How to leave AOL Desktop for Mac 1.6

Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
I would like to stop using AOL Desktop for Mac 1.6 and start over with a more Mac friendly email company, maybe g-mail.



In past years I used AOL 10.3.6 with my older Mac desktop G5 running OS-X 10.4 and I was happy with AOL. I now use OS-X 10.6 on my new Mac Book and I am forced to use AOL's 1.6 Desktop For Mac or just quit AOL altogether.



The problem is I have been with AOL for about 12 years. and my whole online life is wrapped up in my AOL saved mail, favorite places and my very large AOL email address book. There is no export system of these files and folders for AOL user's. They don't want to make it easy to leave.



There are however, several PC software products which will retrieve these AOL files and install them in a new email system such as Google's g-mail. All you have to do is provide your old and new screen names and passwords and the process is automatic. These products are for Windows only.



Are their any software products that will do the same email export/import for Mac users?

I cannot find any.

Walt

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 7
    mr. memr. me Posts: 3,221member
    You have been operating from a false premise. You do not need AOL's software to use AOL's mail. Mail handles AOL mail just fine using the IMAP protocol. In fact, may setup accounts with Gmail, AOL, Live/Hotmail, and numerous other accounts within Mail.
  • Reply 2 of 7
    Mr. Me,



    Thanks for your help.



    I have only used AOL as a standalone software package. That is, I have to sign-in with AOL to read, send, etc my mail. Sounds as if you are saying I can have my Apple Mail program do this for me.



    Will I have access to my several years worth of saved and sent emails? I use AOL for an at home business and often go back a year or more into sent and received mails to reread a clients messages and my answers.



    What about my AOL address book? Will I still have access to it? Don't think I could bear to hand type several hundred email address's and names into a new address book.



    Anxious to read your reply. I am not very tech oriented.

    Walt
  • Reply 3 of 7
    mr. memr. me Posts: 3,221member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by walterholt View Post


    Mr. Me,



    Thanks for your help.



    I have only used AOL as a standalone software package. That is, I have to sign-in with AOL to read, send, etc my mail. Sounds as if you are saying I can have my Apple Mail program do this for me.



    Will I have access to my several years worth of saved and sent emails? I use AOL for an at home business and often go back a year or more into sent and received mails to reread a clients messages and my answers.



    What about my AOL address book? Will I still have access to it? Don't think I could bear to hand type several hundred email address's and names into a new address book.



    Anxious to read your reply. I am not very tech oriented.

    Walt



    Now that depends on where you have you messages stored. If you have them stored on AOL's server, then you should have access to them as soon as you access your account via Mail. If you have your messages archived on your computer, then you may be able to import your messages from an "Other...[/b] email client. If importing this does not work, then you should be able to use AOL software to upload them to an AOL mail server folder structure of your design.



    The thing that you should understand is that AOL is now little more than a value-added web portal. All of its files should be in industry-standard formats and should, therefore, be easy to import. In fact, AOL Desktop is little more than an integrated suite of Internet apps including email, IM, and [WebKit-based] browser. In other words, it is customized Apple software. On Windows, AOL Desktop is customized Microsoft software.
  • Reply 4 of 7
    Mr. Me,



    I think I am seeing the light. The Desktop for Mac AOL is very much like other Apple software in looks and feel. Your info makes me better understand why the unique AOL features I liked in the old versions of AOL are now gone.



    AOL recently instructed me to move my stored emails from being Stored on my Mac to being stored on AOL's own server. This was in preparation to my upgrading to AOL 1.7 which I do not intent to do.

    There letters to me now refer to me as a beta tester which is t;he last thing I would ever want to be.



    I am still worried how long my stuff would be stored on Apple's "Mail".



    Can you tell me how I could put older emails and such on a CD or a DVD. Where do they live on my MacBook's 10.6.4



    I am thinking I should go to my local Apple store and put my problem in their hands.



    Walt
  • Reply 5 of 7
    mr. memr. me Posts: 3,221member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by walterholt View Post


    ...



    AOL recently instructed me to move my stored emails from being Stored on my Mac to being stored on AOL's own server. This was in preparation to my upgrading to AOL 1.7 which I do not intent to do.

    There letters to me now refer to me as a beta tester which is t;he last thing I would ever want to be.



    I am still worried how long my stuff would be stored on Apple's "Mail".



    ...



    You worry too much. AOL Desktop for Mac 1.7 works. There is no need to fear that it will somehow damage or abandon your files. AOL's advice to move your messages to its server was essentially the same advice that I gave you independently. It is good advice. If you follow it, then you will be able to access your messages from any computer on Earth that has an IMAP-compatible email client installed. If you fear that AOL will close down sending your messages into oblivion, then fear not. Some email providers have gone out of business in the past. Others will go out of business in the future. However, none have gone out of business without warning. In the worst-case scenario, you will have months of notice prior to a shutdown.
  • Reply 6 of 7
    I will give 1.7 a shot.

    Thanks,

    Walt
  • Reply 7 of 7
    The only reason I have kept aol desktop around is to access old mail from much older versions of AOL. Desktop for Mac 1.5 allowed me to import old mailboxes and store the old mail locally, somewhere within the Desktop for AOL app. I have never been able to successfully move older mail to the aol host (by moving emails to the host folders). I use Mac Mail to access current mail.



    The 1.7 beta had warnings that old mail would be lost if not moved from local to aol host prior to upgrading. I've read of a couple of instances where this has happened.



    Anybody have luck trying to upgrade from 1.5 to 1.7 and retain old emails that have been stored locally?



    I fear that my only solution will be to forward emails to another account individually (thousands, will take forever) if I want to be able to save them.



    AOL Desktop is pretty lame app; not sure why anybody would use it over the simple webmail app. Not to mention, the complete lack of support where a question like this should easily be answered.



    Any suggestions for exporting /moving the old AOL emails would be greatly appreciated.
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