Is it just me or does anybody else find the "uncloseable" Landrover advert that pops up every minute or so extremely irritating?
I work in Paris and very much enjoy this forum as it keeps me in touch with British motoring news. I also fully understand the need for advertising and have become used to being bombarded with it on this site but I think this particular advert may be a step too far (one must wait 5-10 secs for the pop up to pop down again) and is certainly ruining my enjoyment of this excellent site.
What do others think?
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Matt
It's not just you. This is the most annoying thing I've come across recently and because it's a "flash" thing it gets round popup blockers. It makes the site unreadable while it's in yer face.
I'm, already on record as saying I'd be prepared to pay for using this site, so I'm not just a professional whinger.
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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I think there are too much, particularly the flash ads.
That's why I have Mozilla Firefox ( www.mozilla.org/products/firefox ) with the Flash-Click-To-View extension installed. I have to click on flash ads/movies for them to run or I just see a white box. No more intrusive ads.
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See No Dosh's reply in MapMaker's annoying ad. thread.
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I'm using Avant Browser, and by clicking on an icon at the top labelled "Allow Flash Animations" I have managed to stop it.
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The advert is ridiculous.
Install a pop-up blocker, I have.
If you want pointers/help, then let me know here.
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Go to www.google.co.uk
Click on "more" which is just above the search box
scroll down to "Google Toolbar" and click on it.
This will install the google toolbar which is a very simple and fast thing to do.
It will then block 99% of pop-ups and give you a google search box into the bargain.
It certainly solves my problem completely.
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I am a bit wary about that as the following came from a computer professional on another site:
GOOGLES TOOLBAR IS SPYWARE! With the advanced features enabled, Google's free toolbar for Explorer phones home with every page you surf, and yes, it reads your cookie too. Their privacy policy confesses this, but that's only because Alexa lost a class-action lawsuit when their toolbar did the same thing, and their privacy policy failed to explain this. Worse yet, Google's toolbar updates to new versions quietly, and without asking. This means that if you have the toolbar installed, Google essentially has complete access to your hard disk every time you connect to Google (which is many times a day). Most software vendors, and even Microsoft, ask if you'd like an updated version. But not Google. Any software that updates automatically presents a massive security risk.
Security Risks
The auto-update mechanism provides a new route for the introduction of malicious programs, which can be used to spy on the user. Malicious programs can download files, read the screen, monitor the keyboard, even listen through a microphone if one is connected.
Rather than a bona-fide update, the auto-update feature could be used to send programs with undesired features. The activity of these updaters would not be detected by firewall tools, as they are expected to be periodically checking for updates and downloading them. Further, the most careful reverse-engineering of the updater would not reveal anything unexpected.
A third party could intercept the requests for updates and send a malicious program instead. This can be accomplished with a DNS hack, which would cause update requests to be sent to a different server. It would have to exploit some weakness in the communications protocol used for updating. These update protocols are proprietary, and therefore not open for peer security auditing. (As an example, a third party could trick the program into installing an older update which would appear valid, yet reintroduce a security hole that could be exploited.)
The software company could send any program that they choose. We are to trust that the company would not send anything that we would object to. However, various companies have violated this trust, for example to spy on the browsing habits of the customer for marketing purposes, or to remove controversial features.
Miscellaneous Risks
Programs that download and display advertisements could be used as a point of entry by the company. The advertising program on the PC could be triggered in a pre-arranged way to download an "update" instead of an advertisement.
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Mozilla and Mozilla Firefox browsers both do pop-up blocking. Mozilla 1.6 allows you to search Google (or any other search engine you choose) using the normal address bar, or by highlighting text on a page, rightclicking and selecting "search the web." Firefox has its own version of the Googlebar available from Mozilla, or if you just want to search Google without the extra features, its own Google search box built in. Both are far superior to IE in my experience and don't have the security issues of either IE or the Googlebar.
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Mozilla and Mozilla Firefox browsers both do pop-up blocking.
So does Opera -- www.opera.com
Personally, I reckon Opera is much much easier to use than Mozilla. I like Mozilla, but I find it too frustrating not to be able to open a new browser tab in the background
However, both Mozilla and Opera are miles easier to use than Internet Exploder, as well being lots faster and more secure.
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>I like Mozilla, but I find it too frustrating not to be able to open a new browser tab in the background
Excuse me? Point at a link and right click to get a menu. Use the mouse to choose from: Open Link In New Window, Open Link in New Tab, or one of ten other features. Couldn't be easier, surely?
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>I like Mozilla, but I find it too frustrating not to be able to open a new browser tab in the background Excuse me? Point at a link and right click to get a menu. Use the mouse to choose from: Open Link In New Window, Open Link in New Tab, or one of ten other features. Couldn't be easier, surely?
This is actually something you set yourself. Certainly the default in Mozilla wasn't originally to load the new tab in the bacground. I can't remember whether that's changed.
In Mozilla proper, go to Edit - Preferences - Navigator - Tabbed Browsing and tick the box that says 'Load Links in the background'. In Mozilla Firefox, the option is under Tools - Options - Advanced.
In both browsers a quick way of opening a new tab is to use CTRL-T.
I'd agree with Phil G's advice to use Flash-Click-To-View in Firefox. Most of the annoying ads use Flash and only a few (mostly badly designed) web sites depend on it. You can still view these by clicking on the empty boxes that appear.
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>I like Mozilla, but I find it too frustrating not to be able to open a new browser tab in the background Excuse me? Point at a link and right click to get a menu. Use the mouse to choose from: Open Link In New Window, Open Link in New Tab, or one of ten other features. Couldn't be easier, surely?
It can be easier! Try Opera :)
Mozilla doesn't offer a choice of whether the new tab or new window comes on top, except (as Welliesorter points out) by setting a preference. In other words, it's always-on or always-off
In Opera, the popup menu offers a choice of foreground or background:
* "open" (in the current tab of the current window)
* "open in new page" (in Mozilla-speak, a tab in the current window)
* "open in background page"
* "open in new window"
* "open in background window"
The way I read the backroom is to go to index page, then open in a background tab each of the threads I want to read.
I couldn't do that in Mozilla without turning off the ability to open a freground tab in the situations where that's what I want to do.
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Point taken. I use Opera too occasionally--it's a great browser--but I find I gravitate towards Mozilla Firefox out of preference. I like the simplicity of it.
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Your choice.
It works for me at home and I've never had an issue. Mind you, I've never had a virus either.
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Mark
My Google toolbar doesn't block the LR ad - how come your does?
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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dunno, but I'm certainly not suffering from it.
Have you recently installed it ?
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Having said that and posted it, of course the Landrover ad immediately appeared !!
I shall change pop-up blockers or if neccessary, browser. Nobody is forcing advertising down my throat in this manner.
I'll let you know how I get on.
Mark.
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A month or so ago
Terry
"Just because I don't care doesn't mean I don't understand"
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Have some of mine; for some reason my orange.net mailbox is awash with mydoom and netsky variants. Fortunately the mail is web-based like hotmail so they are someone else's problem.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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Join the club, I must have had at least 50 copies of netsky.mydoom through my orange.net address. Norton Antivirus has no problem identifying them thankfully.
Incidentally, I haven't seen this LR advert oh...that must be Norton Internet Security.....expensive...but worth it for surfing pleasure I reckon.
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I think PestPatrol scoops up and destroys anything that Google may send that passes a firewall.
Hawkeye
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Stranger in a strange land
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this ad is a complete pain in the rectal region and has only convinced me i really dont want a landrover , if they have to stoop to this sort of intrusion, i'll keep my old isuzu it's a better 4x4 by far. landrover thanks but no thanks so please stop it's not funny.
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By playing around with my browser settings (Avant) it would appear that you will need to disable both pop-ups and flash animation. Mini ad seems to be a pop-up and LR ad a flash animation. Disabling both has worked for me. I know they're there to provide revenue for the site but I really don't need for them to keep reappearing after I've visited a couple of times!
Cockle
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Ok thats it, A day of this LR ad has driven me to distraction, I dont mind the advertising but this one is TOO obtrusive. I am offski till the LR Season is over.
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Load Mozilla Firefox browser with the Flash 'Click to play' plugin, the Adblock plugin and NEVER, EVER be bothered by unwanted ads or popups. I swear I've not had a SINGLE popup or floating advert etc using this. On the occasions it blocks a popup required from a friendly site etc it can quickly be configured to be allowed. I know ad revenue helps keep sites like this afloat but I don't want to see it, especially when they take such an annoying format.
I realise not everybody will want to go off and install Firefox but it is kosher and better than IE, same stability levels. Oh and tabbed browsing is a gift from the Gods.
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Oops just read rest of the thread see others have recommended Firefox already. What they said
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the mini was bad enough, but the LR is too too much. It's now to slow to browse via dialup from home, and while I can browse freely from work, installing a pop-up killer would be a sackable offence !
Although I don't agree with pop-ups,I've never complained about ads in the past, as my own website makes me aware how difficult it is to raise revenue.
These ads are the equivalent, as the Growler pointed out over 12 motnhs ago, of somebody taking you newspaper out of your hands and turning it to their advert and that may be ok for some people, but it annoys me, so i'll be taking a holiday from hj's for a week or two
just 'cos I know what I'm saying doesn't mean I know what I'm talking about
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If the LR ad doesn't go soon, I shall. May be no loss, but there it is.
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I agree its a pain. I'm not defending it.
However, we're putting pressure on to get it amended. So please don't leave just yet.
Mark.
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p.s. disabling Active-X seems to kill it.
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I echo Mark's comments there. It may take a few days to get sorted, but try and stick with it if you can.
No Dosh
mailto:Alan_moderator@honestjohn.co.uk
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I used to visit this site daily (occasionaly asked a question or sent a reply) but now only drop by monthly to see if those adverts which make the site unusable have gone away.
They're even worse now! So I may not bother coming back again :-(
I manage to run a special interest travel website without the need to have any adverts spoiling it :-) downside is my website costs me my personal money to run :-( but that's the old spirit of the internet :-)
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It is a pain in the rear, but if HJ is making a few coppers to run the site from this ad?
No worse than getting a red light and a lot shorter on an ADSL line.
Matt35.
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At last the advert has a close button, however, you have to be pretty accurate with the cursor to hit it, and not launch the LR site.
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In IE you can just hit F5 to refresh. That gets rid of it.
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In IE you can just hit F5 to refresh. That gets rid of it.
Hmm, that sounds familiar. Visions of Volvo appearing in the back of my mind.
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The unfortunate thing is that it looks like a few people have had to go the same route as myself.
Adverts pay for the site and the link was sometimes but not always followed which helps pay for the site.
The increasing obtrusiveness of these things [1] finally persuaded me to install software from www.panicware.com to the detriment of popups and unfortunately HJ's income. (just my 2p)
[1] not from HJ site but elsewhere
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Mark, No Dosh - LR is still coming, but at least I can close it!
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We've mentioned this to HJ and suggested that the ad agency seriously reconsider their strategy. This isn't advertising, it's bullying! Dave has suggested that the ad only pop-upa couple of times per session, not every other screen.
No Dosh
mailto:Alan_moderator@honestjohn.co.uk
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We've mentioned this to HJ and suggested that the ad agency seriously reconsider their strategy. This isn't advertising, it's bullying! Dave has suggested that the ad only pop-upa couple of times per session, not every other screen.
Maybe the ad agency is getting commission from Opera or the Mozilla Foundation. Popups are one of the of the more effective recruiting agents for the better browsers.
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