|
|
|
|
EdenSoft Press Releases
|
|
|
EdenSoft Announces the release of PopUpCop
Berkeley, CA - February 18, 2002 - EdenSoft, a creator
of technologies and software for users of the World Wide Web, today
announced the release of PopUpCop™. PopUpCop blocks unsolicited popup
windows and other annoying Web site behaviors without interfering with
normal Web browsing.
In the early days of the
World Wide Web, browsing was a tranquil experience, similar to reading
a newspaper, magazine, or scholarly journal. The technologies
available to a Web site designer were limited to static Hyper Text
Markup Language (HTML) and a few static image types.
With the entry of commercial interests into the Web, and especially
with the onset of the famed "Browser Wars" between the two largest
publishers of browsing software, the list of technologies and
techniques available to Web site designers grew almost exponentially.
Many of these technologies are designed to deliver multimedia content,
that is, content that moves and makes noise.
Today's Web site designers have a great number of powerful tools at their
disposal. Technologies such as image animations, Dynamic HTML,
Macromedia Flash, and JavaScript can be used to provide a rich,
interactive experience for the person browsing the Web.
Much of the commercial Web's phenomenal growth can be attributed to a
simple revenue model: A service is provided by a Web site in exchange
for showing advertisements to the consumer. This model is well
accepted in the media industry. The model is employed in newspapers,
magazines, radio and television around the world.
Unfortunately, as Internet advertising revenues have fallen, the
powerful Web development technologies have been increasingly used by
advertisers to improve the attention-grabbing characteristics of their
advertisements. Requests for attention have become demands for
attention.
Consumers react to these demands for
attention in a negative way. They become frustrated and annoyed, not
only because they feel assaulted, but also because they feel that they
have lost control over their browsing experience. Indeed, some of
these techniques can be so effective at grabbing a user's attention
that a leading advertising broker recommends that the techniques only
be used in "short flights or with frequency caps".
(http://richmedia.doubleclick.net/floating/dhtmlflying.htm)
PopUpCop is designed to return control of a Web user's browsing
experience back to the user. It does not block all advertisements; it
blocks irritating Web site behavior, which is often used for
advertisements. Like the ideal of a real police officer, it steps into
a volatile situation and uses just enough force to restore calm.
PopUpCop restores tranquility to the Web.
Because
there are millions of very different people using the Web, and because
each person may have a different irritation threshold, PopUpCop is
completely customizable. A PopUpCop user can choose what techniques
and technologies to block, from blocking nothing to turning off
popups, image animations, Java applets, ActiveX controls, JavaScript,
and fourteen other potentially annoying techniques. A user also may
want to change what to block depending on where they are browsing. To
make all this flexibility easy to control, PopUpCop features two key
control mechanisms: the Internet irritation indicator and the Internet
irritation level slider. These two controls work together to provide
information about the techniques that a web site is using and to make
it easy for the user to block one or more of these techniques.
There are quite a few programs already available that claim
to block popups, but most of these programs are either difficult to
use, unreliable, or force a user to accept too many limitations on
their usage of their web browser. For blocking software, the challenge
is to successfully block undesired behaviors, yet not interfere with
desired behaviors. For example, a popup blocker should allow a user to
shift-click on a link in order to view a page in a new window. The
blocker should also allow a user to use link sites, which typically
open links in new windows. PopUpCop allows all these "good" popups,
while at the same time suppressing "bad" unsolicited popups.
Unlike earlier, less sophisticated products, PopUpCop does not use
site title or URL address matching in determining what to block. It
monitors a user's interaction with the browser, and determines what
new windows to block based on a simple collection of rules. It never
interferes with normal browsing and never closes the main browser
window. If a user wants to block only popups, he or she can install
the program with its default settings and forget it.
Some popup blockers employ proxy technology, which can be inefficient
and cause problems in certain networking environments. PopUpCop does
not employ proxy technology, so it is safe, reliable and efficient.
PopUpCop understands and respects Internet Explorer's
security zones. By default, it operates only in the Internet zone, and
does not effect the operation of sites in a user's corporate intranet,
nor sites that a user has designated as trusted. It also does not
suppress popups that come from secure sites.
PopUpCop
is packaged as an Internet Explorer toolbar add-in. After
installation, it occupies a small space on the user's toolbar. It
safely co-exists with other toolbar add-ins.
PopUpCop
is distributed as shareware, with a 30 day free evaluation period. It
is available for download directly from EdenSoft at
http://www.popupcop.com/. The retail price of registration for a
single copy is US$19.95. Dealer and distributor inquiries are invited.
About EdenSoft
EdenSoft creates
technologies and software for users of the World Wide Web. Founded in
1989 to develop tools for software developers, EdenSoft took on a new
mission in 2001: to develop and publish software designed and
engineered to make the World Wide Web experience more pleasant and
productive.
EdenSoft and PopUpCop are trademarks of
EdenSoft. All other trademarks are the property of their respective
owners.
###
For EdenSoft
Peter Eden
510/548-3554
press@edensoft.com
Return to press page
|
|
|
|
|
