hhawkman
Premium
join:2001-02-08
Port Hueneme, CA
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to Kambriel
Re: CHOOSE YOUR WEAPONS!!
said by Kambriel  :
And so far, no one has mentioned a well stocked hosts file. I can't live without mine. It may not block pop-up windows, but it sure blocks the content.
That is a damn good tool, but by no means the answer. Taking things like doubleclick for example, they add or change server names on almost a daily basis. to keep them all in check is almost a 24 hr/day job. By the time you add all the sites you want to block, the HOSTS file gets so large that basic surfing slows to a crawl as every link is checked against the "list", and it won't help direct IP links.
I have had good results by using a PAC file like is available at:»www.schooner.com/~loverso/no-ads/
Instead of tracking each "doubleclick" server, it will allow you to use wildcards, and even block whole IP ranges. |
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jlv
Cantankerous - Can't take errors
join:2001-11-02
Southborough, MA | Thanks for the positive comment on no-ads!
A hosts file doesn't come close to the capabilities of a PAC file, which lets you block URLs by pattern matching. |
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FauxReal
join:2001-12-11
00000 | Would you like to explain what a PAC file is and how the everyday net browser can apply it? |
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jlv
Cantankerous - Can't take errors
join:2001-11-02
Southborough, MA
| PAC files & no-ads.pac
said by FauxReal :
Would you like to explain what a PAC file is and how the everyday net browser can apply it?
See my note at »www.schooner.com/~loverso/no-ads/#howwork or read on...
Basically, a Proxy Auto Config file is supposed to be used to allow you to select an HTTP proxy based upon the URL you are visiting. It allows you to apply some JavaScript code against the URL.
Blocking ads via a hosts file means you lose access to all content at that hostname or IP address. Some sites put their ad images on their main server, such as www.example.com/adsales/banner_place.gif. You wouldn't want to add "www.example.com" to your hosts file because then you couldn't get to the rest of the site.
With a PAC (and with my no-ads.pac file), you can do:
if (dnsDomainIs(host, ".example.com")
&& shExpMatch(url, "*/adsales/*"))
*BLOCK* That's close to how no-ads works. *BLOCK* means the PAC returns a non-existent proxy for the ad image URLs, in which case your browser is unable to retrieve these images or iframes. If it can't retrieve them, it can't show them to you. Some browsers get annoyed if pointed at a non-existent proxy, so instead you point them at a proxy that returns either a "not-found" or a transparent 1x1 filler GIF. I call this a black-hole proxy.
But, you don't need to write any code. Just download my no-ads.pac from the link above and follow the directions. |
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hhawkman
Premium
join:2001-02-08
Port Hueneme, CA
·RoadRunner Cable
| I especially like the ability to block entire subnets via IP number so that even if they try to fool you by using "xxx.xx.xxx.xxx/banner.gif" instead of "abc.doubleclick.net/banner.gif", you still don't get the stuff. Something you can't do with a HOSTS file.
Basically how it works, is you put the file (no-ads.pac) in your C:\ drive, and you set up a "proxy configuration script" in your browser as "file://c:\no-ads.pac", and all content is filtered through the script. The script is a simple text file that can be Modified with wordpad (if you are running windows)
It's pretty slick.
It also is semi-good for parental control blocking of some things. My 16 year old daughter was OBSESSED with the TV show "Buffy the vampire slayer". she would spend hours upon hours and bandwidth trying to find anything to do with the show or it's charactors/actresses. A few carefully placed lines in the PAC, and she gets tired of seeing the "server error" page and gets her homework done.
[text was edited by author 2003-08-01 19:42:35] |
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