Ads in the middle of the forums - 986 Forum - The Community for Porsche Boxster & Cayman Owners

BYprodriver · 10-31-2019, 07:14 AM

I guess the reason I couldn't log into the forum for 2 days was so the new owner could insert ads in the middle of threads. As if the forum had not deteriorated enough already!

piper6909 · 10-31-2019, 07:54 AM

I was wondering why it went down. Yeah, the ads suck. But the sponsor has to pay for the platform somehow. Everything has a cost, but it's free to us. Most other forums are riddled with ads to the point where they bog down my computer, so I don't mind a few ads.

Starter986 · 10-31-2019, 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by piper6909

I was wondering why it went down. Yeah, the ads suck. But the sponsor has to pay for the platform somehow. Everything has a cost, but it's free to us. Most other forums are riddled with ads to the point where they bog down my computer, so I don't mind a few ads.

Agreed. I find this forum the most rewarding, and active.

The Rennlist pop-up "Ask a Question" annoys me.

I use a pop-up blocker... we'll see if that works. Otherwise, I support the host by ordering their parts 90% of the time.

Cheers!

Racer Boy · 10-31-2019, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by piper6909

I was wondering why it went down. Yeah, the ads suck. But the sponsor has to pay for the platform somehow. Everything has a cost, but it's free to us. Most other forums are riddled with ads to the point where they bog down my computer, so I don't mind a few ads.

Agreed +2.

thstone · 10-31-2019, 02:37 PM

I could live with the ads if there were somewhat relevant. But they're not. They are just super annoying.

This is the fastest way to drive people from a site that already so out of date (vBulletin 3.8.7 came out in 2011) that they probably have to host it on Intel i5 processors.

Dave80GTSi · 10-31-2019, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thstone

I could live with the ads if there were somewhat relevant. But they're not. They are just super annoying.

This is the fastest way to drive people from a site that already so out of date (vBulletin 3.8.7 came out in 2011) that they probably have to host it on Intel i5 processors.

Amen.

And since I've already sworn to never, ever, click on one of these type of ads on this or any other similar forum, nor ever to buy anything from any of these vendors because of their annoying ads, how does their presence serve any positive purpose for them?

piper6909 · 10-31-2019, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave80GTSi

Amen.

And since I've already sworn to never, ever, click on one of these type of ads on this or any other similar forum, nor ever to buy anything from any of these vendors because of their annoying ads, how does their presence serve any positive purpose for them?

Not clicking doesn't help. They pay per click. If nobody clicks it won't cost them anything. Want to get them where it hurts? Click but never buy. Keep clicking. Once they realize that they're paying for clicks and not getting sales, they'll try a different ad campaign. Unfortunately, for it to work everyone has to be in on it. In the meantime, you can click and smile knowing that you're costing them every time you do.

Racer Boy · 10-31-2019, 07:13 PM

Ignore the ads. You don't HAVE to read them. Do you watch every ad on TV, or listen to every ad on the radio? I've developed the ability to tune that stuff out many years ago, it's not that hard to do.

particlewave · 10-31-2019, 09:18 PM

I see zero ads, but I use AdBlock.
Works very well.

thstone · 10-31-2019, 09:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by particlewave

I see zero ads, but I use AdBlock.
Works very well.

Thanks for the tip. Just installed it. Works great!

kk2002s · 11-01-2019, 04:29 AM

Nothing is free or you may catch a beginning of something where things appear free but at some point we all have to pay.

As far as adBlocker, if it's a "FREE" download, then they are most likely capturing your activities and selling it. Same with "FREE" mobile apps

We are watching you

Starter986 · 11-01-2019, 05:08 AM

Yup. AdBlock. Been using it for years. Haven't seen one ad on this forum.

Racerboy. check Piper's comment... the one about ACTUALLY clicking on the ads... but not purchasing anything.

I cut "cable" years ago because I was fracking tired of being bombarded with commercials 33% of the time. All streaming now. No bull****************.

itsnotanova · 11-01-2019, 05:37 AM

Does it really cost that much to run a website you have zero participation in? I too bought most of my new European vehicle parts from Pelican. I guess I'll try adblock

BYprodriver · 11-01-2019, 10:20 AM

At least make the ads Porsche relevant.

78F350 · 11-01-2019, 11:00 AM

I haven't noticed a difference since the site was down. No ads at all on my PC. On my phone, there's a banner on top and bottom with one ad embedded in the first post of a thread. I expect that the ads that you are seeing are based on your browsing pattern (cookies) and location (IP address). Maybe you can get more relevant ads by opting-in to being tracked and cookied by Google and Microsoft.

The ads could even be unrelated to the site and be riding along on some app or browser add-on that you installed without reading through the 25 pages of fine print.

Want to upload a screenshot of the offending ads and post some details about how you browse the site? Some of the web-savvy people here can help you fix it.

Edit: I was trying to remember what app or setting I used to stop ads on my PCs. It's been a while since I set them up. Now I remember... I use 'host list' blocking.

Quote:

What it does ...

You can use a modified HOSTS file to block ads, banners, 3rd party Cookies, 3rd party page counters, web bugs, and even most hijackers and possibly unwanted programs. This is accomplished by blocking the connection(s) that supplies these little gems. The Hosts file is loaded into memory (cache) at startup, so there is no need to turn on, adjust or change any settings with the exception of the DNS Client service (see below). Windows automatically looks for the existence of a HOSTS file and if found, checks the HOSTS file first for entries to the web page you just requested. The 0.0.0.0 (prefix) is considered the location of your computer, so when an entry listed in the MVPS HOSTS file is requested on a page you are viewing, your computer thinks 0.0.0.0 is the location of the file. When this file is not located it skips onto the next file and thus the ad server is blocked from loading the banner, Cookie, or some unscrupulous tracker, or javascript file.

Search for a chunk of that text string and you can find where I got most of my list from.

SMK Shoe · 11-02-2019, 06:43 PM

If the ads were even anything I was interested in would be one thing, But have only golfed once, never searched for anything golf related, and don't talk about golf or golfers. So why do I have banner ads about golfing?

Racer Boy · 11-02-2019, 07:21 PM

Why do I get ads showing shapely women in tight dresses? Not that I mind, of course, but I don't do any dress shopping. Or shapely woman shopping, either!

The other ads are for Puerto Vallarta eco-tourism trips, and wheel center caps. I've searched for those recently on my computer, so obviously I'm being tracked.

Brian in Tucson · 11-03-2019, 07:58 AM

I use Adblock, never see any pop up ads here.

As for TV, I have a Tivo, and time shift everything. Especially handy for watching baseball and football that seem to have ads every two minutes. And for network stuff, if you record the whole show, it lets you quick advance thru an entire commercial break and resume the programming. Takes a 60 minute show down to about 44 minutes.

Deserion · 11-05-2019, 10:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starter986

The Rennlist pop-up "Ask a Question" annoys me.

I only see that if I'm not logged in - but then again I do pay for a membership there.

Adblock has been a godsend for forum browsing these days, no doubt.