on a non-technical note, it is very difficult to open an account with a username that's not already taken, or without having to append a glob of numbers at the end. Every conceivable permutation of my real name-- which is not very common-- is taken already, and I don't want to use the AIM ID I chose years ago. I'm picky about that sort of thing
(edit)--and of course I know it's understandable given the size of AOL and the length of time it's been around. Still... did try it though, and xmailer is right: dial-up users, make yourself a sandwich and be prepared to wait