On 10/21/97 11:03 AM CDT, Alperin, Glenn <[log in to unmask]> wrote...

>I suppose it doesn't help that AOL allows people to change their screen
>names.  Wouldn't that really make billing for them a hassle?

Every AOL account has one master screen name (which equates to an email
address) that cannot be changed. Every AOL account can have an additional
four screen names. You can delete a screen name at any time, but your
account still maintains a record of that deleted name. So even if I
create a screen name, send some kind of abuse and then delete it, AOL can
still track me down. That, in itself, is not a good way to avoid
repercussions.

The problem comes from AOL tending to be far too forgiving. An account
might be terminated, but an apologetic call or fax can get them
reinstated, almost regardless of what they did wrong. If half the idiots
who got their AOL accounts terminated knew how easily they could get them
back, things would really go to hell.


--
Adam Bailey      | Chicago, Illinois
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-| "Do not take life too seriously;
[log in to unmask] | you will never get out of it alive."
[log in to unmask]   |  - Elbert Hubbard
Finger for PGP   | http://www.tezcat.com/~adamb