I'm a little curious about the statement "Microsoft is
not in the business of blocking ads."
I didn't really know that there was a "business" of
blocking ads in the first place. Is Microsoft "in the
business" of blocking malware?
Also, even if Microsoft isn't "in the business of"
blocking ads, is it really that unreasonable to imagine
that some people (like myself) don't want to see *any*
ads?
A product like MS Antispyware seems like it would be in a
perfect position to include blocking ads as an option.
I am fairly successful at blocking many ads, Microsoft
ads included, by aliasing various internet sites
to "127.0.0.1" in my "hosts" file. (A trick that I
learned from an old ad blocker) It doesn't always work
and sometimes the systems that serve the ads act as
gateways to content that I want to see... so that's a
problem.
I figure that people, Microsoft included, do that by
design. I find the same "design" at atomfilms (etc).
The original intent of the internet was not supposed to
be a place sell people anything. It was originally
intented to be a wordwide library of basically free
information.
Now that is nothing more than an old dream. Few things
are free and there are little or no options to remove ads
even for people that don't want to see them.
Thanks to people that *are* "in the business of" forcing
people to view ads, whether they like it or not. (i.e.
Microsoft)
Just my 2 cents.