Giant advertisement banners have returned

For the last couple of days every forum page now has a giant advertising banner at the top; originally you only got this if you were a non-subscriber. Subscribers received a smaller, more genteel banner extolling the virtues of various tools, products and potential spouses.

I run both a PC and an I-thing; it appears on both platforms so in my unedumacated mind I think it would be either my profile settings have been changed for me, the system has suffered another glitch for Steven to pull more hair over; or we've been maliciously hacked by a cartel offering free woodworking plans and angle grinders with every Asian bride.

Or....

Has our Benevolent Dictator possibly and unfortunately been forced to accept larger advertising banners in order for us to continue enjoying the forums for free?

Is anyone else seeing this?

Same here. I have not changed any of my settings.

It is a bit annoying but if that is the price we have to pay for our great free Forum, so be it

What banner?? I don't see any :D

Attachment 460151

Turn ad blocking off

Attachment 460153

Then i see this but no giant banner.

Attachment 460155

i am using opera browser on samsung phone.

Hi there

Are you able to send me a screen shot or post one here?

We haven't made any changes to that side of things. Some changes are planned, but only for the unregistered users of the desktop and mobile theme.

thanks

The blank area shown above in Hoey's post is almost twice the depth that it used to be but has an advert in it.

Sorry, I am not proficient enough to get a screen shot.

This is on my I-Pad:
Attachment 460185

I apologise for the extremely boring advert...

Yes, I am seeing these big banner adverts as per the following print screen -

Attachment 460186

I have just been looking at a Facebook link regarding solar panels etc, and not surprisingly I am seeing adverts for solar stuff.

I must admit uploading the photo was super quick, so if having a banner speeds up the forum, then it is fine by me.

Alan...

Im on my fifth Russian bride. Suppose another one cant hurt....

Back to former size this morning. :2tsup:

I'm surprised that Marvel haven't sold advertising space on the Hulk.
After all, he's just a giant Banner...

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Originally Posted by arose62

I'm surprised that Marvel haven't sold advertising space on the Hulk.
After all, he's just a giant Banner...

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:banghead:

Fornicating rodent genitalia; they’re back again.

Attachment 460422

I don’t know which is worse though; the size of the banner or the content. Are my interwebsical browsing patterns so truly mind-numbingly tedious? I’m half expecting a visit from the authorities to check exactly what I’m up to because no-one outside the field of accountancy should be this tragically non-descript.

I use adblock ultimate, no banner adverts to annoy me.
I am familiar with who the advertisers on this forum are and can contact them if I need something

I like (like is probably not the correct word choice here) to manipulate the banner adds by searching a product to see how fast it appears on the various platforms. Some are almost instantaneous others so persistent to the point of being deliberate badgering & harassment, whilst some that appear on the WWF are no more than fronts for scams or very questionable investments.

Attachment 460433

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Originally Posted by woodPixel

Im on my fifth Russian bride. Suppose another one cant hurt....

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WP,

Do they all fit inside one another?

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Originally Posted by Mobyturns

I like (like is probably not the correct word choice here) to manipulate the banner adds by searching a product to see how fast it appears on the various platforms. Some are almost instantaneous others so persistent to the point of being deliberate badgering & harassment, whilst some that appear on the WWF are no more than fronts for scams or very questionable investments.

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I get sick of seeing targeted ads for something I have searched for recently, and even more so if it is ads for something I have already researched and bought.:rolleyes:

Hopefully the next generation of targeted ads will be smart enough to tell when you have already bought the damn thing. :roll:

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Originally Posted by homey

Do they all fit inside one another?

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Matryoshka! Its a format for video piracy! Arrr!!!

Chief Tiff ..... WHAT the blue barnacles is exactly that ad!!!! It makes ZERO sense!!!!..... "We optimise for action so we deliver exceptional performance"

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Originally Posted by woodPixel

Matryoshka! Its a format for video piracy! Arrr!!!"

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i knew a pirate once. They tied him to the main mast and gave him twenty lashes with the cat o’ nine tails. He recovered but the cat’s right off his milk.......

Steven,

here’s a screenshot from my iPad:

Attachment 460573

The ad takes up most of the screen. Hope this helps.

Brian

Yep they're there. Hopefully they help to keep the forums online. The use of mobiles and ad blockers has almost decimated the income that used to pay to keep these forums up and running.

We are currently trialing different ads sizes and styles to see what difference it makes to income. The trial will need to run for a few months to get even a rough idea what is the best, without the ads in some form and an increase in income from them there may not be a forum in the future as I may not be able to afford to continue to keep them up and running.

Would have thought an ad, big or small shouldn't be so bad that members can't stand them, to the point of blocking them. There are often ads showing which I would like to go to but can't or I'm penalized, so surely there are occasional ones that may actually be of help or use to some members.

Not logging in will give you a couple of big, in your face ads, plus another after first post, so way worse than if you are logged in. This is a big forum that costs a fair bit to keep up and running and the revenue from ads has helped a lot over the years but is at an all time low now and has been for a few years thanks to ad blockers and and mobiles especially those using Tapatalk.

I would hope that seeing an ad block at the top of the page should be a small sacrifice for members to make to keep these forums running and free. Maybe even sacrifice enough for some to turn off their ad blockers.

I realize it's not a part of the landscape that some want to see, but for the forums it's becoming an essential part. We can't ask people to click on them as this would break our agreement with the advertisers and see us banned completely from using their advertising. Yet we are constantly keeping the forums free from spammers who include links to websites in their posts many of which are unsafe or scam sites. We do this on a daily basis to protect members from unscrupulous lowlifes. We have even banned many of them like Teds Plans scam and others from showing in the genuine ads. We are doing our bit for you but as you should understand all this is at a cost.

Cheers - Neil :U

Neil, What would be the approximate cost to us for an annual subscription and then not have to endure the advertising.

Tony

I can handle the ads if they assist to keep this excellent forum running. But I am in the totally ignore mode now as none of the ads have had even the smallest bit of interest to me. There is nothing relating to my interests or needs or wants. They are obviously not targeted to any searches I have made.

I have a strong interest in subscribing financially to the forum though :2tsup:

Jane

I have been thinking about uninstalling my adblocker anyway.

It occurred to me the other day that ever since I installed it, girls in my area suddenly lost interest in me.

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Originally Posted by ubeaut

We have even banned many of them like Teds Plans scam and others from showing in the genuine ads. We are doing our bit for you but as you should understand all this is at a cost.

Cheers - Neil :U

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... and BANG- Ted’s back!

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No worries Neil; I was hoping that was the case (as suggested in my original post) rather than another glitch. I truly appreciate the free content and sharing in the forums and have no issue with advertisements being used to support this. In a similar vein, if a paid subscription would return the adverts back to the smaller size then I’d more than likely pay up. I log onto the forum several times a day and would certainly get my money’s worth!

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Originally Posted by Chief Tiff

.In a similar vein, if a paid subscription would return the adverts back to the smaller size then I’d more than likely pay up. I log onto the forum several times a day and would certainly get my money’s worth!

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:whs::exactly:

I run 2 adblockers and I find that what one misses the other one blocks so I rarely see any ads.

The reason that I do that is that on some sites there are more ads than content.

I've never been a big ad-blocker fan, so I'll continue that way to help the forum.

I have never bothered to set up an ad blocker, mainly because they are aimed at Windows machines, and I use a Mac. I did notice that the adverts became bigger a month or so ago, and am intrigued how clever the boffins are that make the ads relevant to my previous search history. The current ad I see is for Bangood following on from browsing their site to look for LED floodlights, and then eventually purchasing some.
The content of the Bangood header ad looks pretty interesting, I might even part with some money for some more goodie in the near future.

It takes only a second or so to skip over the ads, so in the interest of the forums, i am happy to leave them where they are.

Alan...

I would rather have the ads than paying to subscribe.

If there was a subscription it would be harder to attract new members.

The ads certainly don’t worry me. I think that is part of the advertisers’ problem - we have become so used to seeing ads that they are easy to ignore.

In a past life I owned and ran an online forum in the financial services space. I know just how much work and heartache is involved in keeping the spammers and ne’er-do-wells at bay - it is a thankless and never-ending job. I am in awe that Neil and his great team are willing to take this on. Also deeply grateful.

Brian

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Originally Posted by tony_A

Neil, What would be the approximate cost to us for an annual subscription and then not have to endure the advertising.

Tony

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I have no idea Tony and in all honesty don't really want to have to charge a subscription. If advertisers were supported I won't have to. That would be an absolutely last ditch stand which could be a headache to administer.

If it were to happen it would be a voluntary thing with a monthly fee of maybe $5 or a discounted yearly fee of maybe $55. Subscribed members would have no ads and would have a private members forum or something like that. But that's only pie in the sky and may never happen.

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Originally Posted by Chief Tiff

... and BANG- Ted’s back!

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Humph :censored2:. Probably to do with the new trial formats the banning the mongrel not carrying over with them.
I'll see if I can get him back on the banned list again.:bgrab:

Have had 6 requests for side ads (Forum Sponsors) from affiliates since August 25th and a couple of newbies (now banned) putting links to his site only in the last week. I believe he's paying up to 60% of all sales to affiliates. Mongrel must be raking in a fortune scamming innocent people.

Cheers - Neil :U

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Originally Posted by ubeaut

I have no idea Tony and in all honesty don't really want to have to charge a subscription. If advertisers were supported I won't have to. That would be an absolutely last ditch stand which could be a headache to administer.

If it were to happen it would be a voluntary thing with a monthly fee of maybe $5 or a discounted yearly fee of maybe $55. Subscribed members would have no ads and would have a private members forum or something like that. But that's only pie in the sky and may never happen.

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I also hope that it never comes to that either but if it does the pricing suggested would be acceptable and I would ante up.

If it happens I would recommend making the Marketplace a member-only feature. Buyers and sellers benefit from the marketplace so it would be appropriate to charge a fee, and finally you would have a "stick" to help enforce the rules when people do the wrong thing. Break the rules and you're out. Join up with a new name and pay a new fee to continue.

One other thing to consider is using something like donations to help running costs - you could do that now even.... I don't know how they stack up from a fees perspective, but something like Patreon might work, or just drop your PayPal PayMe link somewhere?

The ads are like traffic noise in a new house - after a while they fade into the background. I’ve never used ad blockers.
I mainly use an ipad and sometimes a Windows PC.