AOL news-servers

Am considering moving to AOL (using my own router, avoiding their
software) but wondered about their news servers....do they provide
"normal" nntp access (so I can use Agent) or are they accessible
only via their software, so meaning I'd need a third-party nntp
service?

--
Bryan Anderson <(E-Mail Removed)>

In article <(E-Mail Removed)>, Bryan Anderson
says...
>
> Am considering moving to AOL (using my own router, avoiding their
> software) but wondered about their news servers....do they provide
> "normal" nntp access (so I can use Agent) or are they accessible
> only via their software, so meaning I'd need a third-party nntp
> service?
>
>
AOl has no NNTP service whatsoever. It was discontinued due to "lack of
use".

FR

In article <(E-Mail Removed)>,
(E-Mail Removed) says...

> Am considering moving to AOL (using my own router, avoiding their
> software) but wondered about their news servers....do they provide
> "normal" nntp access (so I can use Agent) or are they accessible
> only via their software, so meaning I'd need a third-party nntp
> service?
>

I seem to recall that aol stopped/dropped UseNet a while back and most
groups were full of aol'ers bitching and moaning about it.

"Bryan Anderson" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:(E-Mail Removed)...
>
> Am considering moving to AOL (using my own router, avoiding their
> software) but wondered about their news servers....do they provide
> "normal" nntp access (so I can use Agent) or are they accessible
> only via their software, so meaning I'd need a third-party nntp
> service?
>

i'd un-consider AOL if you value your sanity

On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 10:32:27 -0000, "Geoff" <(E-Mail Removed)>
wrote:

>
>"Bryan Anderson" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
>news:(E-Mail Removed).. .
>>
>> Am considering moving to AOL (using my own router, avoiding their
>> software) but wondered about their news servers....do they provide
>> "normal" nntp access (so I can use Agent) or are they accessible
>> only via their software, so meaning I'd need a third-party nntp
>> service?

Claranet offers a usenet service for 30 GBP per year (max 10GB month
traffic). Their retention is on the microscopic side of short (a
couple of days), but other than that I never had many problems when I
was using them.

>
>i'd un-consider AOL if you value your sanity

Would you be so kind as to explain? I'm considering the same move.

I had some trouble calling their activation line and asking whether,
should I join AOL, I would be allowed to use the POP3 and SMTP servers
provided by my hosting provider (claranet, in fact) using a non-aol
mail client (i.e. do they filter/proxy/block port 25 traffic?).

_But_, if one has no trouble and does not need to call their help
line, how is their connection? Speed? latency?

L.

PS: Bryan, should you decide to go ahead, would you be so kind as to
post the results here?

PPS: If you migrate and already have their supported hardware, you are
not bound to a 12 months contract.

[L.]

On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 13:16:28 +0000, "[L.]" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:


>Would you be so kind as to explain? I'm considering the same move.
>
>I had some trouble calling their activation line and asking whether,
>should I join AOL, I would be allowed to use the POP3 and SMTP servers
>provided by my hosting provider (claranet, in fact) using a non-aol
>mail client (i.e. do they filter/proxy/block port 25 traffic?).
>
>_But_, if one has no trouble and does not need to call their help
>line, how is their connection? Speed? latency?
>


Why, I wonder, are so many people in this country drawn towards
"America-on-line"?

On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 13:39:03 +0000, Curious <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:

>On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 13:16:28 +0000, "[L.]" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote:
>
>
>>Would you be so kind as to explain? I'm considering the same move.
>>
>>I had some trouble calling their activation line and asking whether,
>>should I join AOL, I would be allowed to use the POP3 and SMTP servers
>>provided by my hosting provider (claranet, in fact) using a non-aol
>>mail client (i.e. do they filter/proxy/block port 25 traffic?).
>>
>>_But_, if one has no trouble and does not need to call their help
>>line, how is their connection? Speed? latency?
>>
>
>
>Why, I wonder, are so many people in this country drawn towards
>"America-on-line"?


I don't know about others.

For me is the 15/17 GBP per month for a claimed unlimited/uncapped
service provided by a company with some business experience.

What prevents me from jumping ship is:
- Level of aspersions and disparaging comments on usenet
- Unclear whether they indeed proxy/block port 25 traffic or not.

L.


[L.]

On Mon, 30 Jan 2006 13:16:28 +0000, [L.] wrote:


> I had some trouble calling their activation line and asking whether,
> should I join AOL, I would be allowed to use the POP3 and SMTP servers
> provided by my hosting provider (claranet, in fact) using a non-aol mail
> client (i.e. do they filter/proxy/block port 25 traffic?).

In this day and age, it's irresponsible of an ISP *not* to take some
action against direct outgoing port 25 connections on domestic
connections. Port 25 alone is useful for "direct to MX" spamming.

Any half-way decent third-party mail service that offers authenticated
SMTP will offer it on alternative ports, and/or will offer SMTPS
too.

On Monday, "Geoff" wrote:

> i'd un-consider AOL if you value your sanity

I have - it's a very mixed bag of responses about AOL. Some say it's
awful (and it was when I used it about seven years ago on dial-up),
whereas others say it can't be beaten as long as you don't use the
software they give you and conenct via a router (which I would have
done).

However, the "AOL Stigma" and the twelve month contract have put me
off....gone Eclipse instead.

--
Bryan Anderson <(E-Mail Removed)>

On Monday, "[L.]" wrote:

> PS: Bryan, should you decide to go ahead, would you be so kind
> as to post the results here?

Have decided on Eclipse instead...

> PPS: If you migrate and already have their supported hardware,
> you are not bound to a 12 months contract.

I don't have one of their "supported" routers, so would have either
had to buy one, or go for a twelve month contract, which I'm not
prepared to do....don't trust large companies to not change things
within twelve months (Example PlusNet!)

--
Bryan Anderson <(E-Mail Removed)>