[MineralMan]

"I sure do, I tell them to dump Outlook and use Eudora or Incredimail."

Don't just tell them; install them and uninstall AOL. For Pete's sake, it's not enough for older folks just to tell them to do something. You have to help them do it.

Otherwise, they'll just go on harming their computers. Why? They don't understand, and they don't want to understand. They just want to email their friends and maybe buy some stuff on eBay.

Just help them do what they want safely. I have parents who are both 80. My wife's parents are 84 and 75. I would not dream of not doing whatever was necessary to help them compute safely.

When they have a question about a piece of email, they call me. Every time. So, no viruses for them. No malware, because it gets blocked. Nothing. They email people and buy stuff on eBay. That's about it.

[Xenalyte]

So how did you get them off AOL? I stoutly refuse to do a damn thing with it besides uninstall (and I've offered to come do that at the drop of a hat, any time they call) . . . but Mom refuses to countenance any other ISP. She "just knows AOL too well" to switch.

Come to think of it, the fact that she "just knows AOL too well" might be my out. If she knows AOL so well, she shouldn't need to call me, the AOL-hater.