According to the article, AOL, uses the most pop-up ads on their
site. Eliminating pop-up ads can be a helpful thing for a blind
netizen.  Below the url, I have included the entire article. The online
article also has associated links for additional exploration.

Steve

http://news.cnet.com/news/0-1005-200-4719798.html

   Consumers combat pop-ups with software, Tricks By Stefanie Olsen
   Staff Writer, CNET News.com
   February 5, 2001, 12:35 p.m. PT

   Kathleen Anderson wants pop-up advertisements gone from the Net.

   As chair of a Connecticut government committee, Anderson is charged
   with ensuring state-run Web sites become accessible to people with
   disabilities. She reviles the use of pop-up ads on mainstream Web
   sites such as AOL.com and Netscape because the disruptive ads--which
   appear on Web pages spontaneously--often confuse a blind person, for
   example, who relies on a screen reader to hear content rather than see
   it on Web sites.

   "Often they pop up two or three at a time and get in the way of screen
   readers so that the text gets all jumbled," Anderson said.

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   Although Anderson's feelings are pegged to a specific cause, they are
   echoed widely among consumers on the Internet, which is increasingly
   becoming littered with such jack-in-the-box ads. Heavily visited sites
   such as Real.com, MSNBC.com and CNN.com are throwing up the ads in
   efforts to improve declining response rates for banners and, in turn,
   squeeze more dollars from advertisers. A pop-up ad, which typically
   takes up a quarter of a page, forces consumers to either act on a
   promotion or click a button to close the window.

   To combat this, Anderson and others are fighting back with software
   and self-styled tricks to keep pop-ups from their screens. Software
   including Pop-Up Stopper and Banner Catcher has emerged to help
   consumers fight the advertisements.

   "Many consumers are tired of the 15, unwanted pop-up windows on their
   computers that can't be closed or avoided without shutting down the
   computer," said Matina Fresenius, chief executive of Seattle-based
   Panicware, which publishes a free download of Pop-Up Stopper
   online.

   The program, which only works with Microsoft's Internet Explorer,
   prevents pop-up windows and gives consumers the choice to view certain
   ads. Fresenius said she got the idea for Pop-Up Stopper after she
   received numerous complaints from parents about the reoccurring
   appearance of pop-ups containing "adult material" on P3 sites
   that kids often visit.

   Since Panicware launched the software nearly a month ago, it has had
   almost 100,000 downloads, Fresenius said.

   A program dubbed Banner Catcher, from Softica Solutions, lets
   consumers either control ad windows automatically or zap ones they
   want to discontinue in future visits to a site. The shareware software
   works on Internet Explorer and AOL Time Warner's Netscape running on
   Windows 95, 98 and NT operating systems.

   Ad nauseam The popularity of such programs could be linked to the
   rise of pop-ups on prominent sites. According to search site
   Top9.com, AOL.com is ranked No. 1 for using pop-ups, followed by
   Netscape.com, Real.com, Jobsonline.com, Msnbc.com, CNN.com and
   Time.com, which were all tested using Internet Explorer 5.0 and
   Netscape 4.7. AOL.com, for example, launches a pop-up promotion urging
   consumers to sign up for AOL 6.0 when consumers immediately visit the
   site.

   Top9.com gives consumers advice on how to prevent the ads, including
   hitting the "control" key plus "W" to knock them out immediately.
   Netscape users can also prevent pop-ups by changing their browser
   preferences to eliminate JavaScript.

   "People loathe pop-ups because it clutters their desktop and forces
   them to do work to clean them up," said Jason Catlett, president of
   anti-spam group Junkbusters. "It's a major reason that people
   start using products for filtering banner ads."

   But such software can be unreliable and even ineffective to a new form
   of online marketing used on such sites as PassThisOn.com, which
   launches multiple browser windows as people exit the site.

   Catlett also suggests turning JavaScript off in browser preferences,
   but it may also make navigating various Web sites more difficult, he
   said.

   "That may be a small price to pay for the peace and quiet," he said.

   But often consumers who are annoyed by the use of pop-ups simply
   refuse to return to the offensive site.

   "I just don't go back to sites that use them," said Anderson, who has
   set her browser preference to ask her if she wants to receive
   JavaScript in a pop-up window. She has also installed software to
   prevent pop-ups.

   "Web masters can find other ways of getting their message across, the
   advertising or marketing, rather than taking control of your desktop,
   which is what they do," she said.

   Catlett added: "The large media properties are already acutely aware
   that they are trying the patience of their users with pop-ups. But
   there's a limit to users' patience."

<End of Article>


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