Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!think.com!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!agate!darkstar!ucscb.UCSC.EDU!woody
From: woody@ucscb.UCSC.EDU (Bill Woodcock)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.comm
Subject: Re: WANTED: America Online OPINIONS
Message-ID: <16046@darkstar.ucsc.edu>
Date: 21 May 91 20:58:58 GMT
Article-I.D.: darkstar.16046
References: <1991May21.160855.21767@oakhill.sps.mot.com>
Sender: usenet@darkstar.ucsc.edu
Organization: University of California, Santa Cruz
Lines: 21


I've had an account on AOL since August '89, and it's grown quite a bit since
then, and the character of the service has changed a bit, especially since 
Quantum (the parent company) merged their IBM PC network (Promenade) into
AOL this spring.  Overall, I'd say it's a really good deal.  A lot of the
folks who used to hang out on CONNECT/MacNET switched over to it when CONNECT
started the new Fascist Pricing Regime, last summer.

The service is fairly fast.  SOme people have complained about dialin nodes
dumping them, but those, to my knowledge, were mostly folks with pretty
flaky modems.  It's got a graphical user interface, which doesn't slow it
down too much.  Much prettier, _and faster_ than AppleLink, for instance.

The shareware library (keyword "MUT") is fairly complete, and fairly up-to-
date.  A little better than sumex.  In addition, there are special-purpose,
and utilities libraries in other forums.  Pretty good online news services.
UPI wire, weather all over the world, and a lot of syndicated columns, in-
cluding Denise Causo's _Inside Technology_ from the San Jose Merc.

			-Bill Woodcock
			 BMUG NetAdmin