AOL ditching dial-up service, a relic of the internet in the '90s and early '00s

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: NBC News

Aug. 11, 2025, 12:51 AM EDT


In the hazy impressions of memory, some may even recall it fondly: The AOL dial-up internet service that those of a certain age associate with the World Wide Web is coming to a close.

The company, also known by its "You've got mail" greeting and the CD trial discs — so many CDs — made the announcement on its website.

"AOL routinely evaluates its products and services and has decided to discontinue Dial-up Internet. This service will no longer be available in AOL plans," the web provider said.

Absent the wireless signals of the modern day, dial-up connected to the internet using a conventional telephone line, emitting a distinctive, high-pitched chirping sound in the process. AOL, now part of Yahoo, said the dial-up service, along with the AOL Dialer software and AOL Shield browser, will be discontinued on Sept. 30.



Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/aol-ditching-dial-service-relic-internet-90s-early-00s-rcna224219

[underpants]

1. Supposed in the "low thousands" now but two years ago.,,

About 163,000 households had dial-up as of 2023, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/aol-dial-up-service-ending-youve-got-mail-september-30/

[hlthe2b]

2. It was the ONLY game in town for so many early on... BTW, AOL MAIL is NOT going away...

-Common misunderstanding I keep hearing. Nor is AOL itself.

[underpants]

5. I have AOL accounts that people use at work.

That’s their contact so…

[LeftInTX]

6. I still have AOL mail. It's bad. Spam filter no longer works etc etc....

I also have two gmail addresses.. It's my long time email address and I don't want to give it up.

[hlthe2b]

10. I have old AOL mail that works well for me. Even the AOL spam filter, although the one I use most

is also covered by Norton's email filters.

I won't stop using them until I have to, because having had them for so long, I have no way of knowing how many have only that means to contact me. That is especially true because I worked overseas for so long and I do hear from some of these folks sporadically.

My only complaint is how difficult it was with the last version of MS-Outlook to get the two to "play nice together." I hear that the new version of Outlook addresses that, but I've not yet tried. I do use Outlook for my work email, but I try very hard to limit who has access to that to avoid all the spam.

I tried Gmail once and had nothing but problems. And, the Google-associated hacks make AOL look like the cyber version of Fort Knox to me. Granted they are all vulnerable, so it is merely relative.

[Bengus81]

17. Probably 99% where MAGA morons live in the sticks

[Ocelot II]

3. Anybody remember these contraptions?

Ahh, the good ol' days...

[BumRushDaShow]

4. Used something like that back in '69/'70 in school

[Ocelot II]

9. I think they could be used to send faxes in the olden days.

[BumRushDaShow]

12. Played a Star Trek text game on something like this

(the coupler was on the side and killed lots of trees doing it )

[LeftInTX]

7. My cord went across two rooms to access the kitchen phone jack..LOL

Then, when we got cable, in early 2002, computers in other rooms had cords that went under several rugs to connect with the modem.

I think we got wifi in 2004.

What we did for internet...LOL

[brush]

8. IIRC wireless internet service was funded for thousands during the Biden admin.

[Polybius]

11. So no more "Dial-up warning" from Salmon in the Lounge?

[50 Shades Of Blue]

13. My first home connection to the Internet in 1996. I even got a second phone line for it.

Still use AOL email!

[BumRushDaShow]

14. My first

(at home because I already had a work connection as a fed) was Prodigy (I think in 1993). Got a billion of those Aol discs in the mail but ignored them and tried to decide between CompuServ or Prodigy and picked Prodigy. Spent a lot of time in the old USENET groups (eventually taken over by Google).

Aol eventually took over CompuServe and by ~1996, since I had Comcast cable at the time, they were pilot-testing their "Comcast@Home" "HSI" (High Speed Internet) over the cable and my zip was one of the eligible test areas so I went on and got that (but also got Verizon's DSL as a backup - sort of a step above a dial-up).

Ironically, I did end up with an Aol mail account after Prodigy went bye bye and only recently got rid of it (I think they were charging $5 per month for it).

[Bengus81]

19. My first connection was in 1984 to a bulletin board service Qlink on a 1200 bps modem

All Commodore 64 stuff.

[50 Shades Of Blue]

23. I had no idea such things even existed then!

[Bengus81]

25. I looked it up,I was off one year,it started in 1985 and became America Online in 1995

Such fun...and using a 13" Amdek color monitor. Now I use a 43" 1080 TV for a monitor.

[reACTIONary]

28. 1884, VIC 20. I didn't have any standard ....

... connection. I used it for dial up to school so I could edit programs from home without having to travel in to the computer lab. Everything else I did on line was ad hoc bbs's. You get onto one, and they have a list of a bunch of telephone numbers for others.

[twodogsbarking]

15. I have a Netfliix video I never returned. Wonder where I should send it. I don't want to be deported.

[BumRushDaShow]

18. Any old past-due library books too?

[twodogsbarking]

21. No but in college I was able to check text books for the next semester from the library.

Took some upfront research but worked out great. Saved $$ Long long ago in a land..

[BumRushDaShow]

24. I used to comb the "used book" store on campus for text books!

Got them for a good price too!

[Oeditpus Rex]

31. Dude, you should make that an OP

Clever and hilarious.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

16. Didn't know that was still a thing

Haven't used dial-up in probably about 15 - 20 years.

[Bengus81]

20. Yup...23 years here. HSI though cable (Road Runner) using COX in 2002. Now have 1Gbps fiber

offered by a local company. They have speeds up to 10+ Gbps. Damn.....

[twodogsbarking]

22. It is possible to live without the internet but I would suspect that if you go too long you might be sane.

Sane, I tell you, sane. Is that what y'all want, sanity? Well?

[fargone]

26. I still use my AOL account

It is the one I use for online shopping and browsing. That keeps the gmail account for friends and family mostly free of spam and junk.

[ImNotGod]

27. Just watch, taco will demand that AOL bring back dial-up or he will impose tariffs on Commodore 64 and 128 computers

[reACTIONary]

29. As long as VIC 20 remains tariff free..

..... I'm good.

[Oeditpus Rex]

30. Trial CDs, hell

AOL scattered trial 3½-inch floppies all over the place before CDs were in common use. I may still have one in a box somewhere, but I've got nothing to stick it into.

I didn't think AOL existed anymore, though -- at least, not as such. I made some great friends there; one even turned into an LTR.

And everybody remembers the sound of logging on via dial-up.