Re: AOL

[elendil @ mintir . new-orleans . la . us (Edward J. Branley)]

rex!engr.uky.edu!morgan (Wes Morgan) writes:

> I'm not arguing that AOL is lickety-split in answering queries.
> Since neither of us knows the division of responsibilities at
> AOL, it seemed quite likely that different problems are routed
> to different people.  Let's address that issue without flaming
> the one person from AOL who has taken the time to join online
> forums and listen to (and respond to) our feedback.

Again, I don't really care what the division of responsibilities is within the
organization.  When I send a complaint about a user to just about any other
site (including Compuserve, a competing pay service), someone has the courtesy
to give me a reply.  AOL doesn't.  I don't consider stating the truth as
flaming the AOL person on the list.  If he doesn't have a clue as to what
happens to mail when it goes to the AOL "Terms and Services" people, that's
fine; it still doesn't alter the problem.

> Agreed, but let's ascertain the cause without tossing all of AOL
> into the dungheap.

Had I done that, I wouldn't be discussing them here.  They'd be in my reject
file.

>
> >That's the reality of allowing aol.com users to sign on my lists.
>
> I don't have many aol.com subscribers, but I've not had much problem with
> bounce messages; perhaps I've been lucky in that respect.
>

You're fortunate.

> Hmm...I just saw AOL's announcement, in several Usenet groups, that (roughly)
> a dozen users were nuked for email/Usenet abuse.  In that announcement, they
> apologized for being unable to reach every complainant.  If memory serves, it
> was this diet thing...it sounds as if you just didn't get the word.  (Interes
> tingly enough, AOL *immediately* started taking a PR beating for nuking the
> abusers...)
>
> Keep in mind that they received, in all likelihood, hundreds of complaints
> about that email/Usenet spam.  I'd like to get a personal reply to every-
> thing I send them, but I see the reality of email floods as well...8)

If that was the case, it seems logical that AOL would post such an apology to a
mailing list like this one.  Given the multitude of problems members of this
list have had, I'd say it would have been a good PR move.  The only thing I've
heard from AOL on this list is how they haven't seen my e-mail complaints.

>
> >AOL is a for-profit business that needs to clean up its public relations act
>
> I agree; however, I also see great improvement from their original positions
> and actions.  This sort of thing doesn't just happen overnight.  They could
> just as easily tell us to go find a corner; I, for one, am glad that they've
> begun participating in managerial forums like this...
>

Agreed that participation is an improvement.  Now, if participation leads to a
reduction in the problems that are a reality when dealing with AOL, I'll
consider that participation a success.

Cheers,
Ed.



 |Edward J. Branley                   elendil@mintir.new-orleans.la.us|
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