I just installed the latest version of America Online (AOL) software and man, I’m steamed! All of a sudden AOL’s taken over my entire Windows taskbar! How the heck do I get rid of the $#@$@# thing?
I know what you mean about AOL software. In general, I find that Windows applications are much more presumptuous than Mac applications and AOL’s about the worst offender, adding its own stuff to the Start bar, to the Quicklinks, to the Taskbar and more. Then it’s darn tricky to figure out how to get rid of it all and have your computer work as desired.
I presume you’re talking about this when you talk about having AOL Search take over your taskbar:
Logically, you’d think that right clicking on the AOL Search area or clicking on the triangle adjacent to the “Go” button would reveal some preferences:
It does offer a Settings option, but when you choose that, you end up with the completely useless:
Interesting how none of them are “‘turn off this $#@$ feature”!
It turns out that it’s actually easy to turn off the AOL Search area once you realize that Windows thinks of it as another toolbar. Just right-click anywhere that the taskbar itself is empty and you’ll see “Toolbars”: simply disable the “AOL Deskbar” and it all vanishes:
So it turns out to be pretty easy to do, once you figure everything out.
Hope that helps you recover some of your precious taskbar real estate!
I have been trying to get my messages in English instead of Spanish. I have called AOL & called AOL but they can’t tell me what to do. I am so tired of not being able to read my messages because they are in Spanish.
If the messages themselves are in Spanish, then I assume the senders sent them to you written in that language, and there’s nothing AOL can do about it. 🙂
[…] How do I get rid of AOL Search on my Taskbar? – Ask Dave … – I just installed the latest version of America Online (AOL) software and man, I’m steamed! All of a sudden AOL’s taken over my entire Windows taskbar! How the heck do … […]
4th email to AOL.
Please get off my computer.
Why is there no phone no for you?
Why have you taken over my computer without
permission?
How can I get a message through?
How can I get to a live operator?
How can I get you to get off of me?
No one wants to disable the damn thing we just want to uninstall and delete it and at the same time delete AOL permanently. We will settle for deleting the software. Your solution only disables it which is not good enough since the turds are still there.
to get rid of AOL search engine on task bar simply click on the aol icon on the search engine box, and one the options is google. You can remove aol search engine by clicking on manage search engines and remove
How do I get rid of the bar at the almost bottom of the page that has Vault and Blocking Pop-ups on it?
I don’t think I’m having the same problem as everyone else… when I open IE and I click to open a “New Tab” right under “File, Edit…etc” and above the “what do you want to do next” question on the blank page. I have “Search For or Navigate To: (for example, “www.aim.com” or “mp3 players”) powered by AIM Search” at the bottom of that little search box it says “What is this” when clicked it displays this message… “This New Tab Search and Navigation Bar will help you get where you want to go on the web.
Just start typing a word or a web address (URL) into the box above, and you will be given options about what you want to do next.
If you do not want to use this feature, you can turn it off by clicking the [X] in the upper-right side corner or uninstall the Toolbar.”
I do not have a Toolbar installed. I have checked in Add/remove programs, I have checked all my IE settings… nothing. I have even uninstalled my AIM. I have ran spyware cleaners… I am at a loss of how to get rid of this darn thing. Clicking they “X” basically just hides it on that page only… Open a new tab – bam it’s there again. Any info to remove this would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance,
Laura
That AOL Searchbox has a link right in it, “About This Page”; click on it and the opt out option is right there, a very short scroll down.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I installed IE, and much to my dismay, the aol search had parked itself right smack dab in the middle of my toolbar. I tried the right click thing….and POOF it was gone!!! I wish I could right click on some of the people I know and get that same result!
You rock..I got my aol web search window closed in about 60 seconds..thank you !!
Barb
I have a problem with a popup on my toolbar, system security, I tried the imfo on aol but had no luck, please help
I too do not get the Opt out but get a web page search instead! any other ideas on how to get rid of the Aol search would be appreciated!
I do not get the Opt Out button when I enter keyword:search window. Any other tips on how to “get rid of the #?&^% AOL Search box”?
Now that AOL has gotten a bit craftier in the 9.* version; could you update this question please. How do we get rid of AOL in our task bar now?
Can you tell how I can get rid of the AOL search page that come up every time I try to Google
something. Aol search just takes over. I am running AOL 9. on a Vista computer. Damm
thing drives me crazy. Please email me at kb8cwc@aol.com Thanks Steve
Dave, How do I get rid of my aol account?
How Do I get Rid of AOL Search Pop-Up when I start up AOL?!?
Hi Dave,
In explaining how to turn off the aol “search the web” pop-up, you write:
“It turns out that it’s actually easy to turn off the AOL Search area once you realize that Windows thinks of it as another toolbar. Just right-click anywhere that the taskbar itself is empty and you’ll see “Toolbars”: simply disable the “AOL Deskbar” and it all vanishes:”
I cannot find “toolbars”. I am using AOL 9.1. Do I need to download AOL Deskbar to access it?
Thanks in advance.
Peter
You rock. Thank you very much for showing me how to “opt out” of the AOL Search at start up. Can I just tell you how nucking futs that drove me??? Free beer for you!!!
Thank you so much for the OPT OUT AOL search hint. Glad i got rid of this!
Christine
Please your lil’ heart. I forgot how to rid the AOL deskbar. You’re a doll. I am bookmarking your site for future references!
The AOL search was also driving me crazy. My drop down was not the same. Using the keyword method worked for me.
THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!
A much easier way to AOL Search the Web pop-up window:
go to:
–AOL Key-Word:
–type in: “Search Window”
–Click “OPT OUT”
viola! success and relief!
to REVERSE(ENABLE)action:
go to:
–AOL Key-Word:
–type in: “Search Window”
–Click “OPT IN”
my drop-down window does not look like yours; I WANT TO DELETE THE AOL/GOOGLE pop-up Search the Web. your answer didn’t do it.
do not release or sell my e-mail.
thanks
hi there i have recently switched isp and can`t remove the aol connection icon from my toolbar. can anyone help
Hi Dave,
I just got Windows Vista. I’d like to disable the “AOL Search” box on the toolbar that displays my URL. Then I’d like to move the “File Edit View Favorites Tools Help” menu up to share the same bar as the URL box. Is that possible?
I’ve tried right-clicking on things, and configuring the bars in the View, to no avail. I’ve read one thing that said right click on an empty space in the tool bar and there is no empty space, nor do I get a menu that allows me to get rid of the #?&^% AOL Search box.
i have a 10 year old dell dimension xps 400. when i bought it, it was top of the line. still runs great with the new dsl. i have about 60% of my resources free(whatever that means). i wonder what would happen if i got rid of all the programs and file that i don’t use. i click on start and there seems to be hundreds of thing i don’t need in here. do i just right click and delete or is there more to it?
You rock! Thanks for you simple but impossible fix!!!
Dave, I don’t even know how I found this just now..oh, I went to AOL keyword…go figure! LOL
I have a problem. All of my icons on bottom are gone and before they all “left, my speaker icon was gone and I can’t figure out how to make my sound work. I have a new monitor. Do you think it could be the speakers on the monitor are defective? Please, any help in the world will do. I’m lost!
I did take the info above though and get that AOL search thing off the botto of my screen. Thanks
if you want to get rid of the aol toolbar on your internet explorer toolbar at the top of the screen, just click the arrow facing down next to the aol symbol and go to help, it will have the uninstall option there, hope this helps.
I hate AOL. With passions.
I uninstalled everything. Or so I thought.
But when I select and right-click text, there’s still a menu option for AOL Toolbar Search. How can I get rid of this? Do I have to do some voodoo in the Registry?
Note — I have NO AOL software currently installed. I do, however, still have AOL entries in the registry. What happens if I do a REGEDIT and zap them away? Will it do harm?
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU! You are now my hero. Why is it we never think of the obvious first. Luckily, you were here to help me see the light. Keep up the great work!
I really appreciate the help i was lost until i found this page.