For the last two years we have strongly recommened that private investigators and members do NOT use AOL as their primary source of email and web surfing. For what AOL charges, most of their "services" are available on the Internet for FREE.
Secondly, AOL uses the slowest Internet speed for most of it's members, which is why they are loosing thousands of members to the highspeed broadband Internet providers such as cable and DSL.
Third, AOL web browsers have been extremely incompatible with many websites, where the AOL browser will not even load up the website page! Fortunately AOL users can open up a Windows Explorer Browser window to connect to all websites.
Fourth, AND MOST IMPORTANT, is the ineffective use and deception claims that AOL email works all the time on the Internet. Some of the 18,000 IPIU members send is email from their AOL email box and we never receive it. If we do receive, then our email going back to the AOL member is rarely received!
We believe (for now) that AOL emails are getting through. But still, consider spending your money more wisely and get with the 21st Century HIGH SPEED internet connection to receive near all of the AOL features for free.
Here is a copy of a status report that all AOL users should be aware of:
Update 4:30pm EDT 18 October 2002:
The problem sending email to AOL is still being resolved. We have been in contact with AOL all this week, and despite meeting their requests to remedy our situation two days ago, we have not been removed from their blacklists.
We have spoken with AOL representatives again today and they have opened an internal ticket to AOL's postmaster. They have said that they will be working on the problem through the weekend. At this point we have no ETA.
If you wish to express your concern with this, you may contact AOL at the phone number mentioned in the error messages and let them know that you are unable to send email from HostRocket.
We apologize for the delay with this, but we are doing our best to get AOL to remove us from their blacklists.Update 4:00pm EDT 21 October 2002:
We have been in contact with higher-level management at AOL. They have assured us that the AOL block relays will be lifted by 9:00am EDT tomorrow 22 October. They have also apologized for our experience with the AOL call center support staff and the erroneous information supplied by them over the course of the past week.
We have set up a "feedback loop" with AOL in order to handle individual complaints against us prompty after the fact instead of instituting AOL's default policy of blocking the offending IP mail relays.
Thank you for your patience with this issue.
Update 10:30am EDT 22 October 2002:
AOL has called us in inquiry and we confirmed that our AOL customers are still being blocked in their email. They are working on the issue and we are expecting an update very soon.
Update 11:00am EDT 22 October 2002:
The issue with AOL is now resolved.
Thank you again for your patience with this matter.
Until . . . next time.