1. Not all spam blockers work the same (read some more and find one that works for you), generally they don't interact with web sites (many can't filter web based email mail like hotmail), they use the same interaction as a browser. They either interact with, mail servers or they work on your local computer analysing email that has already been downloaded.
2. Never, never, respond to spam (remove links/email, etc. can track good email addresses), all it does is confirm that they have a good email address, that can be sold or used in other spam lists.