If you are a Contributing Member and pay US$15 you dont get the adverts. Well worth it ..Cheers..MM.

They are SO irritating!! The ridiculous thing is though, that most of them (or all?) are for USA products/stores/shows etc. Mind you that makes those advertisers easier to avoid. LOL. I do think a lot depends on the software you use. A lot of members seem to be using Firefox and say it eliminates a lot of that. I use Zone Alarm and it helps but not enough, but I think I'm not copping it quite as badly as you. Maybe others can help because I'm pretty much computer illiterate. Cheers, Dee.

The last couple of days I've started getting an annoying ad, somthing to do with Christmas presents, right in the middle of the screen. I'm using firefox. It is the always the same ad. Hopefully after Christmas it will go away.

I am also sick of the puppy ad.

what about that red biscuit ad that takes up the whole screen

If you're using Firefox, those annoying ads can be easily avoided. Start up Firefox: (1) Choose Tools at the menu at the top of the page, then Options. Check Block Popup Windows (click on the box until a cross appears beside this option). (2) If that doesn't work, in Tools--Options--Load Images, check the box that says For Original Web Site only. You also have the option here of turning off images completely (which you might find annoying), and/or turning off Java and Java*Script, which you will need to turn back on to use some websites.

Another suggestion: for people not using Firefox but plagued by the ads, you might like to download Firefox (see URL below), configure it as described in my message above (ie turn off popup windows, maybe third-party images and, if you're desperate, turn off images entirely as well as Java and Java Script). Then you could use this lean version of Firefox only for those pages with these maddening popup ads, like GardenWeb.

Here is a link that might be useful: Download page for Mozilla's Firefox browser

yes firefox gets you away from all of that stuff and comes for free. len

Thanks Cestrum, I hadn't checked the box that said "For Original Web Site only". Lets hope this works.

No that didn't help, in the first post I looked at after checking the box, the ad appeared.

The most important step is to check the Block Popup Windows box (ie click on it until it has a cross in it). This step alone probably kills 95% of the ads. Then quit Firefox before starting it again and revisiting GardenWeb.

I found with my new system, someone sent me a card that required Macromedia player 8. I installed it and then the GW probs started up again. I have downloaded a flash-player uninstaller and ran that, now the problem has stopped. I have the uninstaller on the desk-top so presumably I can reinstall flash-player when I need to and then remove it. The link was kindly provided by onen of our friends here, if you want to try it e-mail me through my page and I'll pass it on.

thanks for all your suggestions - I use netscape (which has the same functionality as firefox) I have pop ups blocked and so far the only thing that seems to have worked is emailing the advertisers and reminding them this is an australian site and their shops are american and that the ads are totally annoying. Emailing them may not stop the adverts but it made me feel much better :-)

You shouldn't be getting ANY popups with the following configurations in Firefox: (1a) Under Tools, Options, Web features: (1b) Block Pop Ups (check, ie click it so it has a tick) (1c) Enable Java (uncheck, ie click it to *remove* the tick) (1d) Enable Java Script (uncheck as above). (1e) Quit your browser (don't just close the window) and restart it. Still getting popups? If so: (2a) Under Tools, Options, Privacy: (2b) Cache (click on CLEAR button). (2c) Quit Firefox then restart. Still getting popups? If so, the big gun left is to clear all info stored in your browser, as it means that the annoying ads have been saved on your computer and are automatically activated when you visit a certain webpage. Problem is that if you rely on your browser to store passwords for you, they will all be cleared. (I have the cache set to be cleared every time the browser is closed, and so have to log on to every site anew, but for me it's worth it.) (3a) Under Tools, Options, Privacy: (3b) At the bottom right of the dropdown box, click the CLEAR button beside 'Clear all information stored while browsing'. (3c) Confirm that this is what you want to do (by clicking on the 'Clear all information' button that appears'). (3d) Quit Firefox and reopen it. Now, the popups MUST be gone. (And I hope you can make sense of this paragraph-less message!)

Thanks Cestrum, I never thought of restarting firefox. Everything else is as you say except clear cache which I don't do everytime but do regularly. Should save myself some time and do as you do.

Cestrum, I don't think the ads are true popups - my reading of the page code is that the ads are an integral part of the page itself. (tho its been ten years since I last wrote a meaningful web page) the forum is powered by ivillage and that's where the ads appear to be coming from.

Paradisi, you may well be right but, whatever they're called, you should be able to disable them in Firefox. I'm running Firefox 1.0.7 (not even the latest) on WinXP with popups blocked, Java/Java Script turned off, images turned off, cache cleared when the broswer is closed and, except when I'm actually composing messages (like now) cookies disabled too. I get no ads whatsoever (just placeholders consisting of the words 'Click here': as if!). You shouldn't have to suffer any ads either. Especially if these are as intrusive as people describe.

don't get any of the stuff you folk are describing on my mac, I use Safari and have no problems with pop-ups at all. My old PC ran Windows and all those pesky things happened!!! Cheers, Sandra

Hi Cestrum. My friendly computer boffin loaded Mozilla Firefox on my WinXP system. Is that what you are describing? I dod not think I have uploaded to more recent version. I ahve tried what you say but things look a little different. I still get pop ups so perhaps I have an older version of Firefox or the Mozilla Firefoc is different. Anyway, thanks for your assistance thus far.

Hi all I am not too techo with this but our tech regularly comes and sorts it all out.We run on Optus broadband. I have rung Optus and requested them to add extra filters and they did. You are not told this by Optus..my sister told me to ring within a day or 2 most ads were gone.I know he uses the latest Mozilla,we have an amazing set up of filters and firewalls and I am a contributing member of GW.All I know is that I have 0 ads...not one!! Whether it is these factors or a combination of some ,I dont Know...Good Luck...Michelle

Fortunately, those pop ups have stopped on mine as well. Thank you to ALL responsible! Daniel

Are the folks who use firefox and are still getting the ads using the adblock extension?

I haven't changed any of my settings and the ads have stopped - so thanks should go, I suppose, to the forum moderators.

Maybe iVillage realised that their american adverts were wasted on a mostly distraught australian audience