Pop-Up -- Pop Outta Here!! I hate 'em! I'm sure you hate 'em! Yes, it's those annoying pop-up ads that I'm talking about. They're the latest scourge on the Internet. There's the pop-up which opens in addition to the page you expect when you browse to an address. There's the pop-under, which hides itself behind what you're looking up and lurks there until you close your window and there it is. There's even the new "Messenger Service" type of ad that appears out of nowhere. Often you get more than one window opening - did you ever mistype an address and wind up on a porn site, only to find that as you close your window, two or three (or more) other porn sites open up, each of which opens even more when you close them too. It can take forever to get them all closed -- to the point where you sometimes want to just switch off the computer to stop them. Then there's the history -- you've told the kids they're not to go to those sites but when they look in the history they find that you have been there yourself! Explain that one away! I have been asked how to make these pop-up ads. Well here's my answer: forget about it! I have no intention of contributing to this kind of annoyance on the Internet and I hope you don't either. As a reader of HTML Goodies and Goodies To Go you are, I am sure, one of the web's civilized citizens and a proponent of user-friendliness. As such, pop-ups, pop-unders and all related forms are something you fastidiously avoid; of this I am pretty much certain! On the other side of the coin there is the defense against these evils. How can you protect yourself from becoming a victim of the ad barrage? I have a life-preserver to throw out to you, but before I do, let me also mention one more insidious net demon. There are certain pieces of software that are being offered on the internet, ostensibly to help you fight off undesirables, that are themselves the very devils you wish to excise. For example, there is a website called www.PurityScan.com that offers to help you scan your computer for "inappropriate" pornographic files that can "make their way onto your computer when you surf the Internet". When you accept their offer and download and use their software they install a pop up ad server into your computer that you will have a nightmare of a time trying to remove. This server will deliver pop-ups to you regardless of what you are doing on the net! Unbelievable? Here are a couple of extracts from their "Terms" (which, of course, you always read before you install any company's software -- NOT!): "PurityScan will make the following changes to your Internet Browser"; "Several PROMOTIONAL CONSOLES (daughter console/interstitial) may be launched for the duration of time you spend online"; "these changes cannot be reversed"; "If you try to change the items above manually, your changes will be lost when you reboot or turn off your computer". I'll bet you don't like the sound of that now, do you! Even that "inappropriate" porn doesn't seem so bad. Wait though; you haven't heard the worst yet! Try this on for size: "Our site's registration form requires users to give contact and demographic information such as name, e-mail address, age, gender, zip code and country of residence. We may use customer contact information from the registration form to send the user information about our company and promotional material from some of our partners. The customer's contact information may also be used to contact the visitor when necessary and shared with other companies who may want to contact our visitors. Demographic and profile information may also be used to tailor the visitor's experience at our site, showing them content that we think might interest them. We may disclose information you enter during the join process to third parties." You will be giving them all your personal information, allowing them to send targeted ads to you, allowing them to track what you do on the internet and allowing them to share this information with (i.e., sell it to) whomever they please! All this in the name of "Purity" and to help you rid yourself of files that can make their own way onto your computer (which they can't unless you go and get them!) If you find all this hard to believe, read their full terms for yourself; they're on their website. I recommend that you don't download anything from them, though!! I mentioned a life-preserver before, and here it is. You may be familiar with the capabilities of browsers such as Opera to block pop-ups, but even they won't get them all. Matina Fresenius heads up a company in the North West corner of the US called Panicware, inc. Her company has some terrific software for you to use. They have focused their efforts on solving these annoyances and on preserving the privacy of web surfers. While there are some other offerings you may have received in bulk email (another net scourge), Matina's company is the only company with this specialization, with a technical support group and with legitimate credentials that I have found. If there is another such out there, I apologize, but I was not able to find them. Panicware's line of products includes a free version of Pop-Up Stopper, a Pro version with additional intelligent features and the top-of-the-line Companion version which prevents the ads, selectively removes cookies and prevents Internet use tracking. The Companion is only $39.95 and buys you peace as well as peace of mind! They also have (and it's free!) a program called Pop-Up Scanner which is specifically designed to heal you from the harms of PurityScan and other such programs. If you are concerned about your privacy with regard to your computer, also check out "Don't Panic!" and "SpyCop". The reference to Douglas Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide To The Universe" is a very nice touch! Go on over to http://www.panicware.com and get yourself covered. By the way, while you're there, read their privacy policy. It's reads like a privacy policy should; it's about privacy, not publicity. Thanks for Reading! - Vince Barnes