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Running AOL on Linux with WineX 2.0
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CommentsI've got mail. On AOL. On Linux. Thanks to WineX 2.0, running America Online 5.0 in SuSE 7.3 is a reality.
Normally, AOL sucks. Besides the fact I don't use Windows anymore, AOL isn't the real Internet. We used to call it a "rest stop" on the information highway. Anyone with an aol.com email address automatically has a strike against him. But just the idea of getting AOL to work in Linux is exciting, if only because I've never seen anyone else do it.
My original intention was to install the children's game Arthur's Preschool using WineX 2.0. (I have a whole stack of CDs I'm trying out on various implementations of Wine.) It wasn't working, but I noticed the "free AOL trial" icon on the CD and decided to give it a whirl. A couple of days ago I'd tried to install AOL on Crossover's stuff, after noticing the promise of AOL on Lindows Sneak Preview 2, and hadn't had any luck. "Hey, AOL is kind of like a game, with pretty graphics and moving targets -- maybe it will work under WineX," I thought.
Installing it takes a while, at least on my computer (HP Omnibook 4150 PIII, 500mhz, 128MB RAM, 15 GB, SuSE 7.3). You might be tempted to give up too soon -- don't do it. Just go get a cup of coffee. I opened a terminal, mounted the CD, switched to the proper directory, and typed winex setup.exe. Both the HD and the CD lights flickered for about three or four minutes before the next screen came up. I clicked on "new member," and then waited another three or four minutes while it checked for "previous installations." It should have just asked me, no?
Once the installation program determined I hadn't already been running AOL, it
proceeded to place the necessary files in my fake Windows directory. Oddly, it
quit about 60% of the way through, insisting that my installation file was
corrupt. But when I clicked on "abort" after having trying "retry" several
times and taking out the CD to clean it just in case, it went ahead and brought
up the sign-on screen, just as if nothing had gone wrong. Fine with me.
It seemed to recognize the Linksys modem, but couldn't initialize it during the dialup process. I was able to enter "advanced setup" and tell it to use my LAN connection -- but then it complained about a missing wsock32.dll file. No problem; after running a search to make sure I didn't have it somewhere in my fake Windows directory already, I downloaded it from the 'Net and placed it in the windows/system32 directory.
Then, I was able to log on as a new member and activate my account. I had to call AOL to verify my account information, and they tried to sell me some kind of asinine car maintenance program along with my membership. "I'm not interested," I said.
"I understand ma'am, but I'm authorized..."
"No, I'm not interested."
"Yes ma'am, but I'm ..."
"No, thanks."
"Yes, but ..."
"No, no, no, no, no, not interested."
"OK, thank you and here's a number for you to call if you have any questions ... blah blah."
Sheesh.
I then was able to log on and investigate AOL-land.
Everything within AOL proper worked fairly well and quickly. I IMed Grant Gross and it worked fine, except for some font oddness. I emailed my other accounts from my very own AOL email address, and it worked fine. I sent email to my very own AOL email address, and that worked, too. Chat rooms and message boards weren't cooperating, though.
Every now and then, I'd click on something that would cause the program to disappear, but it always allowed me to re-open the program and log back on with no problems. It never froze on me, although it completely refused to open any Web windows. It would not surf to a URL or allow me to create a Web page. Only the basic AOL land was working for me.
The cutest moments were the "Welcome," "You've got mail!" and "Goodbye" sound bites -- familiar phrases you never thought you'd hear coming from a Linux machine.
Editor's note: Sharp readers will pick up the fact that Tina only tried AOL 5.0. We'll leave testing later versions -- like the current AOL 7.0 -- in WineX or other Wine variants up to you, because we don't want to hog all the fun Let us know how it goes if you try!
Comments
on Running AOL on Linux with WineX 2.0Note: Comments are owned by the poster. We are not responsible for their content.
Tina
:)
of area where MS hope to hit open source.
These type of 'add-ons' for windows are licensed (or
will be licensed) for free distribution
ONLY ON WINDOWS PCs.
Hence MS hope to pull the rug from under the Wine
people etc. by slowly suffocating them on the
'extras' front.
Just curious.
Linux is about giving you the freedom to do what you want. Not what Bill or Steve want you to do. Don't like the way a program works in Linux? Write your own code and change it. Legally.
Your veiled reference in using the term "Heil" would be more appropriate when used with the software you so dearly love, M$ and AOL.
Have an old computer? Not enough horsepower to run newer Windows? Go to cheapbytes.com or another distributor, and buy a GPL version of Mandrake Linux, and install it. You'll need to be able to boot off your CD drive. If you don't know how to set your bios to do this, buy the official version of Mandrake, which comes with manuals (written instructions for how to use the operating system, something you windows users aren't familiar with unless you remember the 8086 version of a PC), and they'll give you instructions on doing the install. You can do an all graphical install, and it will be EASIER THAN INSTALLING WINDOWS. Then check out the hundreds of free programs that you get. Including office suites. Or the office suites you can download from the 'net for free. Legally.
You'll need an internet account other than AOL. You can find dialups for under $15 per month. And then you'll find out what the internet really is. And your kids will be prepared for internet use for business. Even Time Warner, AOL's merged partner dropped AOL after a forced tryout. Time Warner employees rebelled, and they went back to regular internet access. Ask yourself why.
And by the way, you can instant message, chat, and do many things that can be done in AOL. And so much more.
And if you don't like Mandrake, try SUSE Linux, which comes with not hundreds, but over a thousand programs. Or Red Hat. Or Slackware. Or many of the other distributions. But if you are coming from a windows environment, try Mandrake or Suse, or Red Hat graphical installs first. Install KDE and Gnome for each distribution, or at least one of the two if you are short on disk space. Then have fun. And kiss those Blue Screens of Death goodbye.
Find a local Linux User Group (LUG) on the internet. Then find out when they are having their next "installfest". It should be open to the public. Ask for details. You'll be able to bring your computer to someone's house or business, and you'll have help installing your choice of Linux distributions on your computer, by very friendly people. And you'll have fun in the process. And you'll meet people that will be happy to answer your questions.
Linux can run on old Pentiums comfortably, and with a little knowledge and experience, you can run Linux on a 486. And for your kids, it comes with tons of games.
Like it or not, there are those of us not satisfied with the many linux-made games made out there. And that is the reason many of us gamers still haven't switched to linux--although you can run opengl games such as return to castle wolfenstein with a little difficulty, there's always a max payne needing directx. And projects like wine only help to increase the amount of linux users by bringing in these people.
Most linux users understand that...in fact talks in meetings of the Linux User Groups which you have referred to often include help in installation of wine and dosemu. Remember that before you complain again about others who want to run those overpriced office software, and idiot-based ISP's.
This story was just a cruel April Fool's joke
Posted by: Anonymous Coward on April 20, 2002 08:12 PMIn their minds, people use the apps, not the OS (though of course we know they use both). If Linux can get a foot in the desktop door by having an Office suite and ISP that people are familiar with, it can make a lot of headway into the home desktop market. Once people realize that they don't have to reboot everytime one of their computers hiccups, they won't want to go back...
Just my $0.02
The install from Winex does not work. I still had a dusty old 98 partition on the drive, so I installed there and transferred registry info and app directoy to the Transgaming drive, but no dice. 70, popped up a small window which said it was loading software needed to run then disappeared.
IE
Posted by: Anonymous Coward on April 19, 2002 07:00 PM#