AOL going down the toilet?
A recent article caught my eye. It's about AOL and how it's losing members. Recently, AOL has seen a drastic reduction in members. Some going to cheaper internet Dial-up providers, some (like me) are choosing to go with broadband and ditch Dial-up all together.

On the surface, AOL seems to be the perfect Dial-up provider...Fast-surf Dial-up technology (AOL "Top Speed"), anti-virus, firewall and spyware protection all come free with AOL membership...but just under the mirage of perfection AOL is promoting itself with (Most recently with the slogan "If you want a better internet, you belong at AOL") lays the first problem...the price. AOL Dial-up service is the cost of many other IP's DSL lighter services. 23.90 a month to be exact. AOL claims that the extra cost pays for the extra "benefits" it provides it's customer's with, like parental controls, Computer security tools and free on-line services. This, in reality is a lie. AOL has been charging this price for years, long before it ever offered half the services it does today. Many of the services that AOL provides can be found free on the internet, even the free Anti-virus and firewall. ZoneAlarm and AVG, top rated products in their respective categories, are completely free and available to any home user. As a former AOL user myself, I say AOL borderlines on spyware and scumware.

AOL constantly bombards it's users with advertisements about their premium services they offer in addition to the basic internet service. I personally got SPAM and pop-ups about their call-waiting service and service for broadband connections. It was very disruptive. My advice: AOL is not worth paying an additional 14 dollars a month more than regular providers such as Netzero. Go with the cheaper internet services or go with High-speed.