1. SPS Accounts:
    Do you find yourself coming back time after time? Do you appreciate the ongoing hard work to keep this community focused and successful in its mission? Please consider supporting us by upgrading to an SPS Account. Besides the warm and fuzzy feeling that comes from supporting a good cause, you'll also get a significant number of ever-expanding perks and benefits on the site and the forums. Click here to find out more.
    Dismiss Notice
Dismiss Notice
You are currently viewing Boards o' Magick as a guest, but you can register an account here. Registration is fast, easy and free. Once registered you will have access to search the forums, create and respond to threads, PM other members, upload screenshots and access many other features unavailable to guests.

BoM cultivates a friendly and welcoming atmosphere. We have been aiming for quality over quantity with our forums from their inception, and believe that this distinction is truly tangible and valued by our members. We'd love to have you join us today!

(If you have any problems with the registration process or your account login, please contact us. If you've forgotten your username or password, click here.)

Ads - About & Problem Reports

Discussion in 'Sorcerous Sundries' started by Taluntain, May 14, 2008.

  1. Silvery

    Silvery I won't pretend to be your friend coz I'm just not ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2005
    Messages:
    3,224
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    218
    Gender:
    Female
    What's going on on the front page? Everytime I come onto this site there are huge adverts down both sides of the front page for games. I don't get them anywhere else because I have the ad blocker set. It's one of the reasons I got a bloody SPS account in the first place!
     
  2. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    Oops, I forgot to exclude that for SPS account holders. It's actually just one background ad called a "site skin" that I've been testing for the last few days. As far as I can see it only shows a few times a day so it's not really a big deal. For some reason it doesn't want to exclude for SPS accounts like the others ads though, so the resident code wiz will need to fix it. I'll post here when it's done.
     
  3. Chandos the Red

    Chandos the Red This Wheel's on Fire

    Joined:
    Jan 18, 2003
    Messages:
    8,252
    Media:
    82
    Likes Received:
    238
    Gender:
    Male
    Actually, it makes the site look awesome on a 27" monitor at 1080P, Tal. :thumb:
     
  4. The Great Snook Gems: 31/31
    Latest gem: Rogue Stone


    Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    May 15, 2003
    Messages:
    4,123
    Media:
    28
    Likes Received:
    313
    Gender:
    Male
    As annoying as that is, the pop ups that have been showing up are much worse. They don't want to let you close them, if you try to close them they pop up with windows asking you if you are sure you really want to close them as they obviously such a great deal.
     
  5. Chandos the Red

    Chandos the Red This Wheel's on Fire

    Joined:
    Jan 18, 2003
    Messages:
    8,252
    Media:
    82
    Likes Received:
    238
    Gender:
    Male
    Just think of it as the "free market" at work. :p
     
  6. Marceror

    Marceror Chaos Shall Be Sown In Their Footsteps Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    May 3, 2003
    Messages:
    2,770
    Media:
    226
    Likes Received:
    235
    Gender:
    Male
    It wouldn't be as bad if the ads didn't constantly redraw themselves as you scroll down the front page. Instead of a smooth scrolling experience it seems a little like the ads are having a seizure on you. I admit that many of them do look quite cool - great artwork.
     
  7. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    We don't allow such pops, but if nobody reports them, I only remove them whenever I go through the new ads. The first post in this thread has all the information on how you can report bad ads.

    I'm not really sure what exactly is annoying about the site skins though? They show in otherwise blank space and the ones that I've seen look pretty cool.

    That's odd... I've got them set to fixed position so that they don't redraw... none of the ones that I've seen have done that. What browser are you using?
     
  8. Silvery

    Silvery I won't pretend to be your friend coz I'm just not ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2005
    Messages:
    3,224
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    218
    Gender:
    Female
    They're annoying because I shelled out to NOT have adverts showing :D
     
  9. Marceror

    Marceror Chaos Shall Be Sown In Their Footsteps Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    May 3, 2003
    Messages:
    2,770
    Media:
    226
    Likes Received:
    235
    Gender:
    Male
    IE8.

    Oddly, I'm currently looking at a "Dark Orbit" add, and it rolls up the page as I scroll down, rather than redrawing itself.

    Earlier today (and everytime I've seen this sort of add previously) everytime I scrolled, the add would redraw as always to be positioned at the top of the web browser.
     
  10. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    I've changed it now to stay on top of the page and in a fixed spot as that shouldn't be causing any issues...
     
  11. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    Also, the site skin should be disabled with ad display level 1 or higher (same as popups) for all the SPS account holders now. I'm sure Silvery will let me know if not. :D
     
  12. Erod Gems: 14/31
    Latest gem: Chrysoberyl


    Veteran

    Joined:
    May 21, 2005
    Messages:
    652
    Likes Received:
    3
    I think the front page has reached the point where there simply is too much advertising. For example on a 1680*1050 resolution about half of the screen, if not more, is filled with ads! Bright ads on a dark background makes it even worse. Luckily I do not have any reason to visit the front page nowadays myself, but I do wonder what visitors and potential new members feel about the ad overload. Unless ad blocking is more widespread than I thought.
     
  13. Silvery

    Silvery I won't pretend to be your friend coz I'm just not ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran

    Joined:
    Jan 16, 2005
    Messages:
    3,224
    Media:
    40
    Likes Received:
    218
    Gender:
    Female
    DUUUUUUUUUUUUDE!!! Where've you been?!?!
     
  14. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    The top part of the front page is a bit heavy on the ads, granted... but that's only a smart part of the whole page. If it was distributed evenly, it wouldn't be that bad - unfortunately all advertisers want their ads as close to the top of the page as possible. Most even make it a requirement, so I can't do much there. But the front page as the most valuable page for advertisers also has 4 or 5 ads that don't appear on any of the other pages, so it's not really representative of the overall amount of advertising.

    As for ad blockers - running this site and paying for the bandwidth for all the downloads costs a lot a money every month. During the recession donations have practically stopped, but the site's traffic hasn't. People who use ad blockers take away even the little amount of money that ads bring in that could help support the site. We've been offering cheap SPS accounts that allow you to disable all advertising site-wide for many years, so everyone's got a legitimate way to disable all advertising. Ad blocking isn't it, though.
     
  15. Gaear

    Gaear ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful

    Joined:
    Nov 13, 2006
    Messages:
    1,877
    Media:
    13
    Likes Received:
    180
    Robin Sue Joss and 'The Finish Challenge' are driving me crazy. She likes to make roast beef - I get that - but I just wish she wouldn't goose me everytime she unexpectedly starts holding forth about it audibly from the shadows. :p

    It seems to be a stealth ad in that it may start after you've been browsing a page for a while.

    Sadly I didn't grab a screen last time it played, nor a URL (and now I can't get it to play, of course), but it has appeared on the main page in the square ad box over 'Latest Active Threads.'

    Here is the ad verbatim, from YouTube:

     
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 19, 2015
  16. Marceror

    Marceror Chaos Shall Be Sown In Their Footsteps Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    May 3, 2003
    Messages:
    2,770
    Media:
    226
    Likes Received:
    235
    Gender:
    Male
    What do you have against roast beef, and clean pans? I think both of those things are wonderful, personally.
     
  17. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    Yea, I got a few reports about these already - hopefully we can get all the audio ones removed at once. Sorry about that.
     
  18. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    Is anyone still getting any problematic ones?
     
  19. Gaear

    Gaear ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful

    Joined:
    Nov 13, 2006
    Messages:
    1,877
    Media:
    13
    Likes Received:
    180
    As of yesterday I was getting the occasional automatic audio ad (like Robin's), and a bizarre thing where audio from what I presume to be ads would play with no distinguishable video anywhere (it was not coming from the normal ads), but today everything seems to be good. :thumb:
     
  20. Taluntain

    Taluntain Resident Alpha and Omega Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) BoM XenForo Migration Contributor [2015] (for helping support the migration to new forum software!)

    Joined:
    Jun 11, 2000
    Messages:
    23,475
    Media:
    494
    Likes Received:
    538
    Gender:
    Male
    If you or anyone else spot any audio ones again, please let me know.
     
Sorcerer's Place is a project run entirely by fans and for fans. Maintaining Sorcerer's Place and a stable environment for all our hosted sites requires a substantial amount of our time and funds on a regular basis, so please consider supporting us to keep the site up & running smoothly. Thank you!

Sorcerers.net is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to products on amazon.com, amazon.ca and amazon.co.uk. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.