How do those ads work?

[RoyVegasPinoy]

And why do they always advertise the things I'm interested in or have bookmarked? HOW DOES IT KNOW?? Does it go through my bookmarks? But there's no porn ads so probably not lol.

No really, cause I was looking at this fireplace the other day and it showed up in those ads and even gave a promo discount. Got a real good deal on it cause of that.

[urthworm]

spyware! no i dont know but i feel ya

[Draw7Seven]

Advertisers are the biggest contributors to tracking cookies and the like. Yes, they're watching where you're going and figuring out what you'll click.

[urthworm]

cookies are delicious

[RoyVegasPinoy]

Advertisers are the biggest contributors to tracking cookies and the like. Yes, they're watching where you're going and figuring out what you'll click.

/deletes cookies

No! I don't want a Borla exhaust!

Yeah, it's not a bad thing. Those damn ads are actually getting me to click on them. I must be pretty lame when it's showing me great deals on toilets haha.

[shanewdude]

Google is watching you... they know your ip address, and they have software that analyses what's on the page you are looking at. They also know what you have searched for, so they can target adds to you. This means there is a larger chance that you will click on the add, which is what generates income for them. That's also what the "like this" button is for; it tracks preferences so they can advertise more directly to you.

Since the decline of television viewers, and the increase in internet users, advertising companies have had to adapt their trickery to the new media formats. There has been a panic in the ad world because their old ways of manipulation have become less effective.

[RedSiBaron]

Finally someone to properly explain behavioral targetting...thanks for saving me from typing shane haha

[Passenger]

Conspiracy theory worthy.

[talonXracer]

I see one of those advertisements and immediately that product sinks to the bottom of the barrel and will not be considered at all and I will do everything to badmouth the product. that type of advertising is as insidious as any virus.

[Twisted-X]

I've been using Adblock Plus in Firefox so I don't see these types of things. :-p
(though I do turn it off occasionally to click on the fine ads from Ephatch :msmooch:)

A few years ago I was on wikipedia because I was curious about atomic weapons, and in the next browser tab had the Amazon page loaded. Well I wish I had taken a screen shot, because the Amazon page gave me an ad for great deal on atomic bombs. :meek:

[shanewdude]

Finally someone to properly explain behavioral targetting...thanks for saving me from typing shane haha

I saw a really good documentry on it called The Selling Game, and it was pretty interesting. Put together a lot of the things I've read about for the last 10 years or so. I also research this kind of stuff because I teach a media literacy course to kids... it's pretty crazy how they don't know much about how the internet really works.

[kprocivic]

I see one of those advertisements and immediately that product sinks to the bottom of the barrel and will not be considered at all and I will do everything to badmouth the product. that type of advertising is as insidious as any virus.

seems brilliant to me. if i'm going to get advertised something, i'm glad its something i'm interested in.

[RoyVegasPinoy]

seems brilliant to me. if i'm going to get advertised something, i'm glad its something i'm interested in.

Yeah, I really don't see the downside to it. Except for those ads that actually have spyware and viruses and such. Otherwise, it gets ephatch paid, I get to search the web for free, and I get ads on the things I'm interested in. Everybody wins.