So what's next? Well, we're going to setup a blackhole proxy. If that
sounds scary to you, don't worry, I'll explain. A blackhole proxy is a
simple change to the configuration of your web browser, setting it
such that it avoids making connections to banner advertisement
servers and avoids downloading ad images. If your browser can't
connect to the advertisement server, it can't show you the ad image.
The trick behind this is that it uses a mechanism already built into
most recent browsers.
Download the following file by right-clicking on the link and clicking
on "save target as" and saving it to your root drive. You don't have to
save it there, however, but it just makes things easier.
no-ads.pac
Thanks goes to John LoVerso, for providing this file.
To setup a blackhole proxy in IE, follow the instructions below. If you
come to a page that you cannot normally access, temporarily disable
the configuration script.
Click on the "Tools" menu option, then select "Internet Options".
Click on the "Connections" tab and then the "Settings" tab for the connection
you use. If you use dial-up or a VPN, select the connection you want to have
the blackhole proxy active for and then click the "Settings" button. If you don't
use either of those connection methods, click on the "Settings" button under
the LAN settings area in the window.
Click on the check-box next to "Use automatic configuration script" and then
enter the location of the "no-ads.pac" file in the "Address" text box. If you
saved the "no-ads.pac" file to another directory, type it in instead of what's
shown below. You must still have the "file:///" part for it to work. The following
is the same for dial-up and VPNs as it is for LAN settings.
Click on the "Security" tab, then "Local Intranet", and then the "Sites" button.
Make sure the check-box next to "Include all sites that bypass the proxy server"
is selected. It should be by default, but check anyway.
For Firefox users, follow the instructions below.
Click on the "Tools" menu option and select "Options".
Under "General", click on the "Connection Settings" button.
Select "Automatic proxy configuration URL:" and enter the location of the "no-ads.pac"
file in the "Address" text box. If you saved the "no-ads.pac" file to another directory,
type it in instead of what's shown below. You must still have the "file:///" part for
it to work.
You are now finished configuring your computer for a better Internet experience!
Enjoy!
Back
