allow you to watch TV shows, movies or
documentaries.
Streaming providers started by showing
programming from traditional sources
like NBC, ABC, CBS and Fox. Now, they
are starting to produce more of their
own programming.
Question: How do I know what Internet
speed I need for my family? We have a
high schooler and a middle schooler.
Answer: Not all families are the same,
but most families of four will have 8
or more devices capable of using your
Internet, some over WiFi and other
devices like computers, game systems
and SmartTVs connected by an Ethernet
cable to your router. You need to buy
enough Internet speed to cover your
needs when all will be using your
Internet – like in the evening.
At that time you could have two doing
homework, while also streaming music
and maybe someone watching a
show on Netflix too. During that time,
conservatively speaking, your home is
using 30Mb of Internet. And, as soon as
the homework is done – it could be three
streams of Netflix, plus some random web
surfing, which would be well over 65Mb.
Congratulations Bruce!
Congratulations to Bruce Heyne
on his retirement from Walnut
Communications! After serving his
country in the Army, Bruce returned
home and in the mid 80’s started
working at what was then Walnut
Telephone Company.
Bruce served on the board and was
involved in special projects for the
company. One of those projects paid
off big, when wireless licenses we
purchased
in our area,
became what
we now know
as cellular
technology.
Bruce was the company General
Manager for the past 10 years
following the retirement of Jim
Hansen, the company’s long time
General Manager!
AI makes like better through science & technology
Artificial Intelligence (AI) by definition, is
“a machine that perceives its environment
and takes actions that maximize its
chance of success at some goal”.
In today’s society, AI devices are starting
to emerge and become more and
more popular, making life easier and
convenient.
The Amazon Echo and newly released
Dot, offer consumers a home device,
which does a variety of voice activated
tasks such as playing music in a genre
of your choosing, answers questions
about current events, reads audio
books, gives news & sports results and
can even control your thermostat. It is
always getting smarter, adding new
features like the ability for you to have
it order a pizza.
documents and pair them with illness to
come up with life-saving diagnosis.
Google, among others, is working on
AI technology for self driving cars. Can
you imagine a time when you hop in
your car, tell it where you want to go and
sit back for the ride? They are touting
independence, safety and giving time
back to the driver/passenger to do
what they want, rather than having to
concentrate on actual driving.
Today, at least, we already utilize the
benefits of AI in our smartphones and
smart devices like tablets, computers
and even household appliances like
thermostats, vacuums and light bulbs.
Some day, down the road, you may have
a home robot that could dispense your
medication, monitor your home security,
tutor your children or even walk your
dog. The benefits AI devices bring will
continue to grow.
IBM’s ‘Watson’, a super powered
computer with AI,
attended medical
school. The goal is to
utilize its ability to
quickly scour
thousands
of medical
related
While at home, all these devices and
technologies require a faster and more
reliable Internet connection like the one
we give you . . . and its available today!
Just give us a call for more info.
Catch up on AHSTW news &
information by watching ‘Viking
Verbatim’ segments each month.
These can be found on Wtv or YouTube.
We are currently working on similar
local school monthly video updates
for Tri-Center and Underwood.
Wtv Corner . . .
Your School. Your Community. Your Life.
Channel 16 has local weather
information as well as radar coverage.
Concerts - Check out area Holiday
school concerts from elementary
grades through high school.
Wtv can be viewed on channels 14,
15 & 16. Channel 14 covers the
communities of Walnut, Avoca &
Shelby’s community events.
Game DVDs - Order a game or a full
season on DVD. Call or stop in our
office to place your order or inquire
about details.
Channel 15 focuses on Minden, Neola,
Underwood, McClelland & Persia.
Contact Wtv at the email address
below or call one of our offices.
Contact Wtv at [email protected]
eal
R
Connections
Offices
510 Highland Street
Walnut, IA 51577-0346
Get all the Benefits of Our New
Whole Home
DVR System
• Record & watch up to 6
shows at once
• Watch, record, play & pause
from any TV on the system
• Start watching TV in one
room & continue in another
• Pause & rewind live TV
• Many, Many More Options
& Benefits!
To call or not to call
Sometimes, people are hesitant to use
their landline to make a long distance
call because they are apprehensive of
the cost.
However, if you have a package including
phone, you automatically get Unlimited
Nationwide calling every month!
Additionally, landline calls give you
crystal clear quality. Think about the
times when you’ve been talking on your
cell and you hear static or the call is
even dropped. This just doesn’t happen
with a landline.
If you don’t have a bundle, now is
the time to get one so you can enjoy
those free minutes every month! Not
to mention all the other great benefits
associated with a bundle. Call us today.
161 South Elm Street
Avoca, IA 51521
888-784-2211
www.walnutcommunications.com
Real People. Real Technology. Real Solutions.