Privoxy - suppress ads on google's web pages

  • Thread starter Thread starter Andreas Kaestner
  • Start date Start date
A

Andreas Kaestner

Hi @ll,

a few days ago I stumbled upon Privoxy, a tool to filter
certain HTML contents (HTML proxy) http://www.privoxy.org/

I was using Proxomitron for a long time, but was
not very satisfied with its configuration (a bit complicated),
even though its filtering capabilities are ok.

So I gave Privoxy a try - and I was impressed.
From the start, without any further configuration,
it didn't let through any ads or popups from the
sites which I had had difficulties with to configure
properly using Proxomitron, neither did it filter too
much in contrary to Prox. Using Prox I had to define
a lot of filtering exceptions and enter many sites
in IE's trusted zone.

Privoxy's documentation is (IMHO) excellent too,
so I was able to set up a filter for Google's ads quickly.

For those who are interested here is the description
of my Google filter:

# Additions to "default.filter":
# ==============================
FILTER: ggroups-ads kill ads in google groups
# the following line is ONE line
s|(<table cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=0 bgcolor=).*(</tr></table>)|-@@@-|sigU

FILTER: ggroups-ads2 kill ads in google groups
# the following line is ONE line
s$(<table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=4 align=right).*(Anzeige hier|message here).*(</table>)$-@@@-$sigU

FILTER: ggroups-ads3 kill ads in google groups
# the following line is ONE line
s|(<table cellpadding=3 cellspacing=0 border=0 height=40 width=100).*onmouseover.*(</table>)|-@@@-|sigU

# End

# Additions to "user.action" in the alias section:
# ================================================
gg = +filter{ggroups-ads} +filter{ggroups-ads2} +filter{ggroups-ads3}

# End

# Additions to "user.action" AFTER the alias section:
# ===================================================
{ gg }
..google.com/
..google.de/

# End

Restart Privoxy - DONE!
 
a few days ago I stumbled upon Privoxy, a tool to filter
certain HTML contents (HTML proxy) http://www.privoxy.org/
Click to expand...

From the manual: "We do not use the registry of Windows."

However, InCtrl5 reports 17 new registry entries!

What about proxy settings of the browser? I kept it set to localhost
(required for Proxomitron), but that did not work, I could not get
anywhere at all. Also it never asked Zonealarm for acces, so how the
heck does it work? When not set to localhost I can visit sites but the
filter is not doing anything. So it does not work "out of the box", at
least not here, Proxomitron does.
I don't see the problem with the Proxomitron interface anyway, it's
quite simple imho. BTW, there is an alternative interface called
ProxoPatcher.
http://www.xs4all.nl/~vsetten/prox/
Heck, Privoxy does not even have an interface, its faceless! All I get
is a configuration file in my notepad replacement.

I'll stick to Proxomitron.

cHris
 
Andreas Kaestner said:
a few days ago I stumbled upon Privoxy, a tool to filter
certain HTML contents (HTML proxy) http://www.privoxy.org/
Click to expand...

Contrary to what it says in the manual and on the site, it added 17
registry entries. I could not get it to work "straight out of the
box". Proxomitron works fine here. If you don't like its interface,
try ProxoPatcher (http://www.xs4all.nl/~vsetten/prox/). Privoxy does
not even have an interface, all I get are configuration files in my
editor. The combination Avant/Proxomitron is perfect imho, never a
popup, ads blocked etc. Drawback: can't visit certain sites, unless
Prox. is bypassed, but then who wants sites which only allow visits
when you see their intrusive ads.

cHris
 
From the manual: "We do not use the registry of Windows."

However, InCtrl5 reports 17 new registry entries!

What about proxy settings of the browser? I kept it set to localhost
(required for Proxomitron), but that did not work, I could not get
anywhere at all. Also it never asked Zonealarm for acces, so how the
heck does it work?
Click to expand...

Set it to localhost port 8118 otherwise it won't be asking ZA for
access, I do have to tell ZAP to let Privoxy have access here.

I've never tried Proxomitron and not likely to because Privoxy works
OK for me.
 
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On Sun, 21 Mar 2004 14:03:50 +0100, cHris wrote:

I've never tried Proxomitron and not likely to because Privoxy works
OK for me.
Click to expand...

Give me Proxomitron anyday. I've used it for a couple of years now,
and if I have any questions, or the Web comes up with another method
of irritating users with flashing ads, redirects & whatever, there's
a good chance that somebody in the Yahoo group will write a suitable
filter & make it available to paste into Proxomitron's config file
within a day.

For example, I've just added a filter from there that turns those
javascript pop-up a new window links into a standard link to open in
the same window instead. Those are links, with status bar notation
like "javascript (...,....)", which are designed to be left- clicked
and open as a popover window.

It's the flexibility & the fact that it has no "use-by" date (as in
relevance to the Web) that gives Proxomitron my vote.

P.S. the Yahoo group is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/prox-list .
Have a look at it and you will see what I mean.
 
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