AOL Sounds

You've got mail. Welcome. Goodbye. Revisit six familiar AOL sounds, from its spoken greetings to buddy and instant-message alerts. Click a track to hear it in the retro player.

AOL's spoken cues made actions feel like arrivals and departures. The welcome announced that a session had begun, the mail alert interrupted it with something personal, and the goodbye gave signing off a clear ending. These were short interface messages that could be recognized from across a room.

The buddy and message alerts tell the other half of that story. Email and live conversation shared the same online routine, so the computer's voice was also a signal that another person might be waiting.