# I need a different ISP. AOL Sucks. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 28, 2003, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101 "2003-10-28T20:38:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Blown\_Injected](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@Blown\_Injected](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blown_Injected)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/1 "2003-10-28T20:38:06Z")
Verizon does not know when DSL will be available in my area and I would rather not deal with Comcast. What is the SD on the free or discount ISP’s? How about the “much faster” than regular dial up deals? TIA ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/2 "2003-10-28T22:16:48Z")
Note that the claimed speedups by a certain discount ISP is just marketing hooey. They are caching files, which in my experience, not only doesn’t speed things up but actually makes things worse. Any ISP, or other company, that lies (e.g., AOL calling itself an ISP) is not going to ever get my business. I am using Comcast and they recently started feeding sites like Google thru their akadns server. Caching Google? Whaaaaat? The main page is trivial and then the next pages are relatively unique. Now my searches are going back and forth thru an extra layer of machines. This is an improvement? To whom? PHBs? ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2003, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/3 "2003-10-28T22:56:39Z")
Realize that those “faster” dial-up accounts are just compressing the pages on their server, and you’re uncompressing them when you get them. This of course isn’t going to work with already compressed files, so if you’re using it to get video or audio, it won’t help. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/4 "2003-10-29T00:22:26Z")
'bout time you AOL people realized they are gouging you. Did I just read you are 1 in about 860,000 who recently bailed on AOL? I think AOL is now coming out with an AOL-Lite version for half price just to stay in the game. For just your basic dial-up IP, I have Juno…you can get it free, but for $9.95 month you don’t get banners and don’t get bumped and so far, service has been very good. ---
**Author:** ![DaddyTimesTwo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f07891/32.png) [@DaddyTimesTwo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaddyTimesTwo)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/5 "2003-10-29T00:43:09Z")
Listen to **DMark** , **B&I**! I had NetZero for over three years and can recommend them highly (Juno and NetZero merged a year or two ago). I always connected at @50K baud and rarely had any connection problem, and those I did have lasted no longer than an hour or two. I recently upgraded to cable service, but only because NetZero wasn’t offering broadband. I would certainly have tried that before the local cable monopoly. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/6 "2003-10-29T01:11:32Z")
I always recommend **Earthlink**. I have used them in several states, and I was always pretty much satisfied with their service and support. ---
**Author:** ![bojon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@bojon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bojon)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/7 "2003-10-29T01:24:56Z")
Earthlink would not give other numbers in the vicinity. Goodbye…I am now with MSN, who sucks, but has the ability to have more numbers to call from…I hate dialups…Too poor to change… ---
**Author:** ![Blown\_Injected](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a87d85/32.png) [@Blown\_Injected](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blown_Injected)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/8 "2003-10-29T08:12:49Z")
thanks Perhaps I do not understand what an ISP is about. I thought AOL was an ISP. Have heard good things about NetZero. ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 8:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/9 "2003-10-29T08:29:48Z")
The AOL browser is famous for sucking. You can still use AOL for your dial-up and just use IE or Netscape after you have made your connection. **bojon** , I’m not what your problem was with Earthlink. I always found plenty of access numbers for their dial-up where ever I traveled in the US (expect for the U-P of Michigan, and their wasn’t a local AOL number there either). But yeah, dial-ups suck in general. [http://support.earthlink.net/support/ACCESS/](http://support.earthlink.net/support/ACCESS/) ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2003, 8:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-need-a-different-isp-aol-sucks/210101/10 "2003-10-29T08:32:08Z")
Geez … sorry about the word salad. It’s late ☹