Can I use AOL without using the aol browser??

[James314]

hi all,

I really wanna use firefox instead of the AOL browser. I know one option is to connect using AOL, then minimise it and launch firefox, but this is annoying! Is there any way that I can connect straight off with firefox using my AOL dial-up account?

thanks,

James.

[pphilipko]

Do you know the phone #, login, and password? If so, you can configure windows to log in, instead of that program.

[James314]

yes i do, but how would i go about doing this?

thanks again,

James.

[GomJabbar]

If you are using a dial-up connection then go to Start > Control Panel > Network Connections. Click on 'File' on the top menu bar, then choose 'New Connection....'. Follow the wizard to set up a new connection. You can use the connection to dial-in, then click on your browser to start it, and finally type www.aol.com in the location bar of the browser.

If you have a broadband connection (DSL or Cable). All you should need to do is open your browser, type www.aol.com in the location bar, and from there, you should be able to log in.

I don't use AOL, but these steps generally work with all ISP's.

[James314]

thanks for the reply. I created a new connection, all went well except that I was not able to connect . It kept saying that there was an error and that my username and/or password were incorrect - which they werent. Does anyone know why this is happening? Can AOL's numbers not be accessed in this way? It wouldnt surprise me, AOL are hardly known for giving users much freedom!

thanks again,

James.

[GomJabbar]

OK, I did a little searching and found this information. See if it works for you. I read the following for setting up a broadband connection, but it seems likely to apply to a dial-up connection as well.
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There are two important things to keep in mind here. The first is that you must enter you screen name using the format "screenname@aol.com" (john@aol.com, for example). Second, your password must be entered using only lowercase letters. Any spaces or special characters must be left out.
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If you still have problems with the above, check out this forum. Read about halfway down the page about using the AOL dialer:

http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewtopic ... 52#1014752

[James314]

thanks for the tip, AOL dialler seems to be the only way to do it. woohoo! Goodbye crappy aol software! dont suppose you know how to transfer my aol favourites to firefox do you? I cant find the file that they stored in anywhere...

thanks again,

J.

[leo221]

thinkpad user using the worst ISP of AOL?

you gotta be kidding

[GomJabbar]

thinkpad user using the worst ISP of AOL?

you gotta be kidding

No need to be critical. Being a ThinkPad owner makes you no better or worse than anyone else. Look at the top of your screen and you will see this is a support forum.

[James314]

I have used AOL for 5 years, I HAVE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM. People who slate AOL generally have no idea what they are going on about, they are just trying to be trendy and follow the croud. I am an experienced compute user and only allow the best software etc to go onto my beloved tp...anyway.