Am I the only one who hates the "talking smiley" banner?

I can put up with banner ads. I can even put up with the flashing banner ads that most certainly are triggering epileptic fits amongst ATS/BTS members who are so inclined. After all, sites like Above Top Secret are hosted out of the goodness of Simon Grays heart (though I am sure that he would do so if he were a billionaire). Sites like this cost money to operate and advertising revenue is important. That said, God do I hate those talking smileys! Oh sure, they are cute but having to hear them chattering is driving me nuts! Am I the only one?

what chattering adds?
get a add blocker or download norton security which stops almost all adds
so the only adds u will see is google adds and that is only when they are text

Oh those scare me cause I have my volume on and all of the sudden I hear this "you make me blush" and "bite me" smileys talk. Or this guy saying "Say something!" ewwl that one scares me.

Originally posted by bodrul
what chattering adds?
get a add blocker or download norton security which stops almost all adds
so the only adds u will see is google adds and that is only when they are text

Im sure you meant to say buy Norton legally from a respectable PC store???


And Norton doesnt stop the smiley pop-ups...i have Norton and i still get some coming through!


Mic
:w:

I also have Norton. Too.

But the computer down stairs is almost like overrun by it because it doesn't let anything get through, not even the stuff you want.

Basically watch out and don't overload your Norton!

We should get some better adds than the smiley guys that talk to you. I agree that they are pretty annoying.

Originally posted by MickeyDee

Originally posted by bodrul
what chattering adds?
get a add blocker or download norton security which stops almost all adds
so the only adds u will see is google adds and that is only when they are text

Im sure you meant to say buy Norton legally from a respectable PC store???

And Norton doesnt stop the smiley pop-ups...i have Norton and i still get some coming through!


Mic
:w:

then why havent i seen these adds?
and norton can be downlaoded from their site legally lol
also i got my norton free with my laptop

[edit on 20-11-2005 by bodrul]

Where do U see these talking smiley's ? I never seen them. ( Ihave store bought Norton's too lol does that really make a difference?)

If your ad-blocker isn't stopping them popping up (assuming they are a pop up) try using netscape instead of IE, I don't get any pop ups when using Netscape and use it for certain sites

[edit on 20-11-2005 by ImJaded]

Ah, the advantages of being on dial up...

And trust me there are very few...

By the time the smileys have been up long enough to have loaded enough to speak, I'm already moving to another page...

I laugh in the face of high speed....

Originally posted by Alcor
Ah, the advantages of being on dial up...

And trust me there are very few...

By the time the smileys have been up long enough to have loaded enough to speak, I'm already moving to another page...

I laugh in the face of high speed....

I almost feel like changing my ISP from DSL to dial-up. Of course, for the sake of speed, I think that I can put up with some annoyance. Heck, to be honest, I am annoyed when a page takes longer than the speed of thought to load.

The yellow guy says "Say something!"

Then the robo guy says "what?"

I guess I'd be the red guy all pissed off in the middle of them.

Originally posted by Umbrax

The yellow guy says "Say something!"

Then the robo guy says "what?"

I guess I'd be the red guy all pissed off in the middle of them.

awwww lol I wanna see the lil red mean faced one tell em all to stfu

Originally posted by ImJaded

Originally posted by Umbrax

The yellow guy says "Say something!"

Then the robo guy says "what?"

I guess I'd be the red guy all pissed off in the middle of them.

awwww lol I wanna see the lil red mean faced one tell em all to stfu

'

turn you ad block off and your popup blocker
both together are a powerfull tool

Originally posted by Alcor

I laugh in the face of high speed....

and we laugh at the dial up users
still stuck in the stones ages (how long does it take for a page to load )

I just heard another ad.

"Ready for the action now danger boy?"

Not as annoying as the talking smiles but it still made me jump as I wasn't expecting it.

[edit on 26/11/2005 by Umbrax]

You know...maybe, just maybe...."they" listen to us. It's been a few days since I've seen those abominable talking smileys. Hmmmmmm.

Perhaps I've just been lucky or something.

Perhaps the talking smileys' have finished their "run".

Perhaps Skeptic thought he was starting to have "those flashbacks" again and he yanked those damned talking smileys' and vowed to the Almighty never to have those emissaries of Satan run as a banner again.

or, perhaps, God Himself intervened (thanks Simon).

Originally posted by benevolent tyrant
You know...maybe, just maybe...."they" listen to us. It's been a few days since I've seen those abominable talking smileys. Hmmmmmm.

I have no doubt that marketers come here for "semi-focus groups." Just checking for trends and such.

Sony was pretty quick to remove the spyware from their CDs. I believe this is due to "Internet buzz" back lash.

I wonder if SkepticOverlord thinks this is true or not?

Where are you seeing these ads?

Those types of ads (leaderboards) should not show up for logged-in members.

There will be some interesting news coming soon about how we've been noticed by marketers, and what I'm doing about it that will turn into a positive for members.

I'll describe it in the next Skeptic Overview.

Lol, i have them blocked at home, but when i am at my sons house
its the biggest nuisance there is.
If you try podcasting they come right thru the recording.

I dont like anything talking to me that isnt real.:bnghd:

Originally posted by SkepticOverlord
Where are you seeing these ads?

Not here Skeptic (EDIT:at least I've never seen them here), the Aeon flux one was on Marvel.com and the other one I forget where I got it from.

I was wondering though, do you think there are people in marketing that visit ATS and other 'big' forums'? I'm not saying they start threads asking about products and services, but do they watch us to see opinion and trends?

Maybe the answer will be better suited in your next PODcast?


Thanks.

[edit on 27/11/2005 by Umbrax]