Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!asuvax!ncar!elroy.jpl.nasa.gov!swrinde!mips!dimacs.rutgers.edu!rutgers!cmcl2!esquire!baumgart From: baumgart@esquire.dpw.com (Steve Baumgarten) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.comm Subject: Re: WANTED: America Online OPINIONS Message-ID: Date: 22 May 91 19:08:49 GMT References: <1991May21.160855.21767@oakhill.sps.mot.com> <1991May22.065212.29985@agate.berkeley.edu> Sender: news@DPW.COM Organization: Davis Polk & Wardwell Lines: 48 In-reply-to: bmug@garnet.berkeley.edu's message of 22 May 91 06:52:12 GMT In article <1991May22.065212.29985@agate.berkeley.edu> bmug@garnet.berkeley.edu (BMUG) writes: The archives aren't as large as CompuServe's, but there's quite a bit there and it's growing all the time. In terms of the software, if you've ever seen AppleLink, you'll feel right at home. Since you have a free month's worth of access time, you should jump right in and look around. I have accounts on both AO and CServe and find that I rarely use CServe anymore. The biggest difference for me is being able to browse the libraries and find what I'm looking for -- quickly and without a lot of guessing and wasted time. I don't use the chat feature or email too much, so my evaluation is strictly on finding software I want and getting it downloaded. I can't stand looking at CServe's cryptic file names anymore... it's the difference between: "GTKPRA12.BIN" and "GateKeeper Aid 1.2" (Real, understandable file names is another one of the things that the Mac has over DOS and Windows.) Also, they have a "Fast Find" feature that's very fast and searches all libraries (if you want), so you don't have to know where something is. Just type, for example, "Gatekeeper", and and a list of all programs where that string occurs in the title or in the keywords is created. Double-click on one of the names in the list, and the full description appears, complete with a button that downloads it. AO uses their own protocol for downloading, but I've always found it pretty fast. The modem is almost always receiving, so at least they're not using XMODEM or something. The only thing I don't like about downloading files from AO is that there's no way to batch them up and download them all at once. So if you have six or seven files to download, you pretty much have to babysit the machine until they're done. But that's a small quibble; AO is otherwise a pleasure to use. It's definitely worth checking out for a month or two. -- Steve Baumgarten | "New York... when civilization falls apart, Davis Polk & Wardwell | remember, we were way ahead of you." baumgart@esquire.dpw.com | cmcl2!esquire!baumgart | - David Letterman