Sorry but these changes are appalling!

[BeeCeeBee]

I have been a member of this forum since 2008 and, to the best of my recollection have never said a single derogatory word about it in public. I know I have had my differences in the past but I still try to help out when I can.

 

 

This latest “upgrade” has left me actually appalled. It is not for me to say when a forum owner should or should not allow advertisements on their boards. But in this case I feel that the owner has gone too far. It is bad enough that even members (not just visitors) have to get the full gamut of the banner ads but to have large full color ads placed onto a members post is a bit over the top in terms of generating revenue. My guess is that the old skin would not allow for this kind of thing.

 

 

 

While some of the ads are harmless such as ones for Internet Explorer. Others are downright dangerous. Worse still is the fact in many cases they appear linked to the subject matter and are worded in such a way as to appear that they are a recommended first step in solving a problem.

 

 

 

I do not know if this post will remain in public view but I strongly feel that there should be some warning given to posters that the ads appearing in their own posts are not forum recommendations.

 

 

 

I fully appreciate that this is not under control of the non-owner administrators and that they should not be blamed for this. No one should be compelled to carry advertisements on their own posts and no one, not even an unregistered guest, should be mislead by having these “recommendations” appear on the posts they read.

 

 

Were a member to post links to these sites on their own they would be quickly and properly labeled as spammers and probably banned. This is far worse because it appears to have the official stamp of approval from the forum itself.

 

 

 

Let me repeat, I do not believe that this is anything contemplated by any staff who give of their time freely and without compensation. it nonetheless exists and, in the long run, will undo much of the otherwise good work of this forum.

[Synapse]

Interesting post.....

 

I've noticed also that the advertising is personalised, one or two sites I have used recently have popped up here with the exact same details I have added elsewhere - that is no coincidence and I do feel as though it is intrusive to my privacy.

 

Perhaps the forum owner/admin can guide me/us as to how we can protect our privacy here.

 

Thankyou.

[Plastic Nev]

Sorry guys but I don't see any adverts. However that is because I am using Firefox with "AddBlockPlus" (ABP) installed, so until now I wasn't aware of any adverts, or how intrusive they seemed to be to others. I hope that there will be answers to this problem.

Nev.

[BeeCeeBee]

My suggestion Nev is that you take a look using IE or disable your ad blocker for a bit. It is less a matter of them being intrusive than it is that they are often dangerous and appear in such a way as to suggest that the ad contains a solution to the member's problem. Some actually have little arrows one that appears to be coming from the post.

 

I know you guys well and these are programs that you would not suggest to your worst enemies.

[BeeCeeBee]

This is an example of the worst. There are others almost as bad.

http://i425.photobucket.com/albums/pp336/beeceebee123/th_arrow.png

[mike]

Barry,

 

Some facts and notes about your comments. I hope they help your concerns.

 

• The upgrade has been to the software, the previous "skin" would no longer work with this version thus the default skin has been activated.

 

• There are less adverts on this version of the website than the previous - 3 adverts on this version in fact compared to about 5 or 6 on the previous version.

 

• The update to the forum software was long overdue and may things are still left to complete - hence the notice at the top of the forum still remains. Adverts were indeed on my list of things to look at.

 

While some of the ads are harmless such as ones for Internet Explorer. Others are downright dangerous. Worse still is the fact in many cases they appear linked to the subject matter and are worded in such a way as to appear that they are a recommended first step in solving a problem.

 

I agree, we do not want this confusion for our users - I have removed the in-post adverts for all users and visitors.

 

In regards to privacy, all of our adverts are delivered through the Google Adsense network which millions of websites use. If you are concerned about your privacy please visit the Google website where they provide options to opt-out of interest based adverts.

 

In order to continue to run and support this free forum, adverts are necessary as a source of revenue. I appreciate there is a fine line between generating revenue and annoying users. Personally I think we have managed to achieve this over the years, especially compared to some of the larger PC Help forums around who have up to 3 adverts per page and multiple adverts in users posts.

 

Over the coming days/weeks I will continue to look at the placement of adverts and will strive to keep users informed and involved in this process.

 

If you have any other concerns or questions please do not hesitate to contact me or reply to this post.

 

Mike

[Synapse]

The Google Adsense opt out works a treat, for Safari this extension works the same magic.

 

http://www.orbicule.com/incognito/

[BeeCeeBee]

I agree, we do not want this confusion for our users - I have removed the in-post adverts for all users and visitors.

Mike,

That addresses my concern. The rest is all internal and entirely up to you. I did mention the banner ads but that was just an aside. I don't believe that it was me who raised any security issues.

[Plastic Nev]

Thanks for the clarification Mike on this issue. I appreciate that, and that adverts are unfortunately a very necessary thing to fund the forum.

Hopefully we will no longer be plagued by those where security could be compromised for those who may click on links within them.

I will once again mention that there are add ons for most browsers that block adverts from showing anyway, and as such are an addition to overall security by users not being placed in a position to click on dubious links.

Nev.

[Jelly Bean]

I say,let us give the changes a chance.

 

Yes things are a little confusing at the moment but if we allow the new changes to take effect we maybe more satisfied with them...

 

If in time we feel somethings need changing I am sure we can let Admin know....Then come to a conclusion...

[BeeCeeBee]

JB I don't want to be misunderstood here. Perhaps it was my use of the word "changes" in the title that may lead to some confusion.

 

I am not active enough here to feel that I really should chime in about some things. For the most part these are staff and administration issues.

 

My issue was with the now removed advertisements in posts that were both misleading and in some cases just dangerous. I genuinely feel that the rest is none of my business and, as you say, should be sorted out over time by the appropriate staff.

[Dalo Harkin]

Maybe you should drop in more often Mike........