Why does anyone use AOL anymore?

[Bruce Wayne]

I gave up aol completely at the end of last year & i haven't looked back. Every time my old man uses it I can hear him swearing up a storm. At least three times a session he gets a message about encountering an error & needing to restart. This usually occurs when he is typing up a novel length email or post & he loses all that he has typed. I have tried to get him to use Chrome like I use, but it isn't taking. I have explained to him that it is ever so much easier & he can access his aol email from it. Maybe it has to do with our 9 year old computer that I can either listen to music on Itunes or surf the net, but not both at the same time.

Thanx!!!
Charlie

 

[SalvadorMontenegro]

A/s/l?

 

[Toothpick]

I gave up aol completely at the end of last year

I gave up AOL about 1999

What amazes me is that folks still look for the disks. Up until last year I worked in a technology retail setting and folks would come in asking for AOL disks. And young folks too!

I used to switch between AOL, Netscape, and Compuserve. Whenever the free trial ran out, cancel and switch!

 

[shavefreak]

The email using software on your computer is very good and easy to manage, a very nice interface. The browser is useless and complete disaster and apalling at how they have not improved video streamiing and IE and Chrome compatability.

 

[the_edski]

What amazes me is that folks still look for the disks. Up until last year I worked in a technology retail setting and folks would come in asking for AOL disks. And young folks too!

Maybe AOL is for hipsters?

 

[redrako]

AOL's brilliance was that it made the internet accessible for customers. While AOL's peers, Compuserve and Prodigy never were able to move beyond the subscription online services, AOL marketed that you too, could access the internet without using scary programs like web browsers, email programs.

Most of those customers realized after a few years that they could just as easily browse the internet with the free Internet Explorer and find less expensive dial-up service. Why pay $20-$25 a month when you could spend $10 a month?

Yet there were those who liked AOL and stuck with it for years. They either liked some of the features, felt that they needed to keep AOL as an internet service provider to keep there AOL email.

My brother -in-law kept many of the free discs that used to flood our mailboxes and hangs them in his garden to scare off varmints.

 

[the_edski]

My brother -in-law kept many of the free discs that used to flood our mailboxes and hangs them in his garden to scare off varmints.

How does that work? The glare of the sun off the discs?

 

[redrako]

How does that work? The glare of the sun off the discs?

That's what I''m told.

They actually look pretty good. Because the CD's are so light, any breeze at all makes them spin.

 

[BubblesTGB]

That is probably the only purposeful use of an AOL disk in history.

 

[ouch]

Maybe AOL is for hipsters?

 

[PugslyCat]

That is probably the only purposeful use of an AOL disk in history.

They also make good coasters! In my model train hobby I used them as miniature paint pallettes for a while.

I live out in the country and was not able to get anything except dial up or satellite internet until 2006. After we got the satellite my wife couldn't understand that AOL was no longer needed, so I kept it just for her. It did make her transition to the satellite ISP and later DSL seamless. After I set up the connection method she didn't realize anything had changed other than the modem no longer making noises and she could talk and surf at the same time. By that time AOL had gone to the policy that you could use their software over your own connection at a reduced rate so that is what we did. It got canceled right after her death.

 

[JazzyJ]

I was unaware AOL was still a thing.

 

[Dave in the basement]

Yeah, I can't believe it when people use vintage products.

 

[aar0n]

I was unaware AOL was still a thing.

Same here.

I remember in the late 90's when I found out that you could obtain an email only account. I was finally able to tell dad that we could drop AOL, use our local ISP and he got to keep his email address.

But that was nothing compared to 2001 when @Home finally came to our neighborhood and we could get cable internet!

 

[JaxJim]

Yeah, I can't believe it when people use vintage products.

I see what you did there.