AOL Users

Alan Burkhart

Is it just me, or do people who use AOL tend to know less about using their browsers and computers in general? I know several long-term AOL members. One is a lady in her 50s. She's a smart gal and business owner. But a few weeks ago I had to explain how to copy and paste to her. And she's been using computers for years. My older brother (AOL user) complained a few years ago about how his Win XP machine was slowing down. I asked him how often he defragged. His reply: "Defrag? What's that?" I know another AOL user who's had the same machine for years. She emailed me one day wondering how to find out what version of Windows she had. Maybe it's just coincidence but it seems odd that so many AOL users lack a lot of the general knowledge most other "non-IT" users have. I'm not being snarky, just curious if anyone else has noticed this.

XAlan Burkhart

Lost User

If they had any clue, they wouldn't be using AOL anymore, would they?

ZurdoDev

I actually found out from a different post yesterday that AOL is still around. Who knew?

There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

Alan Burkhart

RyanDev wrote:

I actually found out from a different post yesterday that AOL is still around. Who knew?

That was actually what prompted me to post this. That, and I'm sitting at home with nothing to do until Monday (and loving it). It's noon and I'm still drinking my morning coffee. Life is good. :-D

XAlan Burkhart

Alan Burkhart

Good point. I had AOL for a few days many years ago. They kept calling me trying to sell me low-end cameras and other junk merchandise. I dropped them after about a week and a half. Been with Yahoo ever since. They're not perfect, but at least they're not AOL.

XAlan Burkhart

Mike Hankey

Many users don't know anything beyond; to get internet double click on the AOL icon, to write a letter double click on the icon that looks like a letter, etc.. They have no concept of how the computer works and don't care to learn.

Alan Burkhart

That's my impression. AOL evidently provides a lot of hand-holding so users never really learn anything.

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.

kmoorevs

Yikes! Just noticing the 'Quote Selected Text' is not working...probably this unwanted new version of IE. :omg: Anyhow, I think you are on to something with the lack of what we consider to be basic computer skills, by people who have been using them for over a decade now. I spend a lot of time on remotes with end users, and occasionally family, and really try to use these remotes to train them...mostly so they don't call back. This strategy seems to be failing, as the remote has become the easiest and quickest way to resolve customer or family IT issues. At a side job, they are changing software providers. Migration of the active customer list missed quite a few fields. I tried to explain to the manager how to copy and past between the systems, but she immediately dismissed it as too complicated. I didn't argue. I still have customers who have no idea what the clipboard is...they keep expecting something to happen when they copy something! :wtf:

"Go forth into the source" - Neal Morse

AspDotNetDev

Obligatory: What your email address says about your computer skills (The Oatmeal)

Thou mewling ill-breeding pignut!

Alan Burkhart

I once sent my brother a funny animated GIF but AOL wouldn't play it. It just displayed the first frame. So he emailed me asking what was so funny and eventually we ended up on the phone (again). I asked him what web browser he used and he didn't have a clue what I was talking about. He "just launches AOL." I got him to try IE and he thought it was way too complicated. He's an ace with MS Office because it's vital to his business. Beyond that he's helpless.

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.

Alan Burkhart

AspDotNetDev wrote:

Obligatory: What your email address says about your computer skills (The Oatmeal)

I agree except for the part about Yahoo. Yahoo users are by far the most articulate and polished people on the Internet. :-D

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.

AspDotNetDev

Alan Burkhart wrote:

Yahoo users are by far the most articulate and polished people on the Internet

*Pats yahoo on head.* Yes, that's exactly right.

Thou mewling ill-breeding pignut!

Alan Burkhart

:laugh:

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.

Lost User

What's AOL?

David C Hobbyist

AOL is a company that donated millions of floppy disks to people so they could re-format them. Saved me a few dollars.

Alan Burkhart

It's the reason for the book, "Internet For Dummies"

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.

BobJanova

To be fair defragging on modern enormous hard disks running NTFS is far less necessary than it used to be. And I'm sure they do know less, because the only reason you'd ever have started using them is if you didn't know it was a bad idea, and the only way you'd still be using them is if you hadn't worked out it's a bad idea since.

BrainiacV

AOL is the Internet with training wheels.

Psychosis at 10 Film at 11 Those who do not remember the past, are doomed to repeat it. Those who do not remember the past, cannot build upon it.

Trekstuff

Had to recheck the date of this post. People who use AOL? In 2014?

Alan Burkhart

At least 3 or 4.

Sometimes the true reward for completing a task is not the money, but instead the satisfaction of a job well done. But it's usually the money.