I am amazed that this faulty idea keeps being repeated! (now under a different heading). I have already sent one e-mail to this list stating that I have AOL mail on my computer since I received the mail in 1999. It's my decision how long I keep my mail. AOL could care less! If a person doesn't read the instructions, then they can easily loose mail. But if you want to keep it and know how to handle it appropriately, it is there until your computer crashes or you get a new one and don't transfer what's on the old computer to the new one. I have changed computers twice since 1999. Bettye