Over the past few years, nobody has hounded America Online more aggressively than Microsoft"s MSN online service. The company has released substantial upgrades to the MSN software that made it a viable alternative to AOL for anybody seeking a simplified, all-in-one Internet toolkit, while aggressive bundling deals with Internet service providers such as Verizon have put MSN on the desktops of millions of users.
MSN"s latest assault on AOL begins Thursday, when it launches the upgraded MSN Premium. The software (it"s been available for testing since early December) preserves the slick, refined interface of MSN 8, with its photo-realistic toolbar icons and "dashboard" array of shortcuts to Web services, while fixing the biggest failings of the older software.
That makes it good enough -- especially considering the cost savings involved -- to beat Dulles-based AOL service in many ways.
MSN Premium"s biggest improvement is its pop-up ad blocker. And Microsoft has added this essential feature with unusual subtlety: MSN discreetly presents a black-and-white thumbnail image of each blocked pop-up in the upper right corner of the screen, just big enough to let you know if you"ve hit a site dumb enough to hide useful content in unsolicited pop-ups.