Re:AOL

[mpmNS @ hamp . hampshire . edu (Michelle Murrain)]

Ed Branley writes:
>So, are my AOL problems unique to my site?  I know that many of the larger
>list management programs like majordomo can filter out a lot of the extraneous
>messages and bounces and such, so am I perceiving more of a problem because I
>don't have such a system?  Or, are others having similar problems dealing with
>AOL management?

One of my lists is a relatively small list (say, 150 folk), but is
semi-private (for a very specific audience). The list got its primary
advertisement initially on AOL, because I had been on AOL at one time, and
was a "staff member" (I've forgotten what the real term is for a volunteer
who gets some free online time for doing stuff), knew a forum host who
could post a message about the new list on one of the bulletin boards.
Thus, 50% or more of my list subscribers are from AOL, since our general
net visibility is very low, and word of mouth (word of key?) on AOL is
pretty strong.

Now, I've spent lots of time, and $ also, on AOL, and am quite familiar
with its workings. For some people, including me, AOL is really not so
great. But for a large number of folks AOL (and services like it) is a
godsend. They would not be on-line without it. 

As a list manager, I've had mostly negative experience with AOL. By
negative, I really mean that I've gotten no help when I needed it. I've
written the postmaster on a number of occasions, and gotten no response
whatsoever (I did not get an acknowledgement). At one point, for some
reason, no AOL members were getting mail from my list. I wrote the post
master a few times about the problem, to no avail. It turns out it was my
site, but I had a lot of troubleshooting work to do, and could have used a
little bit of help in that process, especially since this list is so
heavily populated by AOL members (which I mentioned in my messages to the
postmaster). 

One of the things I appreciate most about the net is that there is a
general understanding that it is *people* who keep stuff going. Not only
the people who keep the software written, but those of us who keep lists
going, FAQs written,  gopher holes maintained etc. And the bulk of us DON'T
GET PAID FOR IT (many even pay money to do it). And there is an
appreciation for us. After a while, even newbies realize that this stuff
doesn't just arrive from thin air. But as users from large commercial
services begin to take advantage of the work all of us put in, they come
from an entirely different culture, and think that they are paying for the
services *we* provide. Well they are, but are we seeing *any* benefit? I
must admit, though, most of my AOLers do realize the work I put in to
maintain the list. But it does piss me off that AOL is making money on ME
(In fact, if I wanted to, I could probably calculate how much AOLers on my
list have paid AOL for the time they spend writing and reading mail on my
list - which they wouldn't have made if I never started, and didn't
maintain, the list) . Not that I want $ for it, I just think we should get
something back.

Also, AOLs interface is so glossy, and nice, that it is never clear where
AOL ends and the internet begins. So this encourages AOL users to treat the
net like they treat AOL. 

We are going to have to eventually deal in some way with this clash of
cultures. Although I don't expect the majority of AOL or Prodigy users to
use the internet with the same kind of abandon college students do, and
luckily the front edges of the net change so fast that it takes time for
AOL and Prodigy to catch up, and users who really want to surf go to other
providers, there still is the potential for some serious conflict. 

                        Michelle
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Michelle Murrain, Ph.D.                   email and finger:
School of Natural Science                mpmNS@hamp.hampshire.edu
Hampshire College,                     mmurrain@family.hampshire.edu
Amherst, MA 01002                        
(413) 582-5688  fax:(413) 582-5448 
URL: http://www.hampshire.edu/Hampshire/ns/html/Murrain.html               
        
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