In the next several weeks, we'll no longer moderate "AOL Managed" community areas. We provide tools (like message board filters) that empower the user experience, as well as the ability to report inappropriate content to us for further review via Notify AOL.

~Joseph

1. Manage Your Groups
   One of the most overlooked features of the Buddy List is the groups. You can create many more groups to sort your buddy list into categories more than just Family, Co-Workers and Buddies. Inside AIM 6.5, you can create a new group for your buddies by clicking on the +/- button and clicking Add Group. Make up a name for this group -- it's alright, only you can see this group. Here is where that menu is:
   
   
   
2. Use Friendly Names
   Instead of "Buddy024453," you can name your buddies with Friendly Names, which makes it easier to see who they are without thinking about it. It can also save you from sending IMs to the wrong person by mistake. To do this, right-click on a screen name in your Buddy List and click Edit, then enter a nickname for your Buddy. Illustrated below is an example of my screen name turned into a Friendly Name:
   
   
   
3. Change Your Buddy List Display Settings
   If you don't want to see your Buddies' status messages, you don't have to see it. You can adjust the view of your Buddy List anytime by clicking on the View menu and select Status Messages to hide or show status messages (small text below buddies), Offline Buddies to hide, show or group buddies who are offline into a group and more. You can also sort your Buddy List alphabetically or continue to separate it in groups.
   
   
   
4. Control those Buddy Notifications
   The key to multitasking effectively while doing the things you love -- like updating your profile, sending an e-mail or posting a blog entry -- is to manage your distractions. One of the ways you can prevent your buddies from interrupting you, is to choose which Buddy Notifications you'd like to receive. To change your Buddy Notifications in AIM 6.5, press F7 (top row of your keyboard), click Notifications on the left side and select just the type of notifications you'd like to receive.
   
   
   
5. Link Those Names!
   You most likely have more than one screen name, so AIM offers the ability to link up to seven different screen names together so you only need to sign in once to all of them simultaneously. Screen Name linking works with AIM Mail, too. To link your screen names, you can do it via the Web or a link within the AIM software by pressing F7: