Internet Connecting Problems

[n2gether]

I am connecting to the internet on AOL and it only stays connected for exactly 8 minutes. The internet then stops working but AOL does not disconnect. I must close aol then sign back on again, and it just repeats. Now it used to have the internet just stop working on then when i closed aol it would just give me a option to sign off, ok, or cancel. And if i hit ok it would just instantly sign me back on without dialing, but it stopped doing that, and now I have to just completely close aol and have it redial again. I know I have had trojans in the past, not sure if Norton got rid of them all, but I saw on another forum some guy had a similar problem with his internet and it was trojans but I really have no idea what is wrong with it. Also, about the same time this started happening this started up again. Now I have tried a different modem already. And don't say get rid of aol I cant, dial up is the only thing available, dont wanna hear get dsl, seems people like to tell me that with this problem...anyway I've looked for spyware and viruses with webroot and norton havent found anything, so I really have no idea. I'm getting ready to just reinstall windows for the 3rd time on this computer.

[Natedogg.]

Sounds like a typical Malware problem, I wouldn't recommend Norton for any Anti-Virus protection. They don't find all viruses, poor performance, bad technical support. I would also recommend not using AOL but a different dial-up service as faulty bugs and such are in AOL and attacks usually happen with people using it.

 

Here are some facts you should know about AOL:

 

 

How do we loathe AOL? Let us count the ways. Since America Online emerged from the belly of a BBS called Quantum "PC-Link" in 1989, users have suffered through awful software, inaccessible dial-up numbers, rapacious marketing, in-your-face advertising, questionable billing practices, inexcusably poor customer service, and enough spam to last a lifetime. And all the while, AOL remained more expensive than its major competitors. This lethal combination earned the world's biggest ISP the top spot on our list of bottom feeders.

 

AOL succeeded initially by targeting newbies, using brute-force marketing techniques. In the 90s you couldn't open a magazine (PC World included) or your mailbox without an AOL disk falling out of it. This carpet-bombing technique yielded big numbers: At its peak, AOL claimed 34 million subscribers worldwide, though it never revealed how many were just using up their free hours.

 

 

  Once AOL had you in its clutches, escaping was notoriously difficult. Several states sued the service, claiming that it continued to bill customers after they had requested cancellation of their subscriptions. In August 2005, AOL paid a $1.25 million fine to the state of New York and agreed to change its cancellation policies--but the agreement covered only people in New York.

 

Ultimately the Net itself--which AOL subscribers were finally able to access in 1995-- made the service's shortcomings painfully obvious. Prior to that, though AOL offered plenty of its own online content, it walled off the greater Internet. Once people realized what content was available elsewhere on the Net, they started wondering why they were paying AOL. And as America moved to broadband, many left their sluggish AOL accounts behind. AOL is now busy rebranding itself as a content provider, not an access service.

 

Though America Online has shown some improvement lately--with better browsers and e-mail tools, fewer obnoxious ads, scads of broadband content, and innovative features such as parental controls--it has never overcome the stigma of being the online service for people who don't know any better.

 

Source

 

And for programs to protect your computer, I highly suggest you disable windows firewall and get Zone Alarm firewall (free) and use either Avast! or AVG anti-viruses which are free and much more reliable than Norton. Before re-formatting do a spyware check with Spybot S&D and Ad-Aware 6.0 Those are the best programs for basic cleaning, and see if it helps. Then if all else fails, then re-format and keep your PC protected.

Edited June 8, 2006 by Natedogg

[n2gether]

Well I get AOL for $8 a month, so I can't really beat the price compared to everything else. I will try those programs you suggested and see if I can fix the problem with those. I'll post back after I use them.

[Waste]

$2 more and no bullsh*t: http://www.netzero.net/