Thread

1. ethagnawl · 1789816938 · focus · HN ↗

   AOL was my internet gateway until 98 or so. I seem to remember a rumor that your account would instantly be suspended if you visited the "WAREZ" chatroom. Does anyone know if that's true? Neither answer would surprise me.

   Also, I wish I could remember the intricacies but there was some way to visit other chatrooms and request files (progz, mp3, etc.) from a manifest which would then be emailed to you.

   1. chadgpt5 · 1789817688 · focus · HN ↗

      Some IRC networks K-line (IP ban) you if you join #warez
   2. desolved · 1789828155 · focus · HN ↗

      Kinda true. AOL would send moderators into known private warez rooms, and if you wandered into one while a moderator was there, you’d likely get suspended. The moderators were easy to spot because they all had “CatWatch” in their handles. The room names were always changing, so AOL was always playing cat and mouse. 11 year old me encountered them many times. My Dad would continuously have to call to get the account reactivated. Sorry Dad.

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