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Hi all,
Vanilla are planning an update to the site on April 24th (next Wednesday). It is a major PHP8 update which is expected to boost performance across the site. The site will be down from 7pm and it is expected to take about an hour to complete. We appreciate your patience during the update.
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New Advertising methods on Boards

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245

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  • Options
    #32
    Dav
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,840 ✭✭✭Dav


    It's going to be rolling out today.


  • Options
    #33
    T-Bird
    Registered Users Posts: 1,309 ✭✭✭T-Bird


    So is this why there are no stars on the touchsite anymore to show updated threads?

    It still works fine on normal site, just a bit annoying that's all.


  • Options
    #34
    freelancerTax
    Registered Users Posts: 391 ✭✭freelancerTax


    can no longer use the touch site.. I find it funny that the full site performs better on my phone than the touch site. I have no problem with boards making money from ads but at least make sure you don't need a super computer to display the ads. they are completely unsuitable for mobile sites having large animated ads that are incredibly processor intensive to the degree that you can't even scroll the page.


  • Options
    #35
    kerry4sam
    Registered Users Posts: 15,127 ✭✭✭✭kerry4sam


    Can you answer this for me by any chance Please?

    Rubicon is 1 out of 104 companies that initially had access to determine my ad-choices. I've turned off 103 ; ie. all but Rubicon.

    When you hover over the ad's on here Rubicon shows as being part of the domain for some adverts.

    It states cannot connect / experiencing technical issues when I go to turn it off. Tried differing days & times and when it finally connects it shows Yes for delivering 'customised adverts' on my pc. When I try to turn it off it disconnects again.

    It simply won't allow me to turn the setting off. Out of the 104 , this is the only one whose setting seems fixed.

    Would you have any insights into this per chance?

    Many Thanks,
    kerry4sam


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    #36
    Brendan Flowers
    Registered Users Posts: 1,372 ✭✭✭Brendan Flowers


    I presume the skimlinks have been rolled out now? Is there any examples of post that have these?


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  • Options
    #37
    justsomebloke
    Registered Users Posts: 10,407 ✭✭✭✭justsomebloke


    the first post here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057443272. It's the first time coming across them and slightly annoying as I had assumed the OP had been trying to link to the product in question rather then boards putting in the links


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    #38
    28064212
    Registered Users Posts: 10,457 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    justsomebloke wrote: »
    the first post here http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057443272. It's the first time coming across them and slightly annoying as I had assumed the OP had been trying to link to the product in question rather then boards putting in the links
    +1. Previously stated:
    Boards.ie: Seán wrote: »
    Hi dulpit, it's the former, not the latter. The flavour of Skimlinks we are intending to rollout will only generate affiliate links if someone posts an actual link to a product, _not_ if the product is mentioned but there is no link. Hope this helps
    That doesn't appear to be the case. The OP in the linked thread doesn't appear to have linked to amazon.de, but the skimlinks have been automatically inserted. Disappointing

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and dark mode). Now available through the extension stores

    Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/addon/boardsie-enhancement-suite/

    Chrome/Edge/Opera: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/boardsie-enhancement-suit/bbgnmnfagihoohjkofdnofcfmkpdmmce



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    #39
    28064212
    Registered Users Posts: 10,457 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    ^ Any comment from the office?

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and dark mode). Now available through the extension stores

    Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/addon/boardsie-enhancement-suite/

    Chrome/Edge/Opera: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/boardsie-enhancement-suit/bbgnmnfagihoohjkofdnofcfmkpdmmce



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    #40
    Dav
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,840 ✭✭✭Dav


    A plaintext web address being automatically turned into a link? What sort of "disappointment" is this? Had the person above put www. in front of it, VBulletin would have done the same.

    I'm genuinely stumped as to what the actual issue is here?


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    #41
    28064212
    Registered Users Posts: 10,457 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    Dav wrote: »
    A plaintext web address being automatically turned into a link? What sort of "disappointment" is this? Had the person above put www. in front of it, VBulletin would have done the same.

    I'm genuinely stumped as to what the actual issue is here?
    It directly contradicts what Boards.ie: Seán said earlier in the thread. Do you not see an issue with that?

    And vBulletin's url parsing functionality is not the same thing. A poster has the option of bypassing that, e.g.: [noparse]www.google.ie[/noparse]. They don't have the option of bypassing the skimlinks functionality, e.g.: [noparse]www.amazon.de[/noparse]

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and dark mode). Now available through the extension stores

    Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/addon/boardsie-enhancement-suite/

    Chrome/Edge/Opera: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/boardsie-enhancement-suit/bbgnmnfagihoohjkofdnofcfmkpdmmce



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    #42
    Dades
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 25,558 Mod ✭✭✭✭Dades


    28064212 wrote: »
    It directly contradicts what Boards.ie: Seán said earlier in the thread. Do you not see an issue with that?
    Seán seems here to have been easing concerns that mentioning a product would automatically create a skimlink. The treatment of basic URLs you bring up probably wasn't being addressed (and maybe hadn't even been noticed).
    28064212 wrote: »
    And vBulletin's url parsing functionality is not the same thing. A poster has the option of bypassing that, e.g.: [noparse]www.google.ie[/noparse]. They don't have the option of bypassing the skimlinks functionality, e.g.: [noparse]www.amazon.de[/noparse]
    Is it a problem that all URLs (with or without http) get turned into links to the actual link? I'd have thought in BA it's customary to post a link anyway.

    You can also just drop the www to achive the same effect, e.g. google.ie


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    #43
    28064212
    Registered Users Posts: 10,457 ✭✭✭✭28064212


    Dades wrote: »
    Seán seems here to have been easing concerns that mentioning a product would automatically create a skimlink. The treatment of basic URLs you bring up probably wasn't being addressed (and maybe hadn't even been noticed).
    The (strong) implication was that nothing would be done to any posts that wasn't already happening.
    Dades wrote: »
    You can also just drop the www to achive the same effect, e.g. google.ie
    Except it doesn't work for skimlinks: amazon.de gets a link. google.ie doesn't

    Boardsie Enhancement Suite - a browser extension to make using Boards on desktop a better experience (includes full-width display, keyboard shortcuts, and dark mode). Now available through the extension stores

    Firefox: https://addons.mozilla.org/addon/boardsie-enhancement-suite/

    Chrome/Edge/Opera: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/boardsie-enhancement-suit/bbgnmnfagihoohjkofdnofcfmkpdmmce



  • Options
    #44
    DannyD
    Registered Users Posts: 852 ✭✭✭DannyD


    so boards can schill but I can't . Bah...... Schilllinks


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    #45
    Banta
    Registered Users Posts: 262 ✭✭Banta


    Looks like there could be a problem with this here? Posting this just to see...

    AccessAw posted up on the Udemy thread on Bargain alerts to a free course, but when you try the link you get a "Invalid Coupon" message, and the course shows up as Full price. I tried this on Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and IE on both Mac OS X and Windows 7. Same result - full price.

    The link should direct to (without all the spaces at the start of the URL):
    https:// www. udemy. com/dslr-photography-modelshoot-101/?couponCode=Be+Inspired.+Start+Now+with+Celebrity+Photographer+&+Cinematograph%C3%A2%C2%80%C2%8B%C3%A2%C2%80%C2%8Ber+Corey+Reese#/

    When you click on the from the thread it addeds a site ID to the end, possibly meaning the referring site (this bit: etc. etc. ...Corey+Reese&siteID=TnL5HPStwNw-hsGVLdpYEKc33B.1jNppKA&LSNPUBID=TnL5HPStwNw) the link shows up as full course price.

    So, link doesn't end with "#/" but "&siteID=TnL5HPStwNw-hsGVLdpYEKc33B.1jNppKA&LSNPUBID=TnL5HPStwNw" instead, and this seems to show the coupon as invalid.

    Here's the thread: http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057198335&page=105 the link in question is the Photography onein post #1567. You can see further replies to it.

    Could be nothing, could be something. Just posting it up here for clarity, as maybe there's a problem. Apologies if it's nothing.


  • Options
    #46
    _Tombstone_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,006 ✭✭✭_Tombstone_


    The opt out links don't seem to work either...or they do but the process at the other end does nothing.


  • Options
    #47
    Dav
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,840 ✭✭✭Dav


    Definitely sounds like something's not right, I'll kick it up the line for investigation today if possible, but it might be tomorrow when someone gets a pair of eyeballs on it.


  • Options
    #48
    KomradeBishop
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,981 ✭✭✭KomradeBishop


    _Tombstone_ wrote: »
    The opt out links don't seem to work either...or they do but the process at the other end does nothing.
    You'll find that opt-outs for almost every kind of advertising/marketing, are deliberately broken - especially on the Internet, and especially with mobile/telephone companies (how many companies have you encountered, that have an opt-out email/text address, which appears to do nothing...).

    I would say it's for similar reasons, that Google does nothing to try and autodetect mislabelled ads that autoplay etc. (based on the code they execute) - they definitely have the resources and technical ability to do this, but they never will because money...


  • Options
    #49
    Buford T Justice
    Registered Users Posts: 6,250 ✭✭✭Buford T Justice


    Am I imagining things, or is there new flashy adds at the tip of each forum page, that wasn't there before?

    FtFRftC.png


  • Options
    #50
    Boards.ie: Niamh
    Boards.ie Employee Posts: 12,597 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Niamh
    Boards.ie Community Manager


    There are always ads there in that position but they rotate between various types - ads we put up for paying customers, house ads for the likes of Adverts/Daft and Google ads. The one in the screenshot is a Google Ad and they can sometimes be a bit "flashy" as you call it. They aren't new though.

    How can I? User's guide to some features on the new site



  • Options
    #51
    Dav
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,840 ✭✭✭Dav


    Banta wrote: »
    Looks like there could be a problem with this here? Posting this just to see...
    So I've checked into this with the last couple of day's UDemy links that've been posted and I've gotten "Free" on the currently listed as free.

    Then I clicked them all again and something went screwy - I got different courses and none of them were free or were showing messages saying the instructor wasn't accepting the free course coupon.

    I've tried again three times and the links as posted by AccessAW are working as they did the first time, so I'm afraid I don't have anything conclusive other than to say "something's not quite right and I'm not sure what yet and if it's related to the Skimlinks." I'll keep looking at it though.
    _Tombstone_ wrote: »
    The opt out links don't seem to work either...or they do but the process at the other end does nothing.
    I'm still looking at this one, I've not been able to definitively confirm one way or the other.


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    #52
    Dyr
    Registered Users Posts: 23,246 ✭✭✭✭Dyr


    "Are you giving them my details?
    There is no sharing of any member's information from Boards to either Skimlinks or Adroll."

    If you're passing on info about our browsing habits then I would certainly consider that giving them my details


  • Options
    #53
    Dav
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,840 ✭✭✭Dav


    Bambi wrote: »
    "Are you giving them my details?
    There is no sharing of any member's information from Boards to either Skimlinks or Adroll."

    If you're passing on info about our browsing habits then I would certainly consider that giving them my details

    But we're not doing that at all.

    If you're unfamiliar with the mechanics of referral technology, here's a brief run-down.

    The destination (in this case Skimlinks) gets the target URL (amazon for example) and the source url (Boards). It then appends their partner code on to the target link so that the percentage of the sale is accredited to them by the retailer. At the same time, they register that this link came from us and if it results in a commission being earned, they share that revenue with us.

    That's it, they don't get your username, they don't get your browsing habits, they don't get anything except that a link was clicked from our site.

    For Adroll, it works slightly differently.

    It's based entirely on the physical device you're browsing from (because that's how cookies work). If you look at, lets say the Soccer forum all the time on your phone, you'll start to see ads tailored to soccer and sport. If you look at Gardening and DIY stuff on your computer, then the ads from Adroll you'll see there will be on those topics.

    In both instances, this is anonymous. Neither service gets *ANY* knowledge of you, of your account name, of your account details, etc. Skimlinks registers a click from Boards, that's it. Adroll registers the topics that device on IP address whatever via the cookie that it's set on said device.


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    #54
    Crumbs868
    Closed Accounts Posts: 438 ✭✭Crumbs868


    What's the deal with all the scam junk mail ads lately which are huge and have flashing borders. Surely these scam adverts give boards a bad name as they are far from genuine. Examples include;

    1millionth customer click to receive free iPhone - this one is in the middle of all the pages I visit, I must have clicked it 50 times by accident

    Earn €75 per week click here

    Click here you have 1 mail.


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    #55
    Hollister11
    Closed Accounts Posts: 5,482 ✭✭✭Hollister11


    Crumbs868 wrote: »
    What's the deal with all the scam junk mail ads lately which are huge and have flashing borders. Surely these scam adverts give boards a bad name as they are far from genuine. Examples include;

    1millionth customer click to receive free iPhone - this one is in the middle of all the pages I visit, I must have clicked it 50 times by accident

    Earn €75 per week click here

    Click here you have 1 mail.

    The only adds I see now.


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    #56
    Boards.ie: Niamh
    Boards.ie Employee Posts: 12,597 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Niamh
    Boards.ie Community Manager


    They are Google ads that unfortunately slip through the parameters we have set out for ads on the site. Some advertisers *gasp* lie about their ads to get it shown on more sites. If any of them are particularly persistent, annoying, flashy, scammy or whatever, please report them in the inappropriate ads thread with screenshot and the click through URL. Thanks.

    How can I? User's guide to some features on the new site



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    #57
    _Tombstone_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,006 ✭✭✭_Tombstone_


    Crumbs868 wrote: »
    What's the deal with all the scam junk mail ads lately which are huge and have flashing borders. Surely these scam adverts give boards a bad name as they are far from genuine. Examples include;

    1millionth customer click to receive free iPhone - this one is in the middle of all the pages I visit, I must have clicked it 50 times by accident

    Earn €75 per week click here

    Click here you have 1 mail.
    Hollister11 wrote: »
    The only adds I see now.

    I'm very surprised Google still allow this, probably coming with Malware aswell, those ads are "Patient Zero" for the need to install Adblock. Googles revenue is still 90%+ from Ads and they're driving people to block them and it's really starting to snowball. I'm curious to see where this is gonna go now. 198 Million people block Ads Globally now at a cost of $22 Billion, up 41% in 12 Months. Still small but...snowball.

    http://blog.pagefair.com/2015/ad-blocking-report/

    Googles starting to "fight back" YouTube Now Bypassing Ad Blockers On Google Chrome <--but that ain't gonna work.


    Apples new IOS Safari is coming with Adblock built in, their new brain child is they want to serve ads from Apps, where 85% of people spend their time...but they can be blocked to. I must be missing something.


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    #58
    KomradeBishop
    Closed Accounts Posts: 4,981 ✭✭✭KomradeBishop


    Ya it is rather trivial for a company with the resources Google has, to devise a solution for automatically determining whether the ads are put into the correct category as well - so it is definitely a deliberate policy, that the categories are 'broken' (feature, not a bug), and that miscategorised ads are let slip through.

    It's obviously a rather major problem, that is not going to go away - probably ever - so that's scoring quite a bad own goal there, putting profits in the short-term ahead, when ultimately this is going to lead to ads becoming a far less viable source of revenue, users and actual web browsers themselves, crack down on them.

    Not only will this hurt Google ultimately, it will hurt the sites that use their ad services too.


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    #59
    _Tombstone_
    Closed Accounts Posts: 3,006 ✭✭✭_Tombstone_


    _Tombstone_ wrote: »
    I must be missing something.

    Welcome to hell: Apple vs. Google vs. Facebook and the slow death of the web


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    #60
    gallag
    Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 3,355 ✭✭✭gallag


    People can be to caught up in this, I don't really care of some of my details are shared etc, I also don't use an add blocker as it will ultimately lead to a pay Web, could do with less of those uber adds that I swear even looking at takes you to the app store though.


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    #61
    Crumbs868
    Closed Accounts Posts: 438 ✭✭Crumbs868


    As poster above stats uber ad is ridiculous. Takes up a huge amount of the screen and in classic boards advertising style has invisible borders so enevatably gets clicked multiple times resulting in being diverted to ap store


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