AOL Disks Collectable

I've heard the AOL disk mailings described in the press as "carpet bombing". According to one article and my memory (look out folks!), this marketing method is not particularly effective. Certainly not compared to referrals from AOL members. I don't exactly hate AOL but I don't understand why it is so successful. People say "it's easy" but I don't see what's hard about Netscape. Netscape provides browsing, mail, instant messaging, chat, and is easy to use in the extreme. All in one integrated, non-system-intrusive program. Well, at least the non-WinDos versions are inocuous <-- Spelling anyone? AOL's success just boggles the mind considering the annoying and time consuming popup adds. You get these on the internet but mostly on porn sites and Netscape's main site.... Hmm. It's considered impolite. The complaints of busy signals and other denial of service issue are probably true but I don't think it is as bad as all that. Probably my main objection is the number of total idiots I see who use AOL. I am offended for my species. I think this goes for Packard Bell computers as well. I hated PB for thier case designs quite a bit but had no other complaints to speak of. None at least that didn't also apply to Hewlett Packard, IBM, Compaq.... Each has had some nightmare cases to work in. What behooves these companies to design these wierd machines? Sometimes it's a challenge just to figure out how to get inside at all. The other day I had a HP or Compaq minitower on the bench that had it's faceplate and drive bay as one piece. Not a little bay either but two 5.25" and three 3.5" bays that slid on a track and had the faceplate welded to it. It took me 15 minutes just to get the Quantum Bigfoot out of the machine. I rambled. Sorry. In &lt;Pine.SCO.4.20.0004272232000.4114-100000(a)crash.cts.com&gt;om>, on 04/28/00 at 02:39 AM, Don Maslin &lt;donm(a)cts.com&gt; said: -- ----------------------------------------------------------- Jeffrey S. Worley Technical Services Bits & Bytes Computer Services Inc. 1979B Hendersonville Road Asheville, NC 28803 828-684-8953 - voice 0900-1700 five days 828-687-9284 - 24hr fax Who is General Failure and why is he reading my hard disk? Technoid(a)Cheta.net -----------------------------------------------------------