Pop-up ad
Encyclopedia
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web is a system of interlinked hypertext documents accessed via the Internet...
intended to attract web traffic
Web traffic
Web traffic is the amount of data sent and received by visitors to a web site. It is a large portion of Internet traffic. This is determined by the number of visitors and the number of pages they visit...
or capture email addresses. Pop-ups are generally new web browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
windows to display advertisement
Advertising
Advertising is a form of communication used to persuade an audience to take some action with respect to products, ideas, or services. Most commonly, the desired result is to drive consumer behavior with respect to a commercial offering, although political and ideological advertising is also common...
s. The pop-up window containing an advertisement is usually generated by JavaScript
JavaScript
JavaScript is a prototype-based scripting language that is dynamic, weakly typed and has first-class functions. It is a multi-paradigm language, supporting object-oriented, imperative, and functional programming styles....
, but can be generated by other means as well.
A variation on the pop-up window is the pop-under advertisement, which opens a new browser window hidden under the active window
Active window
An active window is the currently focused window in the current window manager or explorer. Different window managers indicate the currently-active window in different ways and allow the user to switch between windows in different ways. For example, in Microsoft Windows, if both Notepad and...
. Pop-unders do not interrupt the user immediately and are not seen until the covering window is closed, making it more difficult to determine which web site opened them.
Pop-up blocking
OperaOpera (web browser)
Opera is a web browser and Internet suite developed by Opera Software with over 200 million users worldwide. The browser handles common Internet-related tasks such as displaying web sites, sending and receiving e-mail messages, managing contacts, chatting on IRC, downloading files via BitTorrent,...
was the first major browser
Web browser
A web browser is a software application for retrieving, presenting, and traversing information resources on the World Wide Web. An information resource is identified by a Uniform Resource Identifier and may be a web page, image, video, or other piece of content...
to incorporate tools to block pop-up ads; the Mozilla
Mozilla Application Suite
The Mozilla Application Suite is a cross-platform integrated Internet suite. Its development was initiated by Netscape Communications Corporation, before their acquisition by AOL. It is based on the source code of Netscape Communicator...
browser later improved on this by blocking only pop-ups generated as the page loads. In the early 2000s, all major web browsers except Internet Explorer
Internet Explorer
Windows Internet Explorer is a series of graphical web browsers developed by Microsoft and included as part of the Microsoft Windows line of operating systems, starting in 1995. It was first released as part of the add-on package Plus! for Windows 95 that year...
allowed the user to block unwanted pop-ups almost completely. In 2004, Microsoft released Windows XP
Windows XP
Windows XP is an operating system produced by Microsoft for use on personal computers, including home and business desktops, laptops and media centers. First released to computer manufacturers on August 24, 2001, it is the second most popular version of Windows, based on installed user base...
SP2, which added pop-up blocking to Internet Explorer.
Most modern browsers come with pop-up blocking tools; third-party tools tend to include other features such as ad filtering
Ad filtering
Ad filtering or ad blocking is removing or altering advertising content in a webpage. Advertising can exist in a variety of forms including pictures, animations, text, or pop-up windows. More advanced filters allow fine-grained control of advertisements through features such as blacklists,...
.
"Pop-ups"
- Certain types of downloaded content, such as images, free music, and others, can cause pop ups, especially pornographic sites' pop ups (known as a "pornado" or "porn-storm", as coined by John C. DvorakJohn C. DvorakJohn C. Dvorak is an American columnist and broadcaster in the areas of technology and computing. His writing extends back to the 1980s, when he was a mainstay of a variety of magazines. Dvorak is also the Vice-President of Mevio and well known for his work for Tech TV...
.) Also, the pop ups will sometimes look like ordinary web pages, and the name of the site will show up in a search bar. Many websites use pop-ups to display information without disrupting the page currently open. For example, if you were to fill in a form on a web page and needed extra guidance, a pop-up would give you extra information without causing loss of any information already entered into the form. Most pop-up blockers will allow this kind of pop-up. However, some will reload the page, causing loss of any information that had been entered. - Some web based installers, such as that used by McAfeeMcAfeeMcAfee, Inc. is a computer security company headquartered in Santa Clara, California, USA. It markets software and services to home users, businesses and the public sector. On August 19, 2010, electronics company Intel agreed to purchase McAfee for $7.68 billion...
, use a pop-up to install software. - On many internet browsers, holding down the ctrlCTRLCTRL may refer to several things:*Channel Tunnel Rail Link, a high-speed railway line opened in the 2000s in Britain*Control key, an input button present on most computer keyboards*Ctrl, an American comedy web series from NBC...
key while clicking a link will allow it to bypass the popup filter. - Clicking (even accidentally) on one pop-up may lead to other pop-up ads opening.
Circumventing pop-up blocker
A combination of a banner ad and a popup window is the "hover adHover ad
Hover ads are a special type of pop-up ads created using Dynamic HTML, JavaScript and similar web browser technologies. Because they do not scroll with the web page, they appear to "hover" over the page, usually obscuring the content.- Background :...
", which uses DHTML to appear in front of the browser screen. With the use of JavaScript, an advertisement can be superimposed over a webpage in a transparent layer. This advertisement can appear as almost anything the author of the advertisement wants. For example, an advertisement can contain an Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
animation linking to the advertiser's site. An advertisement can also look like a regular window
Window (computing)
In computing, a window is a visual area containing some kind of user interface. It usually has a rectangular shape that can overlap with the area of other windows...
. Because the advertisement is a part of the web page, it cannot be blocked with a pop-up blocker, but it can be blocked with third-party ad blockers such as Adblock or by using custom style sheets
Cascading Style Sheets
Cascading Style Sheets is a style sheet language used to describe the presentation semantics of a document written in a markup language...
. DHTML ads can be very CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
intensive, sometimes bogging down older computers to the point of unusability.
Pop-under ads
Pop-under ads are similar to pop-up ads, but the ad window appears hidden behind the main browser window rather than superimposed in front of it. As pop-up ads became widespread and took up whole computer screens, many users learned to immediately close the popup ads that appeared over a site without looking at them. Pop-under ads do not immediately impede a user's ability to view the site content, and thus usually remain unnoticed until the main browser window is closed or minimized, leaving the user's attention free for the advertisement.Pop-under ad technology
A pop-under ad involves two very simple JavaScript technologies introduced in 1997 with the Netscape 2.0B3 browser. This methodology has been used widely across the web. Modern web publishers and advertisers utilize this methodology to create a window in front of the users screen, load an advertisement, and then send it behind the screen.// create a new window in front of the current site
window.open( URL, windowName[, windowFeatures] );
// push the loaded advertisement back behind the browser
window.focus;
Pop-up dismissal
Users of websites and web applications continuously experience unwanted pop up ads through the course of their normal interaction with a web browser. Ordinarily users respond by dismissing the pop-up through the "close" or "cancel" feature of the window hosting the pop-up. Because this is a typical response, some authors of pop-up advertising depend on this, and create on-screen buttons or controls that look similar to a "close" or "cancel" option. When the user chooses one of these "simulated cancel" options, however, the button performs an unexpected or unauthorized action (such as opening a new pop-up, or running unauthorized commands on the user's system).Because the technologies for web development and design allow an author to draw any kind of "simulated" cancel option imaginable, some users refuse to click on or interact with any item inside a pop-up window whatsoever.
Patent Controversy
ExitExchange.com filed for a patent in 2000 on a subset of pop-under advertising called an exit pop. Exit pops were first introduced by the ExitExchange corporation in 1999; when a visitor leaves a website, they receive another site or ad. After years of controversy and numerous articles on the pop-under patent, the patent was awarded by the United States Patent and Trademark OfficeUnited States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia,...
(USPTO) in April and June of 2008. The respective patent numbers are 7,386,555 and 7,353,229. Patent 7,386,555 is related to the method of opening an exit pop from a toolbar
Toolbar
In a graphical user interface, on a computer monitor, a toolbar is a GUI widget on which on-screen buttons, icons, menus, or other input or output elements are placed. Toolbars are seen in office suites, graphics editors, and web browsers...
or software application on a computing device, whereas Patent 7,353,229 covers the method used to open an exit pop from an embedded script found within a media file (e.g. JavaScript code found in a web page).
See also
- Ad filteringAd filteringAd filtering or ad blocking is removing or altering advertising content in a webpage. Advertising can exist in a variety of forms including pictures, animations, text, or pop-up windows. More advanced filters allow fine-grained control of advertisements through features such as blacklists,...
- Ad servingAd servingAd serving describes the technology and service that places advertisements on web sites. Ad serving technology companies provide software to web sites and advertisers to serve ads, count them, choose the ads that will make the website or advertiser most money, and monitor progress of different...
- AdwareAdwareAdware, or advertising-supported software, is any software package which automatically plays, displays, or downloads advertisements to a computer. These advertisements can be in the form of a pop-up. They may also be in the user interface of the software or on a screen presented to the user during...
and SpywareSpywareSpyware is a type of malware that can be installed on computers, and which collects small pieces of information about users without their knowledge. The presence of spyware is typically hidden from the user, and can be difficult to detect. Typically, spyware is secretly installed on the user's... - MalwareMalwareMalware, short for malicious software, consists of programming that is designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, or gain unauthorized access to system resources, or that otherwise exhibits abusive behavior...
- JunkmailDirect marketingDirect marketing is a channel-agnostic form of advertising that allows businesses and nonprofits to communicate straight to the customer, with advertising techniques such as mobile messaging, email, interactive consumer websites, online display ads, fliers, catalog distribution, promotional...
- Interstitial webpageInterstitial webpageOn the World Wide Web, interstitials are web pages displayed before or after an expected content page, often to display advertisements or confirm the user's age. Most interstitial advertisements are delivered by an Ad server....
- Lawsuit between1-800 Contacts, Inc. v. WhenU.com, Inc.1-800 CONTACTS v. WhenU.com was a legal dispute beginning in 2002 over pop-up advertisments. It was brought by 1-800 Contacts, an online distributor of various brands of contact lenses against WhenU SaveNow, a maker of advertising software. The suit also named Vision Direct, one of WhenU...
1-800 Contacts1-800 Contacts1-800 CONTACTS is a privately held company based in Draper, Utah that sells various brands of contact lenses, including Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Ciba Vision, Bausch & Lomb and CooperVision...
and WhenU SaveNow over pop-up ad placement - Messaging spamMessaging spamMessaging spam, sometimes called SPIM,is a type of spam targeting users of instant messaging services.-Instant messaging applications:...
- List of pop-up blocking software
- In-session phishingIn-session phishingIn-session phishing is a form of phishing attack which relies on one web browsing session being able to detect the presence of another session on the same web browser, and to then launch a pop-up window that pretends to have been opened from the targeted session...
External links
- How To Stop Internet Popups - entry in wikiHowWikiHowwikiHow is a web-based and wiki-based community, consisting of an extensive database of how-to guides. wikiHow's mission is to build the world's largest and highest quality how-to manual. The site started as an extension of the already existing eHow website, and has evolved to host over 127,000...
- Pop-under ads may hit publisher wallets
- IAB Pop-Up Guidelines and Best Practice