The Away Archive
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Frequently Asked Questions:

What is the Away Archive?
Why sign up?
How do I quit?

I signed up, why isn't it working for me?
My away messages don't look correct on the web page!
I found something that doesn't work on the web page!
It would be really neat if you added this feature...

What if I don't want my away messages to be public?
Why can't I delete my away messages that I don't like?

How does it work?
Who made this?
Can I see the source code?
Can you create a bot for me?
I am interested in advertising.



What is the Away Archive?
The Away Archive is an online database for AOL Instant Messenger™ users. Members who signup have all of there Away Messages automatically backed up for them.

The owners of these away messages have 3 choices:
  • Display their away messages publicly, with their screen name shown.
  • Display their away messages anonymously, their screen name will not be shown
  • Keep their away messages private. Neither the messages nor their screen name will be shown
Members can also login to categorize their away messages and vote on their favorites. Any web surfer is free to browse and search through the public archive to see what's available.

Why sign up?
The Away Archive is a place to show off your creativity. AOL Instant Messenger™ users invest a great deal of time into coming up with clever, unique, and creative away messages to show off to the world, so why not show them off?

The Away Archive is designed to be as interactive or as passive as its members want. After signing up, a users can actively use the site to vote and categorize their favorite away messages OR can choose to have a passive role, letting the site do all the work for them.

The Away Archive is FUN. It's a library of AIM culture. Have fun just browsing the archive or seeing what other people think of your messages. The timid folk among us can post anonymously so there is never any fear receiving messages from random users.
How do I quit?
Quitting is as easy as signing up, although we don't know why you'd ever want to. Simply message 'AwayArchive' with the word 'remove'. You will be given the option to keep your away messages in the database, anonymously. We highly recommend you do this, since this helps our library grow.

I signed up, why isn't it working for me?
There are three main reasons that they system might not be archiving your away messages.

First off, you have to put an Away Message Up! The system can only retrieve away messages you actually use. They normally have to be used for no more than a minute for the system to retrieve and archive them.

The second possibility is that you do not allow message from people not on your buddy list. If this is the case, then the AOL Instant Messenger™ bots will not be able to see that you are online, and thusly will not be able to retrieve your away messages. The easiest way to fix this is to simply allow message from people not on your buddy list. The other way to fix this is to add the name of the bot that you were assigned to your buddy list. To find this information out, please
email us and we will give you the information that you need.

The third possibility is that AOL Instant Messenger™ bots are not signed on and working. Unfortunately there is not much a user can do to fix this. We are always trying to upgrade and improve our bot system to prevent such problems from occuring, but no system is perfect. If the problem persists, email us and we will look into the issue.
My away messages don't look correct on the webpage!
Unless it is an issue with the font being shown, please let us know right away! There could be a few reasons for this, but most likely it is an error on our behalf, and the issue should be addressed.

On the other hand, if it is an issue with the font being used, it could simply be the computer you are using. That computer may simply need the right font installed. If you used a crazy or unusual font in your away message that you downloaded off of the internet, chances are that other computers viewing the page don't have that font, and won't be able to see the message as it was intended.
I found something that doesn't work on the web page!
Please let us know right away! There could be a few reasons for this, but most likely it is an error on our behalf, and the issue should be addressed.

We try our best to keep the site running in tip top shape, but this system is new, and there may be bugs. We will do our best to resolve them!
I found something that doesn't work on the web page!
Please let us know right away! We would love the input. Unfortunately, not every feature can be implemented, but we will take them all into consideration. Myabe you could even help out.

What if I don't want my away messages to be public?
You have two options. First, you can simply make your away message private. This will prevent other members from seeing the message. You can also make the away message anonymous, which simply prevents members from seeing your screen name when they view that away message. This is the preferred method for privacy, since this allows the archive to grow for other users to see.

You can also choose to make your whole account private or anonymous. Using these options will affect all of the away message you have. It will also prevent other users from seeing your name in the member list.

Why can't I delete my away messages that I don't like?
Instead of deleting away messages, we suggest that you make them private. The problem lies in the fact that if you or another member uses that message again, it would simply pop right back into the archive. By making the message private, this redundancy is avoided.

How does it work?
When a user signs up, they are added to the buddy list of one of our bots. When that user puts up an away message, the bot recognizes this and retrieves it from the user. It then sends this information to The Away Archive.

The entire process is transparent to the user. They never have to know that it happened.

On a more technical note:

The Away Archive is automatically updated and maintained by a set of AOL Instant Messenger™ bots, written in the Perl programming language. These bots are part of a very versatile system designed by the sites
creator. They are all part of a multi-threaded system that uses Perl's interprocess communication libraries to seamlessly coordinate the bots in performing their assigned task.

Who made this?
David Mankoff. He is currently a Senior at Rensselaear Polytechnic Institute, majoring in Computer Science. He made it in his free time as a fun experiment into the use of messaging systems as a form of communication. As is every graduating college student, he is of course for hire.
Can I see the source code?
If you ask nicely... then maybe.
Can you create a bot for me?
We would be delighted to. The bot system that was developed for this site is a very advanced and versatile system that runs on freely available software and libraries. If you are interested in adapting our system for your own needs, please contact us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
I am interested in advertising.
At present, The Away Archive is not host to any advertisements of any form. While we have not made plans to start any form of advertising, we have not ruled them out as an option either. Feel free to email us and we can discuss some of the unique opportunities our site offers.