I have long thought that I had heard everything. Regularly I learn that I was wrong. This time AOL gets the prize for proving me wrong. For incompetence and irresponsibility towards its users, AOL has set a new standard.AOL says that it supports POP3 and IMAP mail protocols, "Use POP or IMAP to sync AOL Mail on a third-party app or download your email" [link deleted]I set up such an account, followed the instructions, and discovered that the POP3 interface did not work. I got a unable to connect to email server messsage. I spent hours working on it. I looked for an AOL setting to turn POP3 on but did not find one.I looked for support. I discovered, "Email support is currently unavailable due to COVID-19 health and safety considerations for our employees. For help with an issue, search our help articles."I do not understand why AOL support workers, like most others, cannot work from home. After pouring more good time after bad, I discovered a post on another web site about Aqua Mail, an email client, from last October: AOL Changing Sign-in on October 20, 2020 [link deleted]The post describes how AOL changed its log on procedures for POP3 mail clients. You had to get an separate password for email clients. Unlike other email services that I have used, the web page password does not work in an email client. Per the post, AOL emailed users of the change.What AOL did not do was to update its POP3 instruction page above on its web site to tell new users of the change. Without this information, a person would do like I did and waste countless hours following incomplete instructions. Only by chance did I discover its change through a post on another web site. I call AOL's failure to correct its instructions incompetent and irresposible.
