
The Basics of Creating Restricted Screen
Names
by The Knight
Reference 1996 to 1999
Introduction
This document which focuses on creating restricted Screen
names with Visual Publisher Designer is intended for people
with a little backround on using Visual Publisher Designer.
Releasing Screen names
Before we can discuss how to actually create these names you
need a little background on Restricted Screen names being
released from the system. Certain strings in Screen names
are prohibited by regular America Online members, so that
members can identify a regular AOL Member and a Community
Leader or Employee.
Who releases these Screen names?
The Forum Leader of the area that the Commnuity Leader or
Employee works in can request any Screen name that has the
Forum's blocked prefix in it by going to the America Online
Keyword: Allownames. Then, after the Forum Leader submits
the request. An Internal Contact will review the request,
and he will remove it from the system. Now the Community Leader
or Employee will be able to goto Keyword: Names on America
Online, type in there screenname that they asked for from
their Forum Leader, and instead of saying "That screenname
is restricted.", it would goto the Set Password window.
The Screen name System
Lets get some background on how the Screen name system worked
in 1996. Any Screen name that was already taken would bring
up a small message box saying "That screenname is already
in use." If you tryed to create the same Screen name again,
it would put a new Screen name in the box, which had the maximum
of seven characters of the beginning of the screen name, then
three numbers. So if someone tryed to create "HelloWorld",
and it was already in use, it would bring back "HelloWo###".
People such as Hex and my self used this trick to get restricted
names like "Host 596", and "ABCHost331".
In 1997, they updated the screen name system, because of
rapid new America Online members joining the service every
day, they had it so any screen name in use, it would bring
back the new Screen name, which had the maximum of six characters
of the beginning of the screen name, then four numbers instead
of three.
Creating Restricted Screennames
If you know the Screen name that was released, you can just
goto Keyword: Names and type it in. There are ways to find
Restricted Screen names that have been released by using a
program called a Prefix Scanner. These programs will try to
create a certain restricted Screen name, with two or three
letters at the end of the screenname. These programs usually
go in alphabetical order. One of these programs was created
in 1996 by my friend named Sven. The person who is responsible
for the idea of making the program is another person, HDs.
Remember how I said that if the Screen name was already in
use by another America Online member, that it would return
some of the characters in the beginning of the Screen name,
with numbers at the end? This is true with restricted screennames
also. However, in 1997, America Online installed a patch,
so that any Screen name that was restricted, would return
"User######".
New Screen name history was made in late 1998 when a person
known as 'Dan' figured out how to create restricted screen
names again with numbers at the end, and the restricted screen
name with only a letter or two taken away from it. This was
possible because America Online began the beta testing of
16 Alphanumerical for Internal Accounts. Okay say we found
the screen name "Guide SBH" was released recently. But Guide
SBH was already created by the rightful Community Leader worker.
If you spaced out the Screen name you wanted to create, such
as "Guide SBH", now the Screen name's length is thirteen.
America Online would cut off the Screen name we were trying
to make at the tenth character. Now the Screen name was "Guide
". Then by default, America Online removed the spaces at the
end which didnt need to be there. Now the final screen name
was "Guide". Now it just went to the Set Password window.
If you tryed to make the screenname "Guide" by spacing it
out in the middle again, it would say "That screenname is
already in use." If you tryed to create it again, it would
return "Guide ####". Then you could have a restricted screen
name with numbers.
The Screen name Confirmation window doesnt
appear?
Thats because one week after the spacing out trick, America
Online installed another patch which stopped any Restricted
Screen name being created that wasnt in the Released names
file. It wouldnt create it because the America Online Host
wasnt telling the Client to send the add sub-account token.
Which was 'nA'.
Manually sending the Add sub-account token.
A hacker named Flare found two new ways to create these Restricted
Screen names in 1998. One was signing on 'New User' on America
Online and creating a new account, when it got to the Screenname
window, you would do the same thing as befor. The other way,
involved the same methods as befor, with Keyword: Names, except
you would have to use a FDO script, that would send the add
sub-account token manually after setting the Screen name and
Password. The add sub-account token was sent only by 'Flare'.
Now all these ways are fixed, unless you find the original
Screen name to create.
America Online 3.0 and above update
The tokens were all changed on america online 3.0 clients
and higher, around 07/01/99. Now the add sub-account token
creates whatever screenname was in the buffer, no matter if
its released or not.
This article was created by and for: The
Elder God Shrine.
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