# AHH! AOL LOST MY WEB PAGE! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 1, 1999, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870 "1999-10-01T00:48:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/1 "1999-10-01T00:48:00Z")
Two days ago, my photo album web page was up and running. Today…“The page you requested was not found in AOL Hometown.” But…I never _registered_ it with AOL Hometown in the first place! Nor did I register my main page, which is still up. Thank God. I went to the upload site where all the files for the page are kept and…POOF! They’re gone! “Cannot find file for muhcavity/html.” AHHH! Then it sends me to my supposed upload site–and it’s empty! All the pictures, all the .gifs, all the text–gone! _ **Arrrrgggghhh!** _ But only adding to the ARGHs are the AOL Techs. One (online tech) said to go to Hometown AOL and ask them. I did. Useless. First of all, I never registered there, so they would have no record of me and my question doesn’t directly pertain to them. Second, they have no help there! It’s the friggin’ FAQ and a mostly irrelevant message board! No chat, no Email, no phone number. YARGH! So I call the AOL Tech. You know, there’s a great .wav out there for AOL techs–it’s some cartoon character saying, “Der, duh, doy, duh-her, da-ee, der, dum…” (I’ve lost it–if anyone has it, _please_ send it on!) Yep, that’s who I talked to. He said to go to AOL Hometown, “They have a FAQ that addresses this question.” Me: “No, they don’t. Their FAQ says: ‘Why isn’t my web page showing? Because it takes 24 hours for a newly registered Hometown page to show.’ That does not address my question, as the page wasn’t recently, or ever, registered.” Him: “Um…let me go ask my supervisor, even though I think I know what he’s going to tell me [implying the now beaten-into-the-ground “Go to keyword Hometown” answer].” I listen to lame Muzak for a few minutes. Him: “Okay, he says to go to Keyword PPHelp.” Me: “What’s that?” Him: “I’m not…um…let me pull it up just to make sure. (Pause) Okay, it talks about web page publishing help.” Me: “And this is the AOL Publisher, but not Hometown, right?” Him: “Um…yeah. Yeah.” [Smile and nod, smile and nod tone…] Me: :::pounding head with phone::: So now my web page is gone, and I have no idea why…except that **AOL SUCKS!** pant pant pant Feeling a little better now. * * * “My cat’s breath smells like cat food.” --Ralph Wiggum, hero and icon ---
**Author:** ![Gr8Kat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gr8kat/32/18668_2.png) [@Gr8Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gr8Kat)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/2 "1999-10-01T01:16:00Z")
But… um… I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic to your plight, but if you still have the page on your own computer, you can just upload it again, can’t you? That’s what I’d do, unless I’m totally misunderstanding your situation. Good luck 🙂 * * * “I hope life isn’t a big joke, because I don’t get it,” Jack Handy ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/3 "1999-10-01T01:39:00Z")
What’s the address for the site? ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/4 "1999-10-01T01:40:00Z")
AHHH! Now MY home page is gone!!! What the fuck is AOL doing??? ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/5 "1999-10-01T01:49:00Z")
Okay, Louie, calm down…calm down…ahhh, better. Well, I checked my FTP space and found this… > [@](#): > > Welcome to our AOL Members’ FTP/WWW Site! > > This site is made available for internet users to exchange files via FTP and access user web pages. Each AOL user has a disk quota of 2Mb; please respect this limit on uploads. > %Q > You must “cd” to the AOL user’s screen name to access their data. **There is no casual browsing of user archives.** ( ☹ aww man) > > The AOL FTP GUI requires you specify the initial directory (AOL username) after the “Other Site” name, eg. > members:/username > if you do not wish to be placed in your own directory. The alias “users” may also be used in place of “members”. > > Please read the “/usersFAQ.txt” document for answers to some frequently asked questions about using this site. > > All transfers are logged. FTP questions or problem reports should be sent via e-mail to “%E”. > > **Please Note: The [members.aol.com](http://members.aol.com) servers will be rebooted on > Sunday mornings at 05:00EST (10:00GMT).** > > Thank-you for choosing AOL! _gives that message the finger_ _sigh_ So I guess LauraRae’s and my web page are coming back on Sunday. _ **Everyone on AOL, check to see if your web page is still there or not.** _ ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/6 "1999-10-01T01:52:00Z")
\*\* Sorry about making that all bold, I meant to highlight this… **Please Note: The [members.aol.com](http://members.aol.com) servers will be rebooted on Sunday mornings at 05:00EST (10:00GMT).** ## Phew, thank goodness for backups. “The more beautiful the rose, the more thorns it hides underneath.” - Louie [Fun with HTML (tutoral)](http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000194.html) ---
**Author:** ![KCB615](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@KCB615](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KCB615)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/7 "1999-10-01T02:38:00Z")
## The same thing happened to my page (but only one screenname) a week or two ago. I went to the online AOL tech person, and while he was trying to figure the problem out, the page came back. He said he didn’t do anything to cause its return, it just plain reappeared. Just one more reason to make me want to leave AOHell. Jeremy… I can think of no more stirring symbol of man’s humanity to man than a fire engine - Kurt Vonnegut ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/8 "1999-10-01T02:51:00Z")
> [@](#): > > I don’t mean to sound unsympathetic to your plight, but if you still have the page on your own computer, you can just upload it again, can’t you? Naw, not at all unsympathetic. I know I can (and likely will have to) do that, but this was a photo album–which means there’s a helluva lot of uploading I’d have to do with all the images, etc. That’s a major pain in the ass, but not complete disaster. But a pain in the ass is a pain in the ass. Freakin’ AOL. Thanks for the info, Louie. Youn found that in your FTP space? I can’t even access mine–it says “File to muhcavity.htm not found.” Then it sends me to an empty FTP space with the Muhcavity name on it. BTW, the address is [Photo Album, or [url=“http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm.”]http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm.](http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm%3ELaura's%5B/url) AOL still sucks. Is there anything out there with IM-like software? It’s a main source of communication for me, and about the only reason that keeps me in AOHell. ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/9 "1999-10-01T02:52:00Z")
Huh, the HTML coding didn’t work for the web page. Whatevah. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/10 "1999-10-01T02:56:00Z")
Do you know how many good things I’ve heard about AOL? Sweet Fuck All. Do you know how many bad things I’ve heard about AOL? About fifteen thousand. Can someone please enlighten me as to why anyone in their right mind even bothers with such a shitty ISP, and how it got to dominate the world despite being a big pile of crap? Thanks! * * * “So what you are telling me, Percy, is that something you have never seen is _slightly less blue_ than something else that you have never seen.” ---
**Author:** ![Falcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/49beb7/32.png) [@Falcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Falcon)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/11 "1999-10-01T03:00:00Z")
LauraRae - Get on an ISP, then download either AOL Instant Messenger or ICQ. I have both, and they’re great messaging software, and I can talk to everyone. AND I don’t have to be on AOHell. Best of all, they’re free. Just a suggestion… * * * “You have to laugh at yourself, because you’d cry your eyes out if you didn’t.” -Emily Saliers ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/12 "1999-10-01T03:38:00Z")
> [@](#): > > Can someone please enlighten me as to why anyone in their right mind even bothers with such a shitty ISP, and how it got to dominate the world despite being a big pile of crap? > > Thanks! Because not everyone is a computer expert, not everyone knows how to use a dial-up connection, and local ISP’s don’t reach most small cities, while AOL does. Why does AOL dominate the world? You don’t see any other ISP’s advertising their services on TV, mass-mailing their software through the mail, and having their software pre-installed on most computers. Ugh, I just defended AOL. 😛 ## Still waiting for my home page to come back, Louie “The more beautiful the rose, the more thorns it hides underneath.” - Louie [Fun with HTML (tutoral)](http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000194.html) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/13 "1999-10-01T04:00:00Z")
Having never had any direct contact with AOL (it’s only just arrived in Australia) I didn’t know how they worked. I think I understand - though seeing as wevery other non-AOL country has got on fine with DialUp Networkinng etc, I put it forward to the world that they should give it a go to try another ISP. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/14 "1999-10-01T15:14:00Z")
My ISP burped once & reset all the pages back to their latest backup, which was several months back. In other words, if you don’t backup, don’t blame them. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 1999, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/15 "1999-10-01T15:16:00Z")
'BTW, the address is [http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm\>Laura’s](http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm%3ELaura's) Photo Album, or [http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm.](http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm.) ’ Yeah, neither of them show up, tsk. WHy not get a free site on [WebJump.com](http://WebJump.com)? ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 1999, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/16 "1999-10-02T04:44:00Z")
Well that weird. One day, my page was gone, next day, it’s back online. LauraRae, your page works as well. And the address is [http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm](http://members.aol.com/muhcavity/album.htm) * * * “The more beautiful the rose, the more thorns it hides underneath.” - Louie [Fun with HTML (tutoral)](http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000194.html) ---
**Author:** ![system](https://global.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/original/2X/e/e489c3b7d8fce19c4b355dd4fc3f88cc39c34b87.png) [@system](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/system)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 1999, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/17 "1999-10-02T14:05:00Z")
Thanks Louie. Yeah, it went back up sometime yesterday, thank God. I went to the publishing site message board and posted about the disappearance, to have it replied by a doxen or so folks who had the same problem. Fuckin’ AOL. Oh, and now, one of the links on my toolbar has disappeared. Not that that matters all that much to me, but it does let me know the AOL is freaking out right now. I hate this damn thing. Anyone have an ISP they recommend? ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 1999, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/18 "1999-10-03T06:24:00Z")
Try to get a cable modem connection, if you cable company has that option. They’re hell of a lot speedier, no need for phone line, no busy signals, and cost half as much. If you live in a small community, stick with AOL. The “reliable” local ISP’s turn out to have the same or worse reliability as AOL. But if you live in a big city, shop around. Try looking in the phone book for “Internet Service Providers”. They usually have their prices in there as well. * * * The more beautiful the rose, the more thorns it hides underneath. - Louie [Fun with HTML (tutoral)](http://www.straightdope.com/ubb/Forum2/HTML/000194.html) ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 1999, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ahh-aol-lost-my-web-page/8870/19 "1999-10-06T05:12:00Z")
Okay, here’s what really happened… [http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/filters/bursts/0,3422,2348338,00.html](http://www.zdnet.com/zdnn/filters/bursts/0,3422,2348338,00.html)