12 Things You Miss About AOL

Before there was Facebook, before there was Gmail, there was a little thing called AOL.

1. The Sign In Screen

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c'mon, everyone has to miss this image to get on the internet...ok, maybe just a little...

2. Connecting to AOL via Dial tone

3. "You've Got Mail"

the signal that verified you were connected...and had mail.

4. The Welcome Screen

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5. Chat Rooms

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whether to make new friends, privately chat with a group of friends, play games, or as people used to call it ,"cyber", chat rooms were the places to be and the places to meet new people

6. Away Messages

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..and can't forget these types of away messages...

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7. AOL Profiles

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the basic profile.

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the profile you made using color HTML codes, that included links to your homepage(s).

8. Talking to SmarterChild

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no day was complete without talking to SmarterChild, the instant messager robot...and asking him/her/IT inappropriate questions

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9. Chain Emails

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you would always forward chain emails in fear of dying

10. Screen Names

askdavetaylor.com

There was no better feeling than when it was time to create a new screen name. Some users kept their screen names for years, while other users changed their screen names every few months or even weeks. Some were as simple as Ryan102288, or as crazy as sexylady69.

11. Stalking via AOL Profiles

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If you wanted to know more about that random guy from the AOL chat room, or the popular girl in school that you didn't dare speak to...you'd stalk them by viewing their AOL profile.

12. Parental Controls

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For some 12 year old children, their parents would be sure they were classified as Kids Only. But, for the other [lucky] 12 year old children, whose parents could barley turn on the computer, they would classify themselves as General ages 18+.

AOL...It's How We Stayed Connected!

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