PSA: AOL Hometown files still accessible via FTP

I had some AOL Hometown web sites which I made over 10 years ago. I had been intending to retrieve my files and finally cancel my AOL (what a shitty company) account (which I've had since 1995). But AOL (in their shitty style) decided to just shut down AOL Hometown with little notice to their members.

I called them up and was told my files were irretrievable and that many other customers had called to complain and were told the same thing. I was also told that there were no backups and that I could not speak to an engineer. They said they would send an email on my behalf to someone, but that they "could not disclose who". Fantastic.

Well, it turns out that the files are (for the time being) still there, after all. For anyone in a similar situation, you can access your FTP files by logging into your AOL account normally, then using a third-party FTP client and connecting to ftp.hometown.aol.com with your regular AOL username (all lowercase) and password. Better do it quick, though.

Well, I guess I finally have an excuse to spend those 10 minutes I've been trying to find for years to cancel my AOL account. Thanks AOL!