Help with transition from AOL

[EMeltonIV 0]

I'm tossing Windows 2000 onto my father's laptop while I'm in town and signing him up for an Earthlink account. Up until now, he's been using AOL. I've read that AOL's currently-available client software isn't compatible with Windows 2000 (or any other NT-based OS -- folks have had to use older 16-bit versions of this two-bit ;-) ISP's software to work).

 

My rather loose understanding is the incompatibility arises from how the program dials in and the OS' reluctance to let it fiddle directly with the hardware.

 

So, here are my questions and I hope some kind soul here can lend me a hand.

 

1) Once I sign pops up with this EarthLink account, will the AOL 5.0 software function if I set it to connect via TCP/IP?

 

2) If there's just no bloody way to get AOL 5.0 to connect to the service, either through direct dial-in or piggy-backing on the EarthLink connection, from where can I download a version of AOL that will connect under Windows 2000? Not looking for any feature-rich service -- the only reason dad still needs to connect is to snag the obligatory e-mails that people will send to his old account.

 

Any and all timely help will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for your time.

[DosFreak 2]

I am debating on wether or not to tell you that you can download the beta version of AOL 6.0 (Legally! and EASILY)....I'll look around through my favorites while I think about it.

 

P.S. Why reduce the stability of NT with AOL?

 

NT....AOL? Two acronyms that definetly do NOT go with each other. Bleh.

 

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C:\Dos

C:\Dos\Run

\Run\Dos\Run

[Mark W 0]

I have been using AOL 5 and 6 with win2k for sometime and while AOL is ... well, AOL, it does work. Goto keyword beta. You'll have to sign up for the beta program but its no big deal. By the way, I use TCP/IP to connect about 99% of the time but occasionally I have had to dial up with AOL with no problems.

[EMeltonIV 0]

Like I said, DOSFreak, it's just to let daddy-o deal with the obligatory set of idiots who insist on using his old e-mail address. He uses his AOL account for personal and business affairs (yeah, big mistake on the latter, I've told him that since he first signed up) and missing anything from the latter group can be a pain to deal with.

 

I signed him up for the Beta bit just before posting the message. But an acquaintance at school did the same thing for her Windows 2000 machine a while ago and still hasn't heard back from AOL. Since I won't be in town much longer, I'm kind of looking for a quick and dirty fix until my next trip at the end of the summer.

[EMeltonIV 0]

Thanks for your help, folks. I just realized that pops can deal with the folks who misplace his new addy via AOL Instant Messenger -- since he'll be keeping the AOL account intact for the rest of the family, he can use the program's Read Mail feature to deal with the stragglers. Aaahhh, Windows 2000, here we come . . .

[Spastic Computer Guru 0]

Have your father connect via Earthlink then go to www.aol.com to check his AOL mail.