Joe Manna

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March 26, 2008

Free Alternatives to AOL

I’m often asked if there are other online services to use besides AOL, but still have the same ease of use. To help summarize my response, I’ve put together a small list of alternative services which are free that are similar or better than the AOL equivalent.

AOL ServiceAlternative Services
Instant MessagingYahoo Messenger, Gtalk, Pidgin, Trillian
Chat RoomsYahoo Chat, IRC, Pidgin
E-MailMozilla Thunderbird, Gmail, Yahoo, Live (MSN)
Web BrowsingMozilla Firefox, Opera, Flock, Internet Explorer 7
Message BoardsTopix, Yahoo Message Boards, Independent Forums*
ProfilesMySpace, Facebook, Plaxo, LinkedIn, Bebo, Friendster, Blogger
Custom ToolbarMozilla Firefox Toolbar, Aqua Dock, Windows Quick Launch
VideoYouTube, Joost, Metacafe, Yahoo Video
Anti-VirusAvira, AVG, Avast!, ClamAV
FirewallComodo Firewall, Zone Alarm, Windows Firewall
PicturesFlickr, Webshots, Photobucket, Slide
Address BookPlaxo, Mozilla Thunderbird, Microsoft Outlook
Favorite PlacesDel.icio.us, Mozilla Firefox
Proxy/AnonymityTor, Free Proxies**
SearchGoogle
Web AccelerationGoogle Web Accelerator
Blogging/JournalsWordPress, Blogger, LiveJournal, Vox
KeywordsOpenDNS***
Anti-PhishingOpenDNS, Microsoft IE7, Mozilla Firefox
FinanceGoogle Finance, Yahoo Finance, MSN Money
Bill Pay, Personal Finance Management Mint, Pocketbook
RSS Feed ServicesGoogle Reader, MyYahoo, Bloglines, NewsGator
Instant MessagingPidgin, Meebo, Gtalk, Yahoo Messenger

* Independent Forums — There are thousands of online discussion Web sites available that talk about what you want to talk about. Just do a Google search for “<subject> forums.” Example: “Boating Forums.”
** Free Proxies — There are thousands of free proxy addresses out there that conceal your online identity. Just Google for “Free Proxies” to get started.
*** Open DNS — OpenDNS allows you to configure specific shortcuts which function like AOL Keywords. For example, “yahoo” to make you go directly to “http://www.yahoo.com/.” See?


There are many more alternatives, including software alternatives. The purpose of this is to help liberate users so they can make educated choices as to their online experience. If you know of more alternatives that are worthy of being added to this list, please leave a comment.Feel free to share this page with your friends and family; as it will help all of you get the most out of your online experience!

Last modified: February 25, 2018

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