[wingwalker]

To whomever administers this site:

Today, a Sunday, I escaped to my very favorite web site to avoid the carziness of all the political babble and television advertising my television offers -- only to find a political ad shouting at me from the top of almost every page on this beloved bulletin board.

Please, the revenue from such ads cannot be necessary. They have no0thing to do with Alfa Romeos and they shout. If we need more funding to run this wonderful bulletin board, please ask us members. We'll donate. I sent in some cash last year and will do so yearly if asked (and if you promise to keep this site non-political and free of such advertising).

As we move toward the 2012 elections just over the horizon, please, please, please refuse ads from both political parties -- and especially from left-wing and right-wing fringe folks. Life is too stressful as it is. Some of us need to escape into our apolitical car world. This terrific bulletin board has been a lovely refuge.

One final thought: This is an international site. It is viewed by nice people all over the world. Please let us try to keep some of the nuttiness we Americans are currently exhibiting from further embarrassing us. Our latest weird antics in our Congress cannot be viewed outside our shores as anything except insanity. The political ads up today do not help. Let's keep this behavior to ourselves.

Thank you.

 

[Pat Braden]

Stop the Political Ads, Please

To whomever administers this site:

Today, a Sunday, I escaped to my very favorite web site to avoid the carziness of all the political babble and television advertising my television offers -- only to find a political ad shouting at me from the top of almost every page on this beloved bulletin board.

Please, the revenue from such ads cannot be necessary. They have no0thing to do with Alfa Romeos and they shout. If we need more funding to run this wonderful bulletin board, please ask us members. We'll donate. I sent in some cash last year and will do so yearly if asked (and if you promise to keep this site non-political and free of such advertising).

As we move toward the 2012 elections just over the horizon, please, please, please refuse ads from both political parties -- and especially from left-wing and right-wing fringe folks. Life is too stressful as it is. Some of us need to escape into our apolitical car world. This terrific bulletin board has been a lovely refuge.

One final thought: This is an international site. It is viewed by nice people all over the world. Please let us try to keep some of the nuttiness we Americans are currently exhibiting from further embarrassing us. Our latest weird antics in our Congress cannot be viewed outside our shores as anything except insanity. The political ads up today do not help. Let's keep this behavior to ourselves.

Thank you.

I am not about to criticize Simon for the ads that he uses to support the bb in the absence of revenue not forth coming from bb members with the exception of p*rn. As has been posted before the member numbers far outweigh the number of members who contribute and offer support.

I applaud you for donating; there are some who choose this method over the subscriptions because of the associated jewelry that screams out the same way the political ads that you are criticizing do. The advantage to subscribing are the additional perks offered, including no ads and no word links within the text to ads.

There are ways that I'm not going to post here that you can totally eliminate all ads here and everywhere else you surf.

As for the political ads embarrassing the U.S. and affecting an international community, they do, whether or not they are present here on the bb.

 

[Lokki]

Beyond Alfabb control?

I'm no SME here, but I don't believe that the BB actually controls the ads that appear on your screen and I also believe that they vary depending on your location/IP address.

For example, here in Texas, I'm not seeing any political ads - I mostly get IAP, Centerline, Paul Spruell and some insurance companies.

Perhaps this is because I am a paying member or more likely because Texas isn't in play politically.

In any case, while I hate the ba$7ards as much as you do, I think the ads are just a reminder that ever since we left the gareden of Eden the devil pops up just about everywhere.

 

[Alfisto Steve]

I don't get any ads by using this link Alfa Romeo Bulletin Board & Forums to log on instead of home page Alfa Romeo Bulletin Board & Forums

There is a difference really.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

...If we need more funding to run this wonderful bulletin board, please ask us members. We'll donate...

If only that were true!!!!!!
I don't think Simon gets to pick and choose. I think he is signed up for an ad service or something like that. I really don't know. I never see any ads except on the home bb page. Those are largely, if not completely automobile related. And if I don't like them, I can ignore them.

I read somewhere the ads one see are targeted by tracking cookies on one's computer that log the sites visited. Maybe that is why you see political ads and I do not.

 

[GV27]

Heck, I say let those testas di merda pay the bills around here. No reason we need to comment on those ads. Besides, Larry's right - we don't all see the same thing necessarily anyhow.

 

[wingwalker]

Saved!

Thank you, Loki and Alfisto Steve.

Your responses caused me to look a little harder at how these ads appear. At the top of the forum, among the two banner ads, I found a little icon called "ad choices."

Clicking on that took me to a Google page. Sure enough, I learned that the ads appearing on our computers are directed at individuals based on whatever it is Google knows about us.

But the control area also had a link titled "ads preferences," which allows us to opt out of certain categories of advertising pushed our way.

I removed two categories, both revolving around news (read that slanted news) and politics. I left arts and entertainment -- which means I'll occasionally see ads for movies or tv programs. The rest of the categories are all automotive-related, which I look forward to receiving.

I do like seeing ads directed at our interests. They alert us to sales, specials and so forth from our favorite suppliers. And now, having opted out, I should be protected from nut-case (and even sane) political junk.

So, I'm now happy.

Once again, I have learned something very useful from the Alfa Romeo Bulletin Board! What a great site!

 

[jarrington]

You know, just hypothetically, if you REALLY disliked a political message / ad you could click on it every time it popped up, knowing that every click costs the candidate / organization you dislike some cash and sends revenue toward the AlfaBB.

But of course that would be click fraud, which is bad. So don't do what I just said.

-Jason

 

[Alfamante]

Thank you, Loki and Alfisto Steve.

Your responses caused me to look a little harder at how these ads appear. At the top of the forum, among the two banner ads, I found a little icon called "ad choices."

Clicking on that took me to a Google page. Sure enough, I learned that the ads appearing on our computers are directed at individuals based on whatever it is Google knows about us.

But the control area also had a link titled "ads preferences," which allows us to opt out of certain categories of advertising pushed our way.

I removed two categories, both revolving around news (read that slanted news) and politics. I left arts and entertainment -- which means I'll occasionally see ads for movies or tv programs. The rest of the categories are all automotive-related, which I look forward to receiving.

I do like seeing ads directed at our interests. They alert us to sales, specials and so forth from our favorite suppliers. And now, having opted out, I should be protected from nut-case (and even sane) political junk.

So, I'm now happy.

Once again, I have learned something very useful from the Alfa Romeo Bulletin Board! What a great site!

Excellent suggestion. Took only a minute to remove all "news" "politics" "health & beauty," etc. LOL. They didn't have a category for "booze" "cigars" "greasy foods" or "car porn" but maybe someday they will.

 

[Hamish]

The adds are also tailored to the country you are in, so the international users will be seeing something different to the US ones. Eg, I'm in australia, and about half the adds I see are for australian companies.

I actually find it a bit disconcerting how much google etc track you online, we are far from anonymous.