[Req] filter/remove video.flashtalking.com

[leecovuk]

Hello,

This has been loosely annoying for a while and, as usual, my attempts in guessing how to deal with it have drawn a blank :

Ads from 'video.flashtalking.com' appear for me on various pages. Using the last Sidki beta config, how and where do I/we add an entry/entries into one or more .ptxt files to filter them out?

Hopefully any generic logic here may help me to learn how to do it for any other ad servers/domains which appear to creep through in future.

Many thanks,
Lee

[Oddysey]

Lee;

I worship at the Church of K.I.S.S., and I should tell you that we excommunicated Sidki a long time ago.

There are two ways to fulfill your request easily. One is to use the Hosts file on your system, and the other way is to enter the domain name into the URL KillList, whatever it's called in Sidki's configuration. At that point, no matter where it appears within a webpage, the connection will never be allowed, so you won't see the crapola.

The problem with the Hosts file method is that it's too precise - if you enter -- 127.0.0.1 'video.flashtalking.com' --, only that one sub-domain will be refused..... any other sub-domain of flashtalking.com will still get through. In the Proxo URL KillList, you need only enter -- [^/]++flashtalking.com/ --, and everything from that site is, well, ouf of sight. However, that assumes that the call to the nefarious site was built such that a Proxo filter can find and kill it. Sometimes a webpage will write a call to an inimical website in so insidious a fashion that Proxo will never catch it..... enter the Hosts file. I use 'em both.

And yes, there are other ways, but they involve finding text strings manually, and filtering for them. The two ways listed above are your best bet.

HTH


Oddysey
[/i]

[ProxRocks]

(Oct. 02, 2008 04:59 PM)Oddysey Wrote:  Sometimes a webpage will write a call to an inimical website in so insidious a fashion that Proxo will never catch it.

i beg to differ, Proxo CAN catch it (provided it's Port 80 traffic), it just might not be as "easy"

[leecovuk]

Thanks, Odyssey, ProxRocks too.

I was assuming an entry would be needed in a ptxt file such AdDomains or AdHosts? Would that be better than using the killfile to block the connection? Presumably the page will look neater if it's filtered out.

My ongoing problem is knowing where and how to add entries. All I can really do is take a basic guess, which invariably doesn't seem to achieve anything.
For example, I've tried each of the following lines at the bottom of both AdDomains.ptxt and AdHosts.ptxt but whenever I try this kind of thing it seems to achieve nothing.

video.flashtalking.com
*video.flashtalking.com*
_http://video.flashtalking.com
_http://video.flashtalking.com/
_http://video.flashtalking.com/*

... you get the idea ...


(underscores added just here to stop them being active links)

Lee

[Oddysey]

ProxRocks;

Ordinarily, a browser sends a URL request in either UTF-8 (almost a universal standard now), or in the older ASCII character set. Proxo will catch either of those methods of encoding a URL, provided that the request was straightorward. If it was encoded with escape sequences, for instance, Proxo is dead in the water. There are other ways to evade Proxo too, such a skillfully crafted redirects, etc.

While Proxo is capable of near-miraculous feats, it can't weld the Crack Of Dawn.

~!~!~!~
Lee,

The third line should work, in a normal Proxo config. A backslash should end a URL Match string, and an asterisk is unnecessary. I make the assumption that it would look the same in Sidki's set, but that might be rash of me. 'URL KillFile.txt" is the name of Proxo's "send 'em packing" file, I don't know if Sidki's AdDomains.ptxt is the same thing or not. Perhaps another member here might pitch in...... ?

HTH



Oddysey

[leecovuk]

Thanks Oddysey,

I'll see again / more carefully if that 3rd format works in the 2 ptxt files I mentioned. If not, I'll come back and kindly request more guidance from somebody.
I think the ptxt files I mentioned are for filtering, rather than killing.

Off-topic:
Which config set do you use then? Do you make one yourself? You mentioned K.I.S.S, whatever that is, but maybe it was a joke which bypassed me.

Lee

[ProxRocks]

(Oct. 04, 2008 03:42 AM)Oddysey Wrote:  If it was encoded with escape sequences, for instance, Proxo is dead in the water. There are other ways to evade Proxo too, such a skillfully crafted redirects, etc.

"Show me"... I've not seen any of these 'in the wild'... So show me something REAL, not THEORETICAL

[whenever]

sidki's config set doesn't use URL Killfile.

The general way is to add below entry in AdHosts.ptxt:

Code:

video.flashtalking.com

However, ads may not come in a general way. So, if that entry doesn't work, you'd better give us a url where the ads show up so that others can have a look.

[leecovuk]

Hello whenever,

At least it sounds I've been thinking loosely in the right way then !

They are still coming through; below is a url. You might have to refresh the page a couple of times to see the rollover banner at the top of the page, seeing as the ads insertion seems to rotate between providers.

_http://uk.music.yahoo.com/launchcast/default.asp

Many thanks as I continue to attempt to find the key to the mysterious Prox door ... or something ...


Lee

[whenever]

I refreshed the page several times but couldn't see the banner. Maybe it is regional oriented?

Anyway, you can use hosts file to block that host as Oddysey suggested.

[leecovuk]

ok, thanks.
Putting
127.0.0.1 video.flashtalking.com
into the hosts file found at
C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc
indeed seems to remove the banners cleanly.

If it breaks the Yahoo Launchcast player I'll have to remove the line but I don't think it will.

Seeing as I find Sidki+Prox so hard to grasp, the hosts file technique will probably have to be my method for ad removal when other ad servers creep through.

By the way, regarding Sidki's config not using a generic killfile;
There is some discussion and techniques related to this in the thread 'Block domain/subdomain? (using Sidki Jan 08)'.

-edited at BST 15.14, corrections.

[whenever]

You remind me that although Sidki's config set doesn't use a generic killfile, you can do it by using the IncludeExclude-U.ptxt file:

Code:

## various redirects
##
## example:
## this.site.com/foo/bad_pic.gif    $RDIR(http://local.ptron/killed.gif)

BTW, you forgot to add the link for the thread you mentioned.

[leecovuk]

thanks whenever, another method there, then.

That topic is about 15 or so topics down from the top in this forum.

[43unite]

Just a quick observation: the Firefox extension 'Adblock Plus' already contains 'video.flashtalking' in it's EasyElement+EasyList and completely blocks these ads.

[ProxRocks]

for the "i HATE extensions" crowd (sush as myself ), i use the following for a killfile (sidki-based):

Code:

In = FALSE
Out = TRUE
Key = "!-|||||||||||| URL: Block sel. URL Connects (Out) [add]"
URL = "(^$KEYCHK(^A))$TST(uProt=http:)$TST(keyword=*.b_url.*)"
Match = "($TST(volat=*.log:2.*)$ADDLST(Log-Main,[$DTM(d T)]\tHDR_Out URL-Kill_URL\t\u)|)"
Replace = "Killed\k"