How To Block Annoying Ads in Firefox
Advertisements have become an inevitable part of our life, invading almost every realm. Sometimes they are harmless and easily ignored, but they can appear outright annoying and then again some ads may be too tempting to pass on. But honestly, how often did you find random ads useful?
On the internet it’s not always possible to avoid banners, ads or pop-ups. Firefox offers several different ways to control what is shown to you and what will remain hidden, blocked or covered.
1. Built-in Options
Per default, Firefox can block pop-ups, not load images, and not run Java or JavaScript.
Conveniently, exceptions can be set very easily, so that selected sites can be granted additional rights, such as launching pop-up windows.
However, when you really want to control ads and potential spam, you will have to befriend extensions.
2. Flashblock
Flashblock is the absolute must for blocking Flash advertisements. Blocking Flash also helps to save computer resources. Just as the built in pop-up and image block, this extension allows you to build a Whitelist for Flash-driven websites you would like (or have) to view in all of their beauty.
Additionally, blocked material is indicated by a placeholder on that website which allows you to download and view the Flash content as you please. Flashblock requires JavaScript by the way.
3. Adblock Plus
Adblock Plus is much stronger than Flashblock, but it can also be more difficult to handle. This extension can block all kinds of ads and filters can be set manually to block specific items. The most convenient solution is to subscribe to filters which will automatically block most ads.
Lists should be selected carefully though, as some may slow down the browser. However, it’s save to choose from the filters offered per default.
4. YesScript
As opposed to NoScript, YesScript takes a different approach. It assumes that not all JavaScript is bad, so it doesn’t restrict it per default. Rather JavaScript remains enabled and pages are blocked via a blacklist, that you take full control over it via the browser status bar or options window.
Surely, the security aspect is undermined with this extension. The advantage is less initial maintenance.
5. Add-Art
This little extension doesn’t help to block art but it helps to make blocked ads much nicer.
It works in conjunction with Adblock Plus and recognizes when an advertisement was blocked. It then ads an art image to decorate the blank space, turning your browser into a small art gallery. Unfortunately, it can not replace all script-based ads.
The displayed images change every two weeks, when the current show is updated. If you don’t like a current show, the only way to escape the images is to disable the extension until the next update. This could be improved.
How do you perceive ads? Do you tolerate or fight them? Please share your experience!
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I’ve learned to tolerate them but with the Add-Art i may actually want to get them just to see the “art”.
Yes, the idea is very neat. Unfortunately, the current show is pretty ugly. I don’t quite see how it’s art. But oh well, next week they’ll have a new one.
Blocking Ads is too selfish act! Ads are the the basic income source of site-owners and if you are blocking this source, then it is something like stealing or piracy : gaining from others w/o paying.
I’m paying for the Internet connection I’m using to retrieve this garbage. Why should I download some cr*p from an advertiser’s site (which isn’t even part of the domain I requested), including tons of annoying, animated Flash garbage (which can make up 3/4 of the unaltered page), when I can just decide what I want to view (and *NOT* view)? I’m not going to click on ANY of the advertisements ANYWAY!!!
I can see both points.
But I’m more with Doc since I’m not the type of person to click through internet ads. That’s not to say I never do!
Of course, if everyone was like me and Doc, ads wouldn’t work in the first place because they only work if people actually click them and end up spending money.
Fortunately, not everyone is the same, so there is a niche for both ads and ad blockers. Hail to diversity!
(Comments wont nest below this level)Hi Doc! Say you want to enjoy a fine meal at an Italian restaurant. You pay for the roads that you use to get there (in your taxes), so you order your meal, eat, and then skip out on the bill. You do this over and over again, because darn it, you paid to get there! Moreover, you know a lot of people who do this. For some reason, the management at the restaurant never seems to want to deny people access based in their history of doing this.
How long do you think you are going to be able to get your favorite fine Italian meal? One day, those roads that you’re paying for are going to take you to that restaurant, and it’s going to be boarded up.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Mr. Henenessy, Mr. ArpitNext, et.al.:
The Italian restaurant example, above, is a specious argument. If I go there, on roads I pay for with my taxes . . . well, I paid for the roads, not the food, so I expect a decent trip, not free food. Now, if I look at the menu, decide I don’t want anything, and upon my trying to leave they point a gun at my head — THAT’S more like my experience with Internet advertisers. The fact is, these ads: download malignant code causing slowdowns, crashes, and worse; hijack my browser by doing things like graying the screen & preventing use of the back button; refuse to permanently go away when I click the “close” button, but keep coming back, interrupting my browsing, stopping videos, & closing or blocking windows I was viewing . . . I could go on about the myriad ways they ruin visits to the sites they advertise on. I’ve actually had to use ctrl-alt-delete, because I had no other way of escaping their ads but by closing my browser– and I’m using Firefox, for cryin’ out loud! I blacklist such sites without hesitation or apology. And so the site owners, and their advertisers, have accomplished . . . WHAT, exactly?! I DARE you to justify ANY advertiser inflicting such tactics on Internet passers-by! GO ON! I DARE YOU!
I have no idea what advertisers hope to accomplish with such tactics. I’d certainly NEVER purchase anything from ANYBODY who’d do such things. Lord help anyone who doesn’t have enough anti-spyware -adware, -trojan, -rootkit etc. software after being assaulted by such ads. S/he could end up having to wipe her drive! And here’s a fact: YOU ADVERTISERS HAVE NO RIGHT TO ATTACK MY COMPUTER! I paid for it; I pay for the software that protects it; I pay for the Internet service that YOU use to attack it! It is MY TIME I have to use cleaning up your mess after one of your attacks. Yes, that’s what it is – an attack! So, instead of assaulting me with your malicious garbage, why don’t you go the traditional “Madison Avenue” route: amuse me, wow me, or persuade me with tasteful, RESPECTFUL ads — and go away if I tell you to! Geez, does it take a genius to figure this stuff out? Really?! I have no idea what planet you’re on that you think we’re obligated to put up with such vicious, disrespectful, malicious, unsolicited drivel. Thanks, but I’ll stay on my planet, where we can say “No!” without guilt.
I like FlashBlock. Flash ads are a real nuissance. It astonishes me that, with a dual-core processor and more than a gig of RAM, my computer can slow down to 486 speeds with a few browser windows open — if those windows happen to be laden with Flash ads. I like the notion of being able to view Flash optionally, too, at a click. Remember when patents forced IE to go the direction of requiring a click to “activate” Flash content? I was surprised at what an improvement that was! I’m glad that Firefox now has this “feature,” even if it wasn’t really considered a feature back in the day.
As for AdBlock… it does it’s job, I’ll say that… but it does it too well. Internet publishers (like you!) rely on ads. Google ads, for instance, are unobtrusive, and don’t auto-play. There’s no good reason for blocking those, except to be miserly to a publisher who is being gracious enough not to charge an entry fee. They need to be more judicious about their default black lists, because as it is now, AdBlock is a real problem for web publishers. I think of people surfing with AdBlock on as the HTTP equivalent of people who only download on P2P, but won’t upload too. The relationship should be symbiotic… not parasitic. (I guess you could never tell that I am also a web publisher!)
Quality list, I’d love to get a pair of goggles that run Add-Art for when I’m riding the subway. No surface is safe down there these days it seems.
AdBlockPlus by itself is good, but IMHO it’s really only a complete solution when coupled with the Element Hiding Helper. It allows you to select individual DIV’s to do away with adverts on sites that AdBlock itself can’t help with. Facebook is my favorite place to put this one to use.
i use “stop autoplay” instead of flashblock. it blocks flash, and embedded video like wmp or quick time. it works really well, and blocks flash just like flashblock does.
i guess its preference.
Wladimir Palant, the creator of AdBlockPlus had this to say:
“Ads don’t generate money
Now what happens if people start to block ads? First of all, everybody who hates ads and wouldn’t click them anyway now blocks ads. And this can make advertisers really happy because instead of wasting their bandwidth (and money) they now only serve ads to people who are interested in them. They also get better statistics and can see which ads people find more interesting — without having to estimate the number of people who wouldn’t click any ad.”
http://adblockplus.org/blog/ads-dont-generate-money
Thank you for this article. I was about to noscript the net over these stupid ads.
DOWN WITH IDIOT ADVERTISING!
I don’t mind basic adverts but when the flash image spreads out to cover half of the content I am trying to view then at that point I say screw them. If they really want to get buyers then let them do it the way the rest of us have to. use a common site like ebay and sell some stuff off with links to their site for more “INFO” thus driving traffic to their main site with out really breaking ebays rules. and if they loose a bit selling a few items on ebay it is a lot less than what they spend on possibly instead of definitely reaching people like done through these ads. they really do nothing for me but make sure I will never buy from them if they are annoying and block me from getting to what I am trying to get to. for an example go and look at the adverts from circuit city with all the stuff that pops out and covers half the page causing a ton of content to be hard to read! And blocking ads is nothing like going to get a meal and not paying for it so don’t even go there.
I totaly agree with you! Thank you for the interesting information.