1099 hours fee on AOL!

[Mark42]

When will these guys stop with the stupid fee hours offer? That latest disk I saw in my office is 45 days free service. Whats next? 1440 free hours? (60 days)<br /><br />I would not use AOL if they paid me! Most people I know who used AOL have switched to a different provider.<br /><br />Mark.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I get them all the time offering the moon it seems to try them.<br />I do use the aol IM, but that is all of AOL I use.<br />Have to keep in touch with some of the members here.

 

[JB]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

Well. I have been on aol for about 5 years now and I feel trapped there.<br /><br />I have tried a couple of other services and found them hard to use. AOL is at least familiar and easy to use, though I don't use the dial-up any more. I got a wireless connection last Summer.<br /><br />Email and IM keep me there. Big address book, big favorites list. Hundreds of people know how to reach me... many more than those in my address book.<br /><br />If I changed I would have to relinquish all that and start from scratch.<br /><br />I guess the older we get the less likely we are to change things.

 

[PatPatterson]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I had the same problem, JB. Was with AOL for about 4 years, but just couldn't bring myself to double pay, a fee for highspeed access, and a fee for AOL, so I bit the bullet and got off AOL because I need the high speed for work related activities.<br /><br />I've been AOL free for about 2 years now, and it took me about 18 months to rebuild all my contacts, favorites, email addresses and such, but it was ultimately worth it to be free of them, IMHO.

 

[SpinnerBait_Nut]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

But you could have saved all that stuff in a folder and would not have to had to do all that.<br />That's what I done anyway.

 

[KaGee]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

Originally posted by JB:<br /> Email and IM keep me there. Big address book, big favorites list. Hundreds of people know how to reach me... many more than those in my address book.<br /><br />If I changed I would have to relinquish all that and start from scratch.<br />

Know what you mean JB. I switched to cable some time back, yet kept my CompuServe (a subsidiary of AOL) account active just for Email. I eventually switched all of my contacts over to an Outlook contact list. That was a pain and time consuming. Now I can use just about any email service without worrying about address book changeover. I still have my Compuserve account (@ $9.95 per month) due to all the clients that have my email address. It is a real pain to get them notified and get them to change teir address book!

 

[jtexas]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

When I joined AOL they had just introduced the Windows version of their software. 1400bps dial-up, no graphics, no www, just AOL content. There was a protocol called "Gopher" or something like that for browsing university computers. When I called to cancel a couple months ago the guy says "whoa you've been with us longer than anybody I ever talked to!" Had the same email address for 12 years. Stayed all that time because I liked the parental controls & ease of use like JB says. Quit when we got SBC DSL & use that email now.<br /><br />But, the kids use AIM - you don't need AOL for that & it's free.

 

[mikeandronda]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I used to use aol and when I tried to quit it was the biggest hassel I have ever gone through. First off when I wanted to quit they gave me 3 months free even though I said I didnt want it. After the three months they started charging me again I didnt notice that until the next month and when I called to tell them they said oh well you should of cancelled at the end of three months. They then offered me another month free which I said no way. Now heres where I screwed up a couple of days later I told my wife to go on her aol account at work and see if my acount was still active. She loged on and then off right away and told me yes. 1 month later they charged me again and said that by that one time of logging on I accepted their service. I could not believe it. I threatened to get a lawyer they finally canceled my subscription.

 

[mrbscott19]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I was on AOL for a long time and had the same problem as JB. Then I got a cable connection and couldn't live with paying for it and AOL at the same time. So I downgraded my AOL account to email only access. It's only $3.95/month vs. $23 or whatever it is now for standard access. After 6-8 months, I had everyone and everything pointed towards my new email address and just cancelled my $3.95 AOL account. Now I am AOL free and loving it!

 

[Mark42]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

One of the things I dislike about AOL is how they mangle your data attached to e-mail. Photos I send to people they often can't open, or multiple photos are compressed together then they can't be uncompressed by AOL software, or the worst... they compress your stuff so badly that by the time it's downloaded and uncompressed, the viability of the file is compromised.<br /><br />I have spent hours at friends houses trying to open files I have sent them because AOL has changed the extension of the file. Pure BS on the part of AOL.<br /><br />All those problems went away after these people got off AOL.

 

[eeboater]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

If we didn't have AOL... we wouldn't have this:<br /><br /><br /> <br /><br /><br />Sean

 

[OLDSPUD]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

Learned my lesson a couple years ago, I would never, again I would never stick one of those disks again my computer.<br /><br />I am wireless now, and its great.<br /><br />Yours truly<br />Spud

 

[FSHKPR]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

hey i love getting the disks in the mail! they make great targets for nephews bb guns. and can even use them as mini frisbees. not bad for coasters either. and they are free. as far as the service i had them for about a year and switched over to a cheaper dial up service and found i liked it alot better. now i have cable and i love that the most!

 

[AK_Chappy]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I cancelled my AOL account this morning.<br />I only sign up for when I am traveling, for local access #s.<br /><br />AK Chappy

 

[LubeDude]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

Man I hate those free disks, once you install one its like drugs, You cant get it out of your computer. It goes everywhere. Only way I have been able to get it off peoples computers is to completly reboot everything.

 

[Twidget]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

AOL is a disease, LubeDude is right. The friends I help with their computers now know that if its working and they add AOHell, they had better not call me.<br /><br />On the other hand, the CD's are pretty handy. My wife is a teacher and we save them all year. During the week before Christmas...oops, 'winter break', she lets the kids make ornaments out of them.

 

[Mark42]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

eeboater,<br /><br />What the heck is that thing?<br /><br />Mark

 

[jsfinn]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I called them and asked them to stop sending them. I haven't got any since.<br /><br />The lady sounds a little shocked that I'd make such a request though.

 

[SS MAYFLOAT]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

Had em, didn't like it when my account got got changed and had to pay an enormous bill. They ate it though. Took some talkin, but they made good on it and canceled me. Of course at that time it was a mutual agreement. Have had Road Runner for the past 8 years. Geesh, its been that long? AOL still sends me stuff wanting me to come back. Nope, not even if it was free.

 

[Homerr]

Re: 1099 hours fee on AOL!

I would NEVER use AO-hell even if it was free for life. They have to be the worst provider on the planet.<br /><br />Yes, I fell into their trap -but only briefly- when I first starting using a computer and the internet. Back then... 14400 modems were the bomb. And what did you get 99% of the time you dialed in? A busy signal. In fact... they were even sued over that if I'm not mistaken.<br /><br />I did enjoy the free floppy disks they sent back then. You could erase and use them again!<br /><br />Now, you can sometimes get a neat little metal tin that their cd comes in. It makes a handy case to store your favorite disk or something you want better protection for.<br /><br /><br />Wanna have a little fun? Type in 'AOL sucks' into Google. There are lots of sites with their AOL-hating stories. <br /><br /><br />

<br /><br /><br />H.