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Ads are driving me mad, I am not interested in Lemsip!

Posted , 4 users are following.

mrsmop
mrsmop

I tried to stop them and am now being asked to pay for an 'ad free package'   I am surprised

1 like, 44 replies

44 Replies

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  • mrsmop
    mrsmop

    Posted

    Talking of Google,  I try to use the search engine Duck Duck Go because it doesn't track you  and gather data but, the downside is, sometimes it just doesn't have the answers that I am looking for and it does have an American bias.

    However, they want us all to help to make it better.

    • EileenH
      EileenH mrsmop

      Posted

      Hmmm - don't like American bias! And I have Google so well trained for my medical stuff!!
    • mrsmop
      mrsmop EileenH

      Posted

      I use Google Scholar a lot and I don't like the American bias either, maybe bias isn't quite the right word, they need someone British to work for them to remind them that there is life over this side!
    • EileenH
      EileenH mrsmop

      Posted

      I have a friend who works for them freelance - but given her usual subject matter I'm not sure our prescence should be flagged up! What comes up is based on the number of clicks it has had historically - move on to pages 100+ and you'll perhaps find the Brit stuff ;-)
    • SteV3
      SteV3 mrsmop

      Posted

      Hi Mrs mop,

      I only I only use Google, but not the standard way by entering keywords and Boolean expressions - that way gives you better results, and you can check out sites, how well they are doing, etc.

      There is a well known hack, that allows redirects you on your first visit from a search engine, yet if take the same path again you will get the correct site showing - on your visit initial a cookie is placed on your computer, it does actually harm you as such, but causes mayhem for people running the website, since they will lose visitors very quickly. Google will eventually pick it up and place a 'red flag' on it.

      You cannot call them hackers that do this to websites since all they do is inject code into the site using tools made by proper hackers. I guess they have nothing better to do. It always increases around school holiday times which is typical.

      Regards,

      Les.

  • Emis_Moderator
    Emis_Moderator mrsmop

    Posted

    Hi all,

    Just to let you know the Lemsip ad has been sorted. No ads should display with sound on the site. If you get anything like this again or have any issues with the site can you please message me or if you do post a discussion like this use the Report link to draw it to my attention. I only saw this one in passing. 

    I haven't read all of this but noticed comments re Google and American bias - you can filter Google to only show UK pages if it helps. See image below and click Country: UK. You will need to do this each time you close and open Google but it does stay on UK within the same session. If I've misunderstood your meaning ignore this wink

    Regards,

    Alan

    • EileenH
      EileenH Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      It's OK Alan - we're doing our best to avoid ALL adverts!!

      I know about choosing national pages but when you look for medical stuff having US journals etc is useful. When I want German answers and do a search with German spelling google kindly suggests I filter to get just English! Not entirely the idea but it is kind of them.

      By the way - did you notice, suzanne00 says she reported it to managers a couple of weeks ago?

    • Emis_Moderator
      Emis_Moderator EileenH

      Posted

      Hi Eileen,

      Yes Suzanne reported an ad via the Uservoice site which was sorted at the time. As I said no ads should play with sound but occasionally one may slip through. Once an ad is reported it does not take long to block it or get it fixed. I reported the Lemsip one this morning and it was fixed in about an hour. Unfortunately I was off yesterday otherwise it would have been sorted sooner. Also, if any user feels any ads are inappropriate then let me know and I can ask if they should be removed (but can't guarantee they will). 

      Regards,

      Alan

    • mrsmop
      mrsmop Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      Hi Alan and thank you!!  I no longer have ads thanks to Eileen!

      Thank you also, for sorting the latest spammer, who seemed to think I was interested in call girls!

      And, I too know how to deal with Google, though it does sometimes forget that the UK is not part of the US.

    • mrsmop
      mrsmop EileenH

      Posted

      That'll teach me!!  I said Thank you to Alan and obviously used some words that I shouldn't.
    • suzanne00
      suzanne00 Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      Hi Alan,

      Thanks for the reply. I am still getting ads with audio at times. As per your note above, I will let you know when this happens. I'm grateful that you have looked into this and are striving for a similar outcome.  

      --Suzanne

    • SteV3
      SteV3 mrsmop

      Posted

      LOL... Not interested in a toy boy then Mrs Mop? Surprised to even see spammers on here, I've only seen one since joinng and that was ages ago.

      I guess you have to be careful what you put on this type of forum, I've had a few go moderated but that was due to external links to Neurologists that run their own sites, and the odd Professor. I can understand why these are moderated.

      What I would like to see is my Consultants or Professors in Neurology, have their websites "White-listed" - it save time for the moderators, and my replies regarding Neurology are published instantly. I would see this as an "incentive". Many forums run "white-lists" if a certain usergroup is met, which to me is a good idea.

      No, harm in trying I guess! lol

      Regards,

      Les.

    • EileenH
      EileenH SteV3

      Posted

      For one of the groups in which I participate there is a pinned post which remains at the top of the forum where a set of links that I use frequently have been submitted for approval and posted in a thread. Others have written similar posts in the thread to add their own site which is also directed at the same population. As it is within this site the link to that thread is supposed to go up without checking. Occasionally there are hiccups but generally it works well. 

      If they are always the same sites ask a moderator if something like that is possible.

    • Emis_Moderator
      Emis_Moderator SteV3

      Posted

      Hi Les,

      I did put forward the idea of trusted users who could post links without moderation but it is still in discussion. White listing is an option which I can suggest. We already do this for internal links and links to the FAQ section so the function is there. As Eileen says I have added pinned discussions to a few groups as below with various links and resources. If you think this would help in Neuro disorders for example I can create a discussion. I will be adding more of these discussions over time starting with the more popular groups. 

      https://patient.info/forums/discuss/browse/polymyalgia-rheumatica-and-gca-1708

      https://patient.info/forums/discuss/browse/lichen-sclerosus-1341

      https://patient.info/forums/discuss/browse/depression-683

      https://patient.info/forums/discuss/browse/menopause-1411

      Regards,

      Alan

    • SteV3
      SteV3 Emis_Moderator

      Posted

      Hi Alan,

      That would be a great idea if you could forward the pinned idea to the Neuro disorders.

      Regaxrds,

      Les.

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