WebDon - 11:25 pm on Dec 14, 2007 (gmt 0)

I think 'confirmed opt-in' is probably the most correct. However, while 'double opt-in' was initially used by spammers to make their stuff sound legit it has been used so much to refer to a legit sign-up process that the terms have become interchangeable for any practical purposes. In other words...it's not really worth arguing the difference any more.

We have had some problems with AOL users as well. Some simply report the newsletters of some of our clients as spam because they want them to stop coming but don't want the people creating the newsletter to know they don't want it. I.e. maybe they don't want to hurt their feelings or don't want to seem disinterested. The spam button makes it go away without directly admitting to the sender they don't want their stuff. They just don't realize the damage they are doing. I'd rather have my clients feeling hurt!

FYI: the feedback loop definitely works. It has been very useful to us in avoiding any major issues with AOL deliverability.