If your monitor is set at this resolution, you may run into images that need to be scrolled both laterally and vertically in order to be seen. The bottom line as far as equipment goes is to obtain the fastest, largest, best system you can possibly afford, because changes happen so fast. Local providers are often able to help you more with connection and other problems more quickly than the national service providers. AOL has come out with a new version recently, and they may have solved some of these problems. The best advice is to get to know your ISP or someone else in your community who can help with technical questions.
Modern systems are easy to set up, but there is always the chance of something going wrong.
You should get to know your own individual computer systems and your local area networks, where applicable. I will try to help as much as possible, but it is nearly impossible from a distance to help with many hardware and software issues - there are just too many possible configurations. Otherwise try to develop a support system among friends, computer sales and repair specialists, and colleagues. You will need standard word processing, spreadsheet, and up to date browsing software. The value in using browsers and web sites for most of our work is that they are platform independent.