AIM problem

[Nimmy]

hi there, umm I didn't know where or who to ask
and I thought the best place for pc programming I know of
is right here =)

I downloaded AIM, and made an account and everything
but when I try to log on, it says "validating" for about 15 minutes or more
then says it cannot log on and I should try again later
at first I thought he isn't connecting to the server
so I typed a WRONG password, and it immediately told me the password\username are incorect, is it because im trying to log on from outside the USA? is AIM a US-user only?
if not how can I fix this? thanks a lot

-Nimmy

[peaseonearth]

I don't think it's because you are outside the US. I'm having trouble signing on one of my computers as well. Works fine on my desktop, but not my laptop. Does anyone have a clue why this could be happening?

[Ryan M.]

Originally Posted by peaseonearth

I don't think it's because you are outside the US. I'm having trouble signing on one of my computers as well. Works fine on my desktop, but not my laptop. Does anyone have a clue why this could be happening?

Signed on fine here. Maybe it's your service provider?

[Michelle Celio]

Everyone once in a while AIM does crash, for everyone. I've seen periods where i call people "Did AIM kick you off?" and they'll reply with "YEah it kicked me off and so and so and so and so" and sometimes it lasts for 30 min.

Try dowloading a program called Trillian. It's and "All in one" chat client.

[Michelle Celio]

What kayla stated is a possiblitly but odds of it being the problem...eh maybe not.

have you looked at your firewall settings?

[Nimmy]

that's what I was thinking to, my firewall ahs been giving me some trouble lately
it's a new pc I just got and it came with a bunch of security programs
and other such "keep it clean and quick" for the pc
my anti-virus is the "norton internet security" bundle which came with pop-up
antispam and antivirus and I really am not that good with it
or with my xp firewall settings
I have a router but it's not wireless

and It's not an AIM thing since my friends in the US are logged on but it's just me
is there a way to just take off entirely the firewall temporarely so I can see if that is where the problem lies?

[sciencenerd]

I'm guessing it is a firewall problem. If you just have Windows firewall, try turning it off (temporarily) using the instructions found here: http://www.utmem.edu/helpdesk/sp2/sp2firewall.htm


If that still doesn't work, I suggest trying from another computer, maybe even one in the United States to see if that helps. Create an account with a password that you don't care who knows, and give it to one of your friends in the US. Try and get them to validate it, and see if you can log on then. This may just be a one-time problem.

[Nimmy]

this is kind've wierd, I turned it off as it says in those steps
and it wont turn off
I press OK
then it is still on
and when I open the firewall tab the "off" is still selected...
ok the fire wall is on but there are exceptions, so I put the AIM as an exception when it is on, so firewall is off for AIM, still no go
I tried it both ways, niether help

and we made an account my buddy logged on from us, I still can't =\
what do I do??
ill d\l trillian, allthough I hate the panel they have for it

[Allison K]

Another program you could try is GAIM. Like trillian, it supports multiple protocols, but the interface is more AIM-like.

~Allison

[peaseonearth]

Well it's not the wireless because it won't work when I plug in my Internet directly to the computer either. I think it must either be my firewall, or my anti virus. I've tried both GAIM and Trillian using AIM and YIM. both don't work so I think there must be something blocking all instant messagers that is installed somewhere on my machine. It's my first PC so I'm not sure where to look for such a thing or if it can even exist.

Thanks for all your help!

[Michelle Celio]

Originally Posted by Allison K

Another program you could try is GAIM. Like trillian, it supports multiple protocols, but the interface is more AIM-like.

~Allison

And then theres AIM Triton or something i cant remmeber the spelling wich has a mixed aim trillian GUI

[Andrew Blair]

What version of Norton is it? I would put money on the fact that it's Norton blocking it; the long wait is a classic symptom.

[Alex Cormier]

ok, heres the solution. when you are able to sign in, go to setup it has a wrench as the picture. then go to connection and auto configure. then it shall work from there.

[Mike Schroeder]

what version of AIM are you using, I had a similar problem when i last formated my computer and i went to dl the latest version of AIM, for some reason it wouldnt let me sign in kept giving me error messages, so i would do most have been suggesing, and try trillian or GAIM

or

Goto http://www.oldversion.com/program.php?n=aim and try dling an old version of AIM

Let me know how it works out

-Big Mike

[Bharat Nain]

If your screen name cannot sign in at all just create a new one. I had that happen to me once. It works now but I don't remember how I fixed it.