07-28-2010, 06:00 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Running an Ad Blocker? Please Read This
Hi there. The topic of ad blockers tends to generate some heated discussions around these parts, so I'm going to keep this really simple: if you're running an ad blocker, this is a polite request that you white-list this Web site and allow the ads to load. Here's why: I work hard to keep the ads on Thoughts Media sites non-intrusive; I say no to pop-ups, pop-unders, full-page ads, ads with sounds, etc. I know that those types of ads are irritating, and I value the readership of everyone who visits our sites. I don't want to irritate anyone with our ads. What you may not realize about online ads is that, for the majority of them, when they simply load, that helps me pay the bills (Our server bill alone is almost $500/month.). Ad blockers stop the ads from loading, which hurts this site. You don't have to click on the ads - just letting them load helps us out a lot. If you do click on them, all the better - that helps us get better advertisers because they know you're interested in the ads. It will help us continue to provide you with the content that you come here for, and that benefits you in the end. So please white list this Web site in your ad blocker. As a side note, I have a personal "1 visit, 1 click" policy in which, when I visit a site and read/watch some content on it, I find an ad that I'm interested in and click on it. It only takes a few seconds of my time to do, and it's my way of giving back to that site, thanking them for creating that thing I just read/watched. The Internet would be a very different place if everyone had a similar policy. Just a thought to ponder as you head into the weekend. :-)
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07-28-2010, 06:31 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 251
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I never had a mental policy to '1 page, 1 ad click', but I have found myself doing just that because I know it supports a site. However, if everyone started doing this--where they click an ad out of policy/habit, not out of genuine interest--wouldn't the advertisers figure this out and quit paying out for it? or reduce what they pay?
m.
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07-28-2010, 06:39 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Jun 2005
Posts: 190
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I always try to remember to white-list sites that I add value to my life. And even though I sold off my Axim x51v and gave my kids my last two other WiMo PDA's (iPaq 4355 and Jornada 568), I have always loved the site and definitely like reading the stuff.
Will definitely think about the click-through stuff you mentioned.
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07-28-2010, 06:58 PM
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Sage
Join Date: Jul 2003
Posts: 740
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It seems reasonable to me....
This site, and few others, are, in fact, already in my white list.
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07-28-2010, 07:15 PM
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Executive Editor, Android Thoughts
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 3,233
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You mean they make a product that can block ads? Man, I gotta look into that... 
__________________
Dr. Jon Westfall, MCSE, MS-MVP
Executive Editor - Android Thoughts
News Editor - Windows Phone Thoughts
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07-28-2010, 07:42 PM
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Contributing Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 2,291
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Your ads are good about being unobtrusive. The only ones I find marginally annoying are the Google Adwords (I think that is what they are called) - the words in the posts that when your cursor goes over them an ad pops up. I usually drag the cursor along as I read, so I inadvertently pass over these and the ad pops up which does interrupt the reading experience.
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07-30-2010, 11:21 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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Quote:
Originally Posted by mmidgley
I never had a mental policy to '1 page, 1 ad click', but I have found myself doing just that because I know it supports a site. However, if everyone started doing this--where they click an ad out of policy/habit, not out of genuine interest--wouldn't the advertisers figure this out and quit paying out for it? or reduce what they pay?
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Well, to be clear, I said "1 visit, 1 click", so it's not like I click on one ad on every page I see. Also I said "I find an ad that I'm interested in and click on it" - so I don't think of it as click fraud; I glance to find an ad that's interesting to me. And if there isn't one, well, I don't click. It's not a hard and fast rule, more like a simple guideline I try to follow. And the purpose of an ad is to get a visitor to the site; if once you're there, they can't keep you there or get you to engage, well, that's their problem. 
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07-30-2010, 11:29 PM
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Executive Editor
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 29,160
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I'm curious, do all of you people who hate Vibrant Media's IntelliTXT ads so much read with your mouse cursor? As in, you move your mouse along the line as you read? I never knew people did that until I heard someone complain about IntelliTXT and when I asked why he hovered over links that are distinctly marked as ads if he knew they were ads, and he said that's how he reads.
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07-30-2010, 11:32 PM
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Oracle
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 841
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason Dunn
I'm curious, do all of you people who hate Vibrant Media's IntelliTXT ads so much read with your mouse cursor? As in, you move your mouse along the line as you read? I never knew people did that until I heard someone complain about IntelliTXT and when I asked why he hovered over links that are distinctly marked as ads if he knew they were ads, and he said that's how he reads.
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I only use the cursor to highlight a bit of text, like a bookmark, if I have to move away from my computer... Then I know where to come back to continue reading 
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08-01-2010, 01:27 AM
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Oracle
Join Date: May 2003
Posts: 984
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jason Dunn
I'm curious, do all of you people who hate Vibrant Media's IntelliTXT ads so much read with your mouse cursor? As in, you move your mouse along the line as you read? I never knew people did that until I heard someone complain about IntelliTXT and when I asked why he hovered over links that are distinctly marked as ads if he knew they were ads, and he said that's how he reads.
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No, the mouse cursor sits on the middle of the screen, and I scroll. However, that is not the issue.
If I move my mouse to, say, head up to the top of the browser window to open a bookmark, or switch to a different tab, or down to the dock to open a different app, and accidentally pass over one of the crap links, it pops up. I can be moving the mouse pointer rapidly - if it happens to hover over one of the links, it pops up. It is INCREDIBLY FRUSTRATING. It has nothing to do with reading the material - it's usually what happens after I read and want to do something else, or if I am interrupted and need to switch to something else quickly.
I am glad that you brought this subject up. As owner of this site, you should know how frustrating it can be for people who do not block these crap ads. I remember when I used to use some really badly designed apps when I would ask the question, do the people who make this app actually use it? They cannot be happy when they do. I cannot believe that you are happy that this is such a pain in the neck that I need to block the ads. It would be similar to every time I watched a program on TV and somebody in the room happened to do something, such as scratch their nose, the TV program was immediately interrupted by a five second, very loud and annoying ad.
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Hybrid Mode
