Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Discussion on adblockplus.org website and translations
Post Reply
User avatar
Gingerbread Man
Posts: 1339
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:28 am

Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by Gingerbread Man »

Can you please add something to the FAQ about this? Quite a few people seem to be under the mistaken impression that by simply hiding ads, they're supporting their favorite websites. Latest example:
forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=18939
User avatar
greiner
ABP Developer
Posts: 899
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 5:29 pm
Location: Cologne, Germany

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by greiner »

So you want some site to link to for such cases? Under which category would you want to put it?
User avatar
Gingerbread Man
Posts: 1339
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:28 am

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by Gingerbread Man »

It seems to me like the Basic Functionality category is where it would fit best.
User avatar
greiner
ABP Developer
Posts: 899
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 5:29 pm
Location: Cologne, Germany

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by greiner »

Ok, sounds good. You seem to know better than me what should be said. Could you please write a text for that? :)

As soon as I have that I can then upload it to the FAQ.
User avatar
Gingerbread Man
Posts: 1339
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:28 am

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by Gingerbread Man »

Okay, I'll give it a go. I think this captures the gist of what Wladimir was saying in the aforementioned thread. If it meets with your approval, I suggest adding it after the "I sometimes want Adblock Plus to be disabled" question, since it's related.


Can I support my favorite website by downloading but hiding ads?

No. Most advertisers pay per-click, so if you hide ads, you won't actually support the site in question. Additionally, downloading but hiding ads to trick advertisers into paying would be akin to fraud.

In short, if you want to support your favorite websites, you'll have to whitelist them to disable Adblock Plus on those sites.
User avatar
greiner
ABP Developer
Posts: 899
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 5:29 pm
Location: Cologne, Germany

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by greiner »

Great text, thanks! One suggestion I have: What about mentioning that advertisers are able to detect if the ads are hidden and therefore not pay for those views even if their ads were downloaded. This would emphasize even more that it doesn't help anyone to simply hide the ads.
User avatar
Gingerbread Man
Posts: 1339
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:28 am

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by Gingerbread Man »

Like so?

Can I support my favorite website by downloading but hiding ads?

No. Most advertisers pay per-click, so if you hide ads, you won't actually support the site in question. Even in the off-chance of payouts per-view, it's trivial for advertisers to use JavaScript to check if the ads are visible. Additionally, downloading but hiding ads to trick advertisers into paying would be akin to fraud.

In short, if you want to support your favorite websites, you'll have to whitelist them to disable Adblock Plus on those sites.
User avatar
greiner
ABP Developer
Posts: 899
Joined: Mon Sep 03, 2012 5:29 pm
Location: Cologne, Germany

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by greiner »

Done, you can find it at: en/faq_basics#hide-support

Thanks for writing the text!
User avatar
Gingerbread Man
Posts: 1339
Joined: Fri Aug 12, 2011 5:28 am

Re: Add to FAQ: hide but still download ads

Post by Gingerbread Man »

Thank you for adding it.
Post Reply