28-08-2001 13:00									#1
	2nd Banner - Popup Trade-off Enter the AD-FREE zone

As of today we are giving you an option regarding the ads that are show in the forums(note: this is only for the forums. the ads on the rest of the site remain as they are)

The definition of "trade-off" requires a positive and a negative part. Which one do you want to hear first? Anyway...

The good thing is that you wont see the second ad that appeares under the UGO ad on the top(again, only in the forums). These banners are handled directly by us and this is why we can take them off. My personal experience during the last few days using the option is that loading times are better.

The bad thing is that when you enter the main forum page for the first time of your visit(and only in the first time) you will be geting one (single) pop-up ad.


How to enable the option:
- Simply go to styles settings in your options page and select one of the "Special" styles. There is a "Special" equivalent for every existing style.

Notes on the pop-up:
- Dont close it! Eitherwise, the next time you visit the front forum page you will get a new one.
- When you revisit the front page after the first visit a window that doesnt pop-up on you may be created. Simply ignore it, it's a temporary window that closes automatically after a couple of seconds. At all times you will only be seeing the forum page, nothing else.

Got a pop-up while you didnt enable any of the special styles?
- There seems to be a small bug with the styles(unrelated with the ads), and sometimes the style setting is reset. To correct this just go the options page and press the submit button(the right style appears as the selected option already).
- You may also be geting the pop-up if you are logged out. Login so that you can use the style you have selected

Why go into the trouble of changing?
- Because you wont be downloading and seeing ads that rarely interest and because you'll be helping Apolyton

	28-08-2001 17:19									#2
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

How would this help more than a second banner?

	28-08-2001 17:21									#3
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

quote: Originally posted by Urban Ranger How would this help more than a second banner?

cause pop-ups pay better than our normal ads....

	28-08-2001 17:33									#4
	Support Apolyton, buy Galactic Civilizations

Because monetary return is in direct proportion to irritatingness.

	28-08-2001 17:37									#5
	Support Apolyton, buy Galactic Civilizations: Deluxe Edition

Good thing that I have the OT page bookmarked so I avoid the pop-up

	28-08-2001 17:40									#6
	Put an end to popups!

Oh hang on, you're saying we can have either two ads or a pop-up? i'll take the two ads... well, I prefer two ads. Plus, either Apolyton is loading slow or loading normally for me- the banners always load regardless. So... happy happy joy joy

	28-08-2001 17:42									#7
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Gibsie Oh hang on, you're saying we can have either two ads or a pop-up?

either two ads on every page or one ad on every page and a single pop-up for a single time when you enter the forums

	28-08-2001 17:57									#8
	Support Apolyton, buy Call to Power 2

quote: Originally posted by Gibsie Good thing that I have the OT page bookmarked so I avoid the pop-up

well, there will be one time you will get out of the OT wont you?


say, we could have the pop-up on the OT as well, but for everyone, not just those with the special styles

	28-08-2001 18:19									#9
	Lose 30 kilos (of popups)

thankyou for killing this site

	28-08-2001 18:25									#10
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization 2

quote: Originally posted by Immortal Wombat thankyou for killing this site

HUH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If they wanted to do that, they would not make it an option.
Instead, they would just sell their souls to the highest bidder, and swamp us with tons of pop up ads. And to your point, that would probably chase a bunch of people.

But they didn't do that! They are giving us an option!
They should be commended for allowing us to choose how we receive the advertising. How many sites do you know that do that.

	28-08-2001 18:32									#11
	Avatar Enlargement: We've got the solution

oh god...

I really thought I wouldn't have to make this second post, but here I am writing it...

Yes, I understand all the work that goes into the site. I love the site, and love everything about it. I realise the need for ads, and I realise that the choice is much more than any other sites would give, and I am happy to make the decision, it probably won't bother me much.

Perhaps I should have quoted, but my remark was about the compulsory pop-up in the OT section. Now Mark is defiant that the popularity of the OT is not neccessary to the continuation of the site, (nor should it be IMO) but a pop-up there would be a pain.
I also realise that that idea was a joke, so I replied in kind, with a joke. In the "Glonk's trolling" thread, Mark uses those exact words to Glonk/Asher, and I was merely re-using them in such a way to invoke perhaps amusement, with the thought that though owners need the punters, the punters won't come here in the owners are cruel.

It was merely a throwaway remark, and really I commend the whole ads/popups decision, in its entirety.

	28-08-2001 18:32									#12
	Full PM-box? Change here!

There IS an option that hasn't been mentioned yet. . seeing no pop-ups or banners of any kind. . but I don't think Mark and Dan would appreciate it, so i won't mention how to do it, even though many people probably know of it already.

	28-08-2001 18:35									#13
	Get a bigger avatar today!

and of course you just know it, you dont use it, right connorkimbro?

	28-08-2001 18:48									#14
	Support Apolyton, buy Galactic Civilizations: Deluxe Edition

Actually, no, i don't use it.

I did use it when we had that damn pop-up a while back . . and i told you i was using it because of the pop-up then. . and when the pop-up stopped, i stopped using it, just like i said.

	28-08-2001 19:15									#15
	Got spare money?

Netscape crashes whit the popups on.
It loads just nicely untill they open the popups (there seem to be two of them, on little one whitout contenst and one big ad popup) after the popups are loaded, java starts and whatever that java thing does makes netscape crash, same thing has allways happened when I try to enter the "about" section, but I didnt think it was that important and didnt complain.

Could you please fix this?


Edit:
I never had this problem at times when Apolyton has had popup ads before, but allways whit the About section of the page.

	28-08-2001 17:22									#16
	Full PM-box? Change here!

quote: Originally posted by Ming If they wanted to do that, they would not make it an option. Instead, they would just sell their souls to the highest bidder, and swamp us with tons of pop up ads.

You mean like they did with e-bay?

	28-08-2001 17:24									#17
	Space-time discontinuity Tired of ads?

Why does my reply to Ming appear before his post?

	28-08-2001 17:43									#18
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization: The Boardgame

Only one word: Proxomitron. If I find I am going to suffer from loads of pop up ads, it will be reactivated. At the moment there aren't any so I don't care, but if they return en masse like the e-bay one and the whirl girl or whatever she was called...on it goes!

	28-08-2001 18:38									#19
	Enter the AD-FREE zone

why don't people just donate using paypal or something?

a lot of people use this site

so just make a donation, if a 100 people gave 1 dollar that is 100 dollars

1 dollar is much

how much can the ads get you?????

personally I don't usually find the ads that bad, but that is because of while at school my access to a very fast line

Jon Miller

	29-08-2001 02:33									#20
	Enter the AD-FREE zone

Errr... I have the same problem with netscape. If I leave the popups alone my browser quits on me and if I try and close them it freezes up.

Only way I could even post this was through internet explorer . A true sign of desperation.

[Edit : Typo]

Last edited by ravagon on 29-08-2001 at 02:38

	29-08-2001 03:24									#21
	Support Apolyton, buy GURPS/ Alpha Centauri

I don't care, my AtGuard kills popups and page ads

But I can't seem tog et the ads on the Civ III page...

	29-08-2001 03:36									#22
	BUG ALERT! Increase Your PM Length

I tried the special style and it looks like this:

Attachment: screen.jpg
This has been downloaded 403 time(s).

	29-08-2001 03:39									#23
	Increase Your PM Length

Interesting
it appears liekthis only when AtGuard works (scripts and ads diasabled)

Let's try normal style

	29-08-2001 03:41									#24
	Figured out Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

It shows like this when all scripts for poly are disabled.

Probably some bug related to scripts in charge for making Tables for the ads.... tsk tsk tsk


Well, back to normal view and re-enabled scripts. And no ads


Btw, site is quicker now

	29-08-2001 08:43									#25
	Re: Figured out Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Sirotnikov Well, back to normal view and re-enabled scripts. And no ads

another thief....

	29-08-2001 08:45									#26
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

quote: Originally posted by Jon Miller so just make a donation, if a 100 people gave 1 dollar that is 100 dollars 1 dollar is much

people can "give" us 1 dollar now. just not from their pockets
see the "Support Us" link at the bottom of this page

	29-08-2001 08:47									#27
	Support Apolyton, buy Alpha Centauri

quote: Originally posted by Henrik Netscape crashes whit the popups on.

i'm afraid that that's a problem of the pop-up code which is not written by ads, nor can it be changed...

	29-08-2001 15:42									#28
	Support Apolyton, buy Civilization: The Boardgame

But I didnt have any problems whit the temporal popup adds that I have plagued Apolyton from time to time


And this doesnt explain why the "about" page works the same (even though there isnt a popup near it).

	30-08-2001 14:37									#29
	Support Apolyton buy from Amazon

I think it was a good call to only have the popups as an option. It would be far too irritating to most posters to have them, no matter how much we know that it helps to keep the site alive. You just have to look at EZboard's situation. THe popups are a big turn-off, it'll be a matter of time before they will have to close their free service, at the rate that people are leaving

	30-08-2001 21:39									#30
	Support Apolyton or Terrorists Win

I am using the one popup partly because I know it helps ACS and the other because I prefer one popup to two ads any day.

But the thing I am concerned about is default for new users because they won't like popups and they have no loyality. As long as the option is there and the default is two ads, I think this can only be a good thing.