Tech: Dumping popups

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,Lou Judson
Date: 20 Oct 15 - 11:59 AM

Joe - try changing your wording. Instead of accusing (for that is how it sounds to the guilty party) them of stupidity, offer to show them.

"Here, let me show you a cool trick" rather than "oh, you did something wrong."

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST, ^*^
Date: 20 Oct 15 - 10:25 AM

You need to open the preferences sections of the browsers you use and select the search engines you want to use. And if you want Google to be default, set it as such. I take Bing completely out of the picture in my browsers.

Office 365 can be uninstalled. Open the Control Panel, go to the uninstall programs, and look for the microsoft file that contains Office 365. Usually what they do is pre-load it in the computer and what it wants you to do is pay to activate it.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 20 Oct 15 - 08:50 AM

Ok so far. HOWEVER, STUFF LIKE Bing AND OFFICE 365 WON'T GO AWAY.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 20 Oct 15 - 06:15 AM

Spybot only ask for browsers to be closed because pre-scan it clears the temporary files and wants to clear the browser's cache. You can decline, with the only effect it doesn't clear the cache and takes that little bit longer because it has to scan the files in it. Otherwise you're fine.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 09:20 PM

I use Spybot Search & Destroy, but if you use that one you have to be prepared to close all of your browsers when it's time to scan. It pops up (!) and asks if you want to start a scan.

Bill D has a good list of security software that I've relied on over the years. An excellent one to install is WinPatrol. The idea is that it guards your computer's registry. If any new software tries to sneak in and install itself, it needs to add a line in the registry in order to be run in the system. If WinPatrol detects any change to the registry it pops up and asks you if you want to approve the change. If you weren't doing anything like installing a new program, then the answer is usually "no."

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 08:41 PM

Thanks to all.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 10:11 AM

Spybot, Malwarebytes, Adaware are all well regarded and effective tools for keeping malware at bay.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: maeve
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 10:02 AM

Kendall- We've gotten years of excellent results with the free versions of both Malwarebytes and CCleaner, used in turn, and we do get good results also with AdblockPlus. Free applications are not necessarily bad- just choose your source with care.
Maeve & Truelove

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Vashta Nerada
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 09:27 AM

Chances are you've followed some of the "click bait" to see stories that sound gossipy or have scantily clad women. Those can expose your computer to a lot of ad ware crap or hijack it completely via some of the hostage software out there. Regular backups are advised.

In your browser of choice look through the preferences and select "block popups." That won't impact Mudcat but it will prevent a lot of those annoying screens taking over.

Any time one of those appears DON'T CLOSE IT WITH THE RED X IN THE CORNER. They often rewrite the code to change the meaning of the icons and your closing it could actually be approving a download. Instead, move your mouse down to the bottom of the screen in the task bar where the icons for all of your open programs reside. In an unoccupied portion of that bar, RIGHT CLICK your mouse and open "Start Task Manager." You can see what browser window has the current offending popup in the Applications tab of the task manager. Select it then at the bottom of the task manager screen click "End Task." That way you use the computer to close the offending window instead of clicking on a possibly reprogrammed "close" button.

Download and install the free versions of Malwarebytes (at this point it is an industry standard) and Adblock Plus, another free application.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 09:11 AM

Spybot...free? hell no.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 09:02 AM

I don't resent ads that show up here.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 09:00 AM

I just renewed Kasperski anti virus protection but it seems to ignore all that junk that comes up.
It all started when my computer guru did a tune up, $300.00 for what looks like malware to me. Also he installed a counterfeit copy of windows 7. Right after that, he went out of business. I hope we never meet again.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 08:56 AM

Too many choices. There is something that won't let me access Mudcat with an icon. I have to go through search every time. very annoying.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Stanron
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 06:12 AM

"No need to be smug". Spoken like some one who paid for an operating system with an open back door to the dark side. The Opening Poster's second sentence starts with the words "Popups that take over".

I agree that most browsers ought to have the option to block pop ups irrespective of operating system. That's why I mentioned it.

Ads might slow stuff down a tad but I'd rather have them than not have Mudcat.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 05:44 AM

The problem as described didn't sound like browser pop ups, that aside, you don't need Linux to run Firefox with added Adblock and pop up blocker. No need to be smug.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Stanron
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 05:42 AM

Oops, under Menu select Preferences, then Content to get to Block Pop ups.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Stanron
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 05:31 AM

Smug Linux user here with Firefox Mozilla as the default browser. Under Menu select Content and there is an option to block pop ups. It works.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,Peter Laban
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 05:23 AM

Install and run Spybot, Malwarebytes or something similar and scan regularly. Always run a good, up to date, virus/malware program. When installing software, especially free stuff, read the dialogs and decline to install anything other than the software you are trying to install or you'll be drowning in pop ups and search bars, and not to mention versions of Chrome.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 04:28 AM

Pop up blocking is a standard browswer function but you can also buy additional software to do the same thing.

However, the way that you have described the problem sounds more like malware than over enthusiastic advertising. Take your computer to a professional who can run a range of anti virus products against it.

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: Joe Offer
Date: 19 Oct 15 - 03:14 AM

I don't use any ad-blocking software, and my ads are at a lower-than-annoying level. But I maintain a network of a dozen computers, and most of them are used by college student interns. I can't figure out what it is they do, but they sure get a lot of crap on their computers.

My Boss the Nun often looks like she's going to hit me when I say I think her problems are due to "operator error." Funny thing, My Boss the Wife reacts the same way....

I'm always in trouble with women. Why?

-Joe-

Subject: RE: Tech: Dumping popups
From: GUEST,#
Date: 18 Oct 15 - 10:52 PM

https://getadblock.com/

https://getadblock.com/

There. If you feel guilty about Max not getting advertising bucks from the pop-ups that appear here, send him a cheque. Someone will be along shortly I'm sure to complain about that as has happened the half-dozen or so times the subject has been discussed here. Tough beans. AdBlock is free and it works. I sent them $20 because they too work by donations. I see very few ads and I don't miss them at all.

Subject: Tech: Dumping popups
From: kendall
Date: 18 Oct 15 - 10:20 PM

My computer is loaded with unwanted crap that I didn't download. Popups that take over when I'm in the middle of writing an email, commercials, that sort of thing. How can I block them?