Can't log onto one of my charsFollow

That sounds strange. The downloadable free trial only gives access to classic zones so if your thane is in an SI zone, housing zone or Frontiers zone, that may be why you can't access him. If that's the case, you might have to install SI or download the Foundations or New Frontiers expansion to access the character.

I'm assuming you're using the "come back to Camelot" trial that allows you to access your old account and the thane is a character on that account.

No, him being in DF shouldn't affect anything. You should still be able to log him in unless he's in a zone that's changed (BGs or Frontiers). From the log in screen you should be able to see what zone he's in. It should say in the character list under the character name. If he's in a battleground or Frontiers area, that may be the reason. If he's in one of the normal classic zones, then you have a different problem.

If you can't figure it out, try writing to support@darkageofcamelot.com. Give them as much information as possible, including your Log-in ID (not your password), server, realm, character name and character location. Then explain exactly what client you have installed (i.e., old installation from CD; new installation from CD; online download from FilePlanet, etc.) and what happens when you try to log the character in.

If you haven't yet done so, try to log the character in again - maybe the server was down the first time you tried. Palomides was being upgraded on 11/3 and was therefore unavailable - was that when you tried?