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Technology Stocks : How high will Microsoft fly? -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Jill who wrote (19756)	4/5/1999 9:18:00 PM
From: RTev	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 74651

Also, AOL interface is very user friendly, That's one of the parts that I wonder about as access moves to broadband. I'll admit I haven't used AOL for several years, but screenshots and a glance now and then at a friend's computer tell me that's it's designed as a dialup application that might not translate well to the always-on broadband arena. (Those glances also tell me that it remains hauntingly similar to its original Commodore 64 face.) Most broadband connections are permanent -- the user is connected when the computer is turned on and stays connected until the computer is turned off. And most internet tools -- including virtually everything from Microsoft -- are designed to work best on that kind of connection. But AOL's interface is designed for the turn-it-on turn-it-off world of dialup. Nobody who's bought a computer in the past four or five years needs AOL's interface. It's redundant software for the internet since every machine with any OS shipped today has internet tools included (but -- ahem -- not necessarily "bundled".) As more people get broadband connections, I suspect it will become obvious to many of them -- even if AOL manages to provide the connections -- that AOL's interface is unnecessary. And that means they lose the "eyeballs" that they sell so aggressively.

To: Jill who wrote (19756)	4/5/1999 10:01:00 PM
From: Claude	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 74651

OT - AOL interface As someone who develops windows software I most wholeheartedly DISAGREE! The AOL interface is HORRID!! Not to mention that its buggy! (try to cut and paste) It reminds me of the WIN 3.1 days - certainly nothing like a WIN95 interface. I liken it to a cheap Carnival - a lot of junky looking spots that come together in some kind of pandemonium that gives you a bit of a rush at first but lets you down at every turn. I think the reason many people feel its user friendly is from the sheer numbers using AOL which act as a support group. You can always find someone else to help. I couldn't believe how something simple like creating mail folders to archive mail was so un-intuitive. After playing around with it I refused to get it for my Mom (even though she kept telling me how all her friends were using it) and got her an account with a local ISP instead. She is using IE 4 with Outlook Express and doing things her friends have never done - surfing the web (not just www.aol.com!) and sending mail with all kinds of attachments. We are also using video conferencing with Netmeeting. I had problems using Netmeeting with AOL and believe it was related to their non-standard IP adapter it loads (does not use the windows adapter). I showed her how she could just go to AOl.COM and get pretty much the same stuff that everyone using AOL gets. Saved lots of money to boot getting a one year deal with the local ISP over what AOL charges <g> Claude (rhymes with TOAD)