gHacks technology news » ads http://www.ghacks.net A technology blog covering software, mobile phones, gadgets, security, the Internet and other relevant areas. Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:11:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 en hourly 1 Internet Explorer 8 Ad Blocking http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/internet-explorer-8-ad-blocking/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/internet-explorer-8-ad-blocking/#comments Wed, 08 Apr 2009 12:52:38 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=11772 internet explorer 8Ad Blocking in the Internet Explorer 8 web browser is not as accessible as it is in other web browsers like Opera or Firefox with add-ons installed. Many Internet Explorer 8 users do not even know that an ad blocking feature exists in the web browser. It can be easily accessed by pressing the shortcut [Ctrl Shift F] which will open the InPrivate Filtering settings. It is however not as easy to use as it will only allow to block elements that are appearing on multiple websites. This can be either automatic or manual. There is however no obvious way of blocking an element on a single website right away.

A user of the DSL Reports forum has converted the Adblock Plus list of blocked advertisement into an XML format that can be imported into Internet Explorer 8. All that needs to be done is to download the xml file from the website and import it into Internet Explorer 8 so that all of the ads and ad providers on that list are blocked automatically in Internet Explorer 8. The file has a size of more than eight Kilobytes and can be imported into Internet Explorer the following way after downloading and unpacking it.

Open Internet Explorer 8. Access Tools > InPrivate Filtering Settings from the toolbar menu.

inprivate filtering

A click on the Advanced Settings link in the lower half will open a new window that can be used to import filters in xml format.

internet explorer 8 ad blocking

The xml list can be imported easily by clicking on the Import button and selecting the xml file from the local hard drive. A message should appear notifying the user that the list was successfully imported. The main window should be filled with blocking rules after clicking ok.

ie8 rules

The ads will now be automatically blocked in Internet Explorer. The only problems with this approach are that there is no way of automatically updating the list in regular intervals. There is also no option to enable the list globally but disable it on selected websites.

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/04/08/internet-explorer-8-ad-blocking/feed/ 8 Google Adsense Enables Font Selection http://www.ghacks.net/2009/02/20/google-adsense-enables-font-selection/ http://www.ghacks.net/2009/02/20/google-adsense-enables-font-selection/#comments Fri, 20 Feb 2009 16:11:26 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=10674 Normal Google Adsense users – those that do not have the status of a premium publisher – have always been at a severe disadvantage when customizing Adsense units. One of the major points of criticism over the year was the inability to change the default font mix that Google used to display Adsense units. You could find some tricks on the Internet to analyze the Adsense code and find out about the fonts used but you would soon be left with a choice as the size and font face differed depending on the ad unit and even on the number of ads that have been displayed in that unit.

The Inside Adsense blog made an announcement today that changes this restriction. Adsense users can now switch from the default Google Adsense font selection to either Arial, Verdana or Times. This makes it easier to use the same font for the display of Adsense units that is being used on the rest of the website. It is most likely that using the same font to display the Adsense unit and the content on the website will yield higher revenue.

It is probably a good idea to test all three new font combinations on the website to find the one with the best results. Fonts can be changed for single ad units or globally in the Adsense account. A click on the My Account link in the top menu and a selection of Ad Display Preference will open the menu where the font setting can be edited globally. Individual ad units can be changed by clicking on Adsense Setup > Manage Ads > Edit Ad Settings.

adsense fonts

Being able to change the default font face is definitely a step in the right direction. Premium publishers have still an advantage as they can change the font size and other settings as well which are still locked for non-premium users.

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]]> http://www.ghacks.net/2009/02/20/google-adsense-enables-font-selection/feed/ 6 Disabled Adsense Ads for Regular Readers http://www.ghacks.net/2008/05/08/disabled-adsense-ads-for-regular-readers/ http://www.ghacks.net/2008/05/08/disabled-adsense-ads-for-regular-readers/#comments Thu, 08 May 2008 13:40:40 +0000 Martin http://www.ghacks.net/?p=4049 I’m currently testing a Wordpress plugin that I always wanted to test but never had the opportunity to do it. It’s the Who Sees Ads plugin which allows the administrator to define rules on who is seeing ads on the website and who is not. I figured that regular readers would not click on ads that much / at all and want to test that theory by disabling Adsense ads, those that are on the left side of every article, for them.

A regular reader is one that views at least three pages on my website in 14 days. I’m not sure how this is going to be tracked, probably through the use of cookies. This is a test only and it could turn out that my regular readers are clicking the ads and the ones that are referred from other websites are not.

If that is the case and my earnings drop a lot I will turn it back on because that’s how I make my living. I hope that it turns out to be beneficial to everyone. Less ads is always nice and if the earnings remain stable I will definitely keep the plugin. Hope you can understand my motivation to do it that way.

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