In the earlier e-mail (below) I mentioned a shareware product called "ePreserver" that I had used to convert around 8 thousand AOL e-mails to Outlook Express (OE). It cost around $25. One question that would come up immediately is whether or not it can pull e-mails off "my AOL" as well as from "my PC". The answer is "yes". More from About.com about the product: _http://email.about.com/od/aol/gr/epreserver.htm_ (http://email.about.com/od/aol/gr/epreserver.htm) And a place to download: _http://www.software.com/view/9682/75/epreserver-aol-converter/_ (http://www.software.com/view/9682/75/epreserver-aol-converter/) One thing I learned is, if I already have OE going and 4,000 e-mails there, CREATE A NEW OUTLOOK EXPRESS IDENTITY and direct ePreserver to send the converted AOL mail to that new identity. That program dumped all of that old AOL mail in with my existing OE mail and I had a real mess on my hands trying to keep all of my mail sorted out. The new OE identity doesn't have to be actively connected to the net, but rather be just a place to store old AoL mail and open it and read it. Woody ========================== , [email protected] writes: Yes, one can have cable and still connect to AOL. It's even easier, as one can connect instantly with AOL without having to wait for the dial-up. Not only can one connect to AOL faster with cable, one can use AOL and the ISP's mail connection concurrently with no interference, and can jump back and forth with both mail programs running. So one does not have to leave AOL when one goes from dial-up to cable. The question was "When I've read them I press 'Save on AOL'. I want to take these saved messages with me when I leave AOL. There are too many messages to transfer individually to my computer or to print out" Others have stated that one can go ahead and just leave those messages that are ON AOL on AOL and continue to access AOL, but the question was how to how to take the messages when leaving AOL. There is a way. There's a paid way called ePreserver that does a fast conversion of AOL mail to several different e-mail programs. I've used that and it is very effective. And then there is another "no-cost" way that requires a little work, but it saves each e-mail exactly as originally sent to AOL, if using Outlook Express as the new e-mail program. Here's how: 1. Forward each e-mail that one has received in AOLl to your new Outlook Express address. 2. (NOTE: The forwarded e-mails will arrive in Outlook Express list of e-mails with an indicator showing that there is an attachment.) 3. In Outlook Express, open the e-mail from AOL that arrived. The e-mail will be blank, and the attachment block will show there is an attached file with an EML extension. 4. (NOTE: If one clicks on the attachment, the attachment will open and LOOK EXACTLY AS IT DID IN AOL, COMPLETE WITH TO, FROM, SUBJECT, DATE, ETC. 5. (NOTE: The problem here is to get rid of the forward "shell" and preserve the original AOL file exactly as it was in AOL.) 6. To keep the old AOL mail separate from newer mail, create new folders in Outlook Express called "Old AOL INBOX" and "OLD AOL SENT". 7. Open each forwarded AOL mail and drag its .EML attachment to the OLD AOL INBOX or "OLD AOL SENT", as applicable. 8. After dragging each AOL mail file (the EML file) to their respective folder, delete the "forward" e-mail that it arrived in. It's pretty neat being able to open all of one's AOL mail in Outlook Express. And saving in Outlook Express seems to be much more stable than saving in AOL on one's computer. A lot of my saved AOL mail says "no longer available". Seems to be more stable saving on AOL rather than to one's computer. Woody =============================== [email protected] writes: You can still save and see old messages saved ON aol servers when using AOL-FREE through the software. Yes, you can save and see the ONline saved email if you just use the free Web version of AOL (although the box looks different). But if (like me), you eventually want to uninstall AOL and NOT use AOL software OR use AOL web access again, you'll need to copy / send "save to online aol" mails back to yourself. Eventually, I'd like to get away from anything AOL. I laugh... even 2 years ago I couldn't imagine life without AOL. J On 9/26/08, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: <snip>, but we've been talking about mail saved ON AOL > and whether or not free storage space on AOL's servers is available if you are > using AOL for free. **************Looking for simple solutions to your real-life financial challenges? Check out WalletPop for the latest news and information, tips and calculators. (http://www.walletpop.com/?NCID=emlcntuswall00000001)