Web ads are becoming very focused

[TimberWolf]

I feel Google brings up more adverts in the top search results than it used to.

[MarillionFan]

I thinlk we should try to confuse them. Visit a site for 'marital aids', then go to one that flogs stairlifts, then one that sells bouncy castles.

How did you get a copy of my internet history?

[Sysman]

We had another discussion about sheds on here a while back, so I went looking for some. Every other flaming ad was for sheds for a day after that.

Conversely, when following a link to something completely unrelated to IT, I've recently started getting ads on data centre products.

Noscript used to keep ads down to an acceptable level for me, but the level of ads has recently started to get out of hand. I'll have to add an adblocker or munge my hosts file...

[GreenLabel]

Conversely, when following a link to something completely unrelated to IT, I've recently started getting ads on data centre products.

Noscript used to keep ads down to an acceptable level for me, but the level of ads has recently started to get out of hand. I'll have to add an adblocker or munge my hosts file...

I find the host file to be pretty effective. You need to update it every so often, but it seems to work well. The only functionality that it screwed up was Channel 4 on demand. Just needed to comment those lines out of the file and it came back again though.

[Zippy]

I find the host file to be pretty effective. You need to update it every so often, but it seems to work well. The only functionality that it screwed up was Channel 4 on demand. Just needed to comment those lines out of the file and it came back again though.

It buggers up the Google 'paid for' search results too. Shame.

[The_Equalizer]

Reminds me of the 'good old days' of the internet when hotmail allowed the all new html emails (about 2000) sans filter. I don't think I've ever seen such smut before or since.

[NickFitz]

Reminds me of the 'good old days' of the internet when hotmail allowed the all new html emails (about 2000) sans filter. I don't think I've ever seen such smut before or since.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: using HTML for email is like putting sound effects on your phone calls. Just say <em>no</em>.

[mudskipper]

It's the gmail ads that get me. Even a non-direct reference to something in an email gets ads related to it.

[Sysman]

Another reason to block web ads

Two of the Internet's biggest advertising networks - DoubleClick and MSN - were delivering malware to customers last week.

Writing in his bog, insecurity expert Wayne Huang, of Armorize, claimed a group of attackers was able to trick the networks into displaying their ads by impersonating an online advertising provider.

[TimberWolf]

Do people get local results in Google? For instance if I type "coffee", I get a whole load of coffee shops in my area. I have signed up to iGoogle though.