To: AOL

It appears that my AOL Desktop Gold has been altered or corrupted.

For the past several months – and it appears to be worsening – whenever I sign onto AOL Desktop Gold, there is a waiting period before it connects to the internet. After a minute of so, I hear the message “Welcome”, and then another wait. Rather than wait, I often go to another program – Word, Excel, Google – and work on something else. After a few minutes more, I hear the message “You’ve got mail”, but still nothing on the screen for another several minutes if at all.

I have found out that if I exit everything I had been working on and restart my computer, I can then click on the AOL icon and it will come up sooner – perhaps as early as a few seconds – when I can then use AOL as I would expect to use it – read my emails, read the “Welcome” messages, and perhaps make a different connection if I know its URL. When I close or signoff of AOL, the same process starts again or if I wish to sign back onto AOL for another session or purpose. That is frustrating !!

Can I re-download the AOL Desktop Gold software to correct this situation?

For some sites, I am required to enter a code sent to me at some address so that I can proceed with the program or site – 2-Factor Authentication. I do not use my cell phone for this purpose, yet that seems to be the preferred method for sending such a code, but I prefer to use my email address. I don’t often have my cell phone by my side, and my home phone is a landline which does not accept text messages. If I am not on AOL and try to access my email to receive the code, I must go through the waiting process to get signed on, and by the time that happens, the “code” will have expired. Again, frustrating.

I have been with AOL for several years. How can I get this situation corrected such that I make connection as soon as I click on the AOL icon on my task bar or the desktop? This sign-back-on situation occurs regardless which icon I click.

Karl Bruner
brunerkdmg@aol.com