Could the following be added:
/addfreestats/ & /statcounter/
I also have:
/banmanpro/ & /sidebanners/
not sure if they are worth including also.
Additional filters
Thanx Taomyn
But I'm not sure if I really just want to block someone's simple statistics counter (unless of course they are serving ads through them). I WILL however block a marketing analysis 'tracker' or a "web bug" .... but I don't know if the first 2 fall into that category.
*/sidebanners/* sounds like a local feed or an isolated instance and I probably would let people just blacklist it themselves .... UNLESS it contains an advertiser that I've missed or it is on a major website.
Now /banmanpro/ ...... why do I seem to remember that one from a long time ago? Do you remember where you came across that one?
I usually like to see the ads within the page they are served from so that I can determine the best way to block them. Links to the site would be very helpful.
But I'm not sure if I really just want to block someone's simple statistics counter (unless of course they are serving ads through them). I WILL however block a marketing analysis 'tracker' or a "web bug" .... but I don't know if the first 2 fall into that category.
*/sidebanners/* sounds like a local feed or an isolated instance and I probably would let people just blacklist it themselves .... UNLESS it contains an advertiser that I've missed or it is on a major website.
Now /banmanpro/ ...... why do I seem to remember that one from a long time ago? Do you remember where you came across that one?
I usually like to see the ads within the page they are served from so that I can determine the best way to block them. Links to the site would be very helpful.
"Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it"
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Taomyn
- Guest
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Stupid Head
- Emeritus Contributor
- Posts: 97
- Joined: Tue Aug 08, 2006 2:47 am
- Location: USA
@ Taomyn:
Regular expressions use javascript-type code. Even though simple expressions are 'understood' in Adblock Plus as having leading and trailing wildcards (they are not necessary), when a string is created that uses a "/" at the beginning AND end of the string without wildcards, Adblock Plus interprets it as a regular expression (js code).
At that point, both of the "/"s in the string are not used because ABP thinks they are regexp switches and not part of the string itself. And (as Stu said) it just looks for "string" .... not "/string/".
The way to fix that is to encompass any string that has both a leading and a trailing "/" with wildcards (*/string/*) which identifies the string to ABP that it is a simple expression .... then it will work correctly. It is only a problem in that scenario ... outside of that wildcards are not necessary. Understand?
I saw that myself after I dropped all of the wildcards from my strings. If you notice in the EasyList, all of the type of strings described above use wildcards on each end.
Regular expressions use javascript-type code. Even though simple expressions are 'understood' in Adblock Plus as having leading and trailing wildcards (they are not necessary), when a string is created that uses a "/" at the beginning AND end of the string without wildcards, Adblock Plus interprets it as a regular expression (js code).
At that point, both of the "/"s in the string are not used because ABP thinks they are regexp switches and not part of the string itself. And (as Stu said) it just looks for "string" .... not "/string/".
The way to fix that is to encompass any string that has both a leading and a trailing "/" with wildcards (*/string/*) which identifies the string to ABP that it is a simple expression .... then it will work correctly. It is only a problem in that scenario ... outside of that wildcards are not necessary. Understand?
I saw that myself after I dropped all of the wildcards from my strings. If you notice in the EasyList, all of the type of strings described above use wildcards on each end.
"Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it"
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hyperion
- Guest
It looks like ".statcounter." is now part of the filter set. This is a bit disappointing, since we use this on our web site to track page hits. I'm concerned that adblockplus will now be limiting the amount of information we can get about our site, instead of doing what it purports to do - block ads.
I was surprised when this was added slipstream - I think this sort of thing should be broken out into a separate filter set that users can specifically opt to enable.
I was surprised when this was added slipstream - I think this sort of thing should be broken out into a separate filter set that users can specifically opt to enable.
A fact about the EasyList:hyperion wrote:It looks like ".statcounter." is now part of the filter set. This is a bit disappointing, since we use this on our web site to track page hits. I'm concerned that adblockplus will now be limiting the amount of information we can get about our site, instead of doing what it purports to do - block ads.
I developed this list, originally, not only to to block ads .. but ALSO their scripts and cookies which could contain spyware or adware. I've even thrown a malicious filetype into the list from time to time to prevent accidental trojan downloads served through the internet.
Besides ads, I am also out to stop 'web bugs' or tracking service cookies that hide behind the guise of "marketing analysis services". Most of these services track you ACROSS the internet to collect data about your browsing (spyware). I certainly don't deny someone's ability to get stats for their OWN site (unless, of course, they are using a 'shady' service).
BUT .... after doing a little research on Statcounter, I find that it uses cookies to track website activity ... but NOT in a fashion that I would find overly unusual or offensive. I have read some articles on Statcounter that may have reacted a little "harsh" to this simple cookie ... and I can see (for now) no need to leave it in the block list.
So I will remove it today unless I find a reason to put it back.
As far as you statement about doing more than blocking ads ..... the data from these so-called "marketing analysis services" is DIRECTLY related to gathering info just to display ads! But on a fair note to you, I understand you asking for it to be a separate filter ... and we have discussed it here. I will rethink again on the subject.
ps: btw, the author of adblock plus does not tell me what to put in the filters so don't blame the program itself.
"Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it"
Not always. Some (dare I say many?) webmasters just use the stuff out of curiosity and wanting to know how many and what kinds of people visit their website.rick752 wrote:As far as you statement about doing more than blocking ads ..... the data from these so-called "marketing analysis services" is DIRECTLY related to gathering info just to display ads!
As a webmaster, it is interesting information. Aren't you just a little curious how many visitors to the EasyList websites have cookies or JavaScript or Flash enabled? You also might want to know their geographic locations to know how much you need to concentrate the EasyList on non-English websites.
But as a user, I hate being spammed with hundreds of cookies just for a bunch of stupid statistics.
Hug Peng
(aka Matt Nordhoff)
(aka Matt Nordhoff)
I really wonder why these 3rd-party stats companies offer these services for free? I really think many of them either sell this info, or are actually a part of, an advertisement service. Don't you think?IceDogg wrote:SOME webmasters that use these services I have no doubt are not doing so to do harm, however the services them self are going to abuse those stats. You think only the webmasters have access to the stats when they use a 3rd party?
Statistics can usually be offered by your host server and many have nice interfaces just for stats viewing. My own Verizon site is only an account 'freebie' so no stat access is offered.
It's not the stats served from the host domain that bothers me ... it's some of the 3rd-party services that do.
"Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it"
I agree Rick. I would worry about host tracking too, but really even the biggest host would maybe have 2 to 6 sites that I visit very much. So, I don't worry to much about the host keeping stats for their clients. Also, if they get caught selling it off or doing something with them, they WILL lose business. So, I would guess it's not tracked much by host. But you never really know for sure.