AOL email never makes it out of webmail

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(Posted this and a previous question on a different Mac forum earlier today. So far, the question below has had 45 views and no replies. Hoping someone will be willing to give this one a whirl. Love a challenge, right?)


This problem has been going on for several years, and I have ignored it. But, it causes issues (you can imagine) which I'm tired of messing with, so I'm going to see if I can find a diagnosis.


Here's the deal: I am a Verizon customer, but the same problem existed with my previous provider, so it is a system glitch, not a server glitch. I use the Mac Mail program that came with my computer (G4 iMac OSX 10.3.9). Any mail sent from an AOL user shows up in the webmail account, but it never makes it out of webmail and into my [Mac] Mail account. To my knowledge, I do not have a preference set to exclude AOL users. I have checked my junk mail filter in Mail and all's well there. To boot, I have selected to allow email from anyone whose name appears in my address book. But, this glitch overrides that selection. The mail does not go to a Junk filter. It just never shows up in the Inbox. I can retrieve it off the web mail account only.

Ideas for what/where to troubleshoot this problem are SO welcome!
 
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What happens if you redirect it to another account e.g. a temporary Hotmail account?

Alternatively, have you tried another email program such as Thunderbird?

Would help determine if it's AOL or Mail's fault.
 
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What happens if you redirect it to another account e.g. a temporary Hotmail account?

Alternatively, have you tried another email program such as Thunderbird?

Would help determine if it's AOL or Mail's fault.


Well, in a sense, it *is* redirected in that it comes to Verizon's web based mail center, and then should come from there to Mac Mail. I can't see why it would be AOL's fault since (a) I'm not an AOL user myself and (b) it gets as far as the web mail, then stops.

I have wondered if someone set up a preference, once upon a time, for accessing AOL on this computer. A nephew, or something, once installed AOL instant msgr. on this machine w/out my permission.

When I search my HD for "AOL" I get the following folders:

aol_player.swf
#uncutvideo.aol.com
#www.aolcdn.com
www.aolcdn.com
uncutvideo.aol.com
aol_player.swf

I don't recognize them, but that doesn't mean much coming from me. :Smirk: I've wondered if I could delete those files somehow to see if that made any difference, though it doesn't make a ton of sense.
 
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Ah, sorry I misread.

Seems odd that AOL emails get stopped in their tracks. Sounds like Verizon won't forward them because it doesn't like something about them? Does Mail recieve email from *any* AOL user? Does your Verizon webmail have any options set for not forwarding anything it thinks is junk, for example?

If you try Thunderbird though, and it still won't receive AOL mail, then it looks like a Verizon issue.
 
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Ah, sorry I misread.

Seems odd that AOL emails get stopped in their tracks. Sounds like Verizon won't forward them because it doesn't like something about them? Does Mail recieve email from *any* AOL user? Does your Verizon webmail have any options set for not forwarding anything it thinks is junk, for example?

If you try Thunderbird though, and it still won't receive AOL mail, then it looks like a Verizon issue.


Would that it was so simple. It's not a Verizon issue. I have only recently switched to Verizon and was using a small, local provider prior to that. This has been going on since before the switch, even with the other server. As far as I know, Mail rejects all AOL users. Even those in my address book. Even though I have set prefs to accept email from anyone in my address book. :Angry-Tongue:
 
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Lets clarify a few things here:

Your email is being downloaded via POP directly from your verizon email account, correct? (You mention "forwarded to Mac Mail", that would imply you had a @mac.com email address your mail was being re-sent to).

I would try the suggestion someone mentioned above of setting up an alternative temporary account and then try to access that via IMAP instead of POP. Don't use Hotmail though - they don't even offer free POP access. Use Gmail instead: They're one of the few free services with free IMAP access.
 
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Lets clarify a few things here:

Your email is being downloaded via POP directly from your verizon email account, correct? (You mention "forwarded to Mac Mail", that would imply you had a @mac.com email address your mail was being re-sent to).

I would try the suggestion someone mentioned above of setting up an alternative temporary account and then try to access that via IMAP instead of POP. Don't use Hotmail though - they don't even offer free POP access. Use Gmail instead: They're one of the few free services with free IMAP access.

I'm sorry. I don't know enough to even know how to phrase what's happening here. :Blushing: The arrangement is this: I subscribe to Verizon for internet service and have an email account through them. Mail (as it's called on this old Mac) is set up to download (?) all of my incoming mail (via POP?) and, supposedly, to send mail via Verizon. Currently, the incoming mail is happening just fine. But, I cannot send any outgoing mail. ETA: Sorry -- I'm mixing problems here. I am also struggling with another problem which I don't think is related, but I referenced it here and got a little jumbled on which situation I was addressing for a second there.

If I was to set up an alternative temp. acct. and try to access that via IMAP (?) instead of POP (?), how would I do that? I have a Gmail acct. already, which I never use, set up to enable me to comment on some blog or other. But, I'm not sure how to do what you're suggesting.
 
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You would need to log into Gmail's web interface and enable IMAP access from the settings.

Then enter the IMAP settings in Mail (there's a Gmail help article somewhere that explains exactly what you need to enter...)
 

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