charae...
Well, you succeeded in making me curious too, and I like that.
While AOL makes it clear that you can certainly have multiple
screen names:
"Q: How do I use multiple screen names with my existing copy of
AIM?
A: All you need to do to add the new screen name to your list
on the Sign On screen is sign on with it."
http://www.aol.com/aim/faq/screennames.html#multiple
...it isn't *as* clear that you can sign on *simultaneously*
with two of your screen names. Nevertheless, it seems that it
can be done.
The first indication I found that this was possible was on
the site of the creator of a chat robot called 'Cornelius',
created by Dr. Wallace, as presented by Todd Hester, at the
Northeastern University College of Engineering. Here, he
answers the question, "Why is Cornelius on two screennames
at once?":
"Cornelius is on two screennames so that he can respond faster.
Since on one name, AOL Instant Messenger limits him to about
15 messages per minute, on two, he can send thirty per minute.
So, assuming that his two names, Cornelius7AT and Cornelius8AT,
are used equally, he should be able to send twice as many
messages. This means that he will be either twice as fast,
or he will be able to talk to twice as many people. So if
you find that Cornelius is really slow on one screenname,
try talking to him on the other screenname."
http://www1.coe.neu.edu/~thester/corn_faq.html#Why%20is%20Cornelius%20on%20two%20screennames%20at%20once
The next indication came from a user who has had a similar
experience to the one you describe, posted on the 'Captain
Power' group at Yahoo Groups:
"I'm not sure if you are aware, but AOL's Instant Messenger
program allows you to sign on with multiple screen names at
the same time...Unfortunately, this is a common prank with
some AOL IM users, one my best friends is fond of playing on
me, except she ALWAYS let's me know it's her within a few
minutes."
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/captainpower/message/1354
Yet another site which verifies the use of simultaneous
mutiple screen names shows a perl script program written
by Mike G. of the zevils.com website, called IMIRC, and
described as an 'Instant Messenger <-> IRC gateway'.
It has a command, 'multinick', which allows the user to
sign on with multiple screen names and to send IM messages
to users of AOL IM:
"To sign on multiple AIM screennames under your current IRC
connection, just use multiple signon commands. The first
screenname you sign on will be the 'default screenname'.
The default screenname is the screenname which outgoing
IMs are sent to and which IMServ commands; such as add_buddy,
remove_buddy, and signoff; effect. Note that messages/whispers
to chatrooms will always be sent with the screenname that
joined the chatroom. When you receive an incoming IM on a
screenname other than the default one, {screenname} will
be prepended to the IM."
http://www.zevils.com/programs/imirc/help.html#multinick
This should certainly be enough to convince you that your
suspicions about the possibility of the simultaneous use
of multiple screen names on AOL IM are correct.
On the other hand, it doesn't conclusively prove that your
friend is doing just this. Cornelius the chat robot might
be of assistance to you in this regard:
"Can I send messages to my friends with the bot?"
"Yes, using the $SENDIM command you can send messages to any
other screenname. The $SENDIM command only works in the IM
window and is followed by a screenname and message. Remember
not to put any spaces in the screenname and to capitalize the
command. Any swears or other offensive messages will be
replaced with ****. Also any harassing messages such as
'I am watching you' or something like that will be preceded
by a message declaring that this is a robot and describing
how this particular message was sent. A successful command
will be followed by the reply, "Message sent to (screenname)"
http://www1.coe.neu.edu/~thester/corn_faq.html#Can%20I%20send%20messages%20to%20my%20friends%20with%20the%20bot
...and:
"How can I watch my friend's conversations?"
"You can use the $WATCH command followed by a screenname.
Remember not to put any spaces in the screenname and to
capitalize the command. Each exchange between the bot
and the person you are watching will be sent to you.
The $WATCH command will remain on until you sign off for
a short period of time. A successful watch command will
be followed by the reply 'Now watching (screenname)...'"
http://www1.coe.neu.edu/~thester/corn_faq.html#How%20can%20I%20watch%20my%20friend's%20conversations
In simple terms, you can use Cornelius to send an initial
message to the screen name you suspect may *also* be your
friend, and then watch as the robot continues the chat.
Perhaps you can determine if the responses made by the
suspected duplicate screen name are, indeed, characteristic
of your friend.
Please do not rate this answer until you are satisfied that
the answer cannot be improved upon by means of a dialog
established through the "Request for Clarification" process.
sublime1-ga
Searches done, via Google:
AOL sign on "multiple screen names"
://www.google.com/search?q=AOL+sign+on+%22multiple+screen+names%22
"AOL IM" sign on "multiple screen names"
://www.google.com/search?q=%22AOL+IM%22+sign+on+%22multiple+screen+names%22 |
