Forums General Discussion Advertisements in mIRC. 6.31

Never would I have thought I would see the day... Im guessing its old news now, But I just removed the registry key to practise my ASM :P

Anyhow, I wouldnt have believed it if I didnt see it!

http://www.mirc.com/sponsors.html

Ok.

Mk.

You and me both :-) It's not something I would have considered even a month ago. I'm really hoping that people aren't finding it intrusive or annoying. Basically all mIRC is doing is loading a page from the mIRC website, the same page that used to show a registration reminder and my picture. Please let me know what you think.

I wouldn't find it annoying. But it could be a good idea to make it more annoying for those that didn't pay for it. Like you could make it play short video clips or interviews with people who paid/payed their mIRC - anything to take up the victim's time. And then of course, there would be several of them so we don't have to watch the same videos everytime we open it.

-Neal.

Personally, I don't see any reason why it should annoy anyone. It is the only place you see any advertisements and you only ever see it when the About dialog is shown (on start up or manually). It doesn't force a user to do anything, nor from what I've seen are the ads in any way offensive.

Granted, I'm registered, so I don't see those. Still, I found the popup of the webpage every so often more annoying than those ads when I had it running unregistered.

There is a line and I think that would be crossing it. That would just be inviting people to find a crack and then a lot of ad revenue would be lost, even from the people that can live with the nag and the simple banner. The advertisement surprised me, but I think it would be acceptable to just about anyone. As Riamus2 said, it doesn't force anyone to do anything but wait for a few seconds and the old popup was more annoying imo too.

~ Edit ~
Khaled, you could probably make a ton of money from google by adding google search to the toolbar that is always there for unregistered and optional for registered.

Personally, It dosn't bother me at all... But I have a key.

I think that as mIRC is primarily text a text add (such as seen in Windows Live Messenger conversation windows) is more suitable as mIRC is mostly text based.
Perhaps adding a status bar with a customizable text/click area (on left) and advertisement on right?

I think it would be a better alternative and would allow several ads per session...

Please dont try and put in a "relevant ads" page.... The fact google does that freaks me out when I use gmail.

I was going to suggest TrialPay... but I just noticed a trialpay ad! Nice one Khaled.

Now many more people will be able to afford mIRC (FREE!).


I first used trialpay to get WinZip... But I had to register (and make) a bid on ebay.
It was simple, Register, Bid on an item for $0.99 thats worth heaps and delete account.
eBay was willing to thank me for trying their website by paying for a WinZip licence.

As noted above, TrialPay is 100% free to us!!! and it works!


Edit: Should add some more info for other!
The link to a free copy of mIRC is: http://www.mirc.com/regtrialpay.html

Note: Not happy with the offers? Check back later as they change often!

What a great idea. I just used it to buy flowers for my wife for valentines day and almost instantly I received two emails, the first from TrialPay confirming the completed transaction, and the second from mIRC with the registration code.

It's good to see that Khaled isnt going nuts like many though when he blocked Keygens (Well, added the online activation) :P

You should have bought flowers for Khaled.

He probably prefers cash. As do I.

~ Edit ~
Besides, he's not my valentine.

~ Edit: The Sequel ~
It just hit me what argv0 might have meant. I've actually been registered for several years, but my girlfriend at the time registered it for me because she had a PayPal account ([i]and I didn't) and her name was used instead of mine. I saw the TrialPay today and was going to order flowers for the wife for Vday anyway. So now I have a license in my own name and I still have the other license with her name too in case I need another.[/i]

off topic: *starts a new thread called "Flowers for Khaled"*

Not sure if I should put it in the feature suggestions though :P

Now back on topic

Got any further advert plans Khaled? Perhaps its worth considering what I mentioned above about text links?

or add a "I'm cheap" into the version reply (Yes, I'm joking).

Just noticed, That it shows ads even when visiting the about page from the file menu... Not sure if this is intended behavious, but I personally think thats uncool lol.

My mirc is registered so im not sure what happens but does it load say IE and point to that page? If so that could be annoying for anyone playing a game. Specially on an older computer.

Nah, It load "Internet Explorer_Hidden" into memory and uses that inside the about dialog.

you should have the bar on the bottom and also, control who advertizes(own custom adverts)

Advertisements linked with programs tend to send off some spy-ware alarms for me. Even though i know mIRC is free of such, I'm weiry of whether that will be the general perception. I totally sympatize with you having to pay the bill but people really hate advertisements, probably even more then looking at your face (no pun intended). I really hope that this won't open up the door for (open-source) alternatives.

I seriously doubt that would happen... If people are that worried, they would revert to older versions (in fact, alot of people havmt even upgraded yet)

Ok, I had no problems with the ads on the About dialog, but this huge set of ads thrown onto the main page looks absolutely awful.

you mean the main mIRC.com page?

*oh, so I wasnt imaginging it*

I would definately vote that off if I could, looks terrible.
Khaled, Keep the ads on mIRC, But dont kill a great website!

Yes, the mIRC.com main page. Sorry.

I'm wondering what's in the works next for the main page, popup ads? It went from looking like a respectable website for a respectable shareware application to advertisement hell. It's getting a little tacky imo.

~ Edit ~
I assumed it was just the main page but have just realized that every page has the google ads and the ad banner. Such a shame.

Yeh, i don't think tacky even describes it.

Plain and simple: It looks shit. (the ads on the website).
But I guess its khaled's choice...

I'm still experimenting with the advertising, so it's all up in the air currently. It's the first time I've considered advertising in over 12 years of working on mIRC, so there's a lot of fiddling going on.

The advertising in the mIRC About dialog was unsuccessful, that's why I decided to try it out on the website - unfortunately ads are more visible on the website because of the minimalist design. Most other websites integrate far more ads into their pages. Even with one ad, it's going to stand out on the mIRC website. The website is currently displaying two ads, one on the side and a banner at the top, which is pretty minimal.

While I used to have a block against advertising, it just completely clicked for me last month that all of my favorite sites have it - from coding to software to news to social networking. I'm still pretty uncomfortable with it - but if it can help support mIRC, like it helps supports all kinds of other projects and websites, it seems fair and reasonable to use it.

I'll be tweaking the the ads over the next week or two, so you'll probably see more changes in the layout as time goes by.

No, I don't plan to display popup ads. I'm not sure what you mean by "advertisement hell" though... there are two ads on the page. Yesterday, there was only one ad on the page. Most websites that use advertising use far more than one or two ads per page. I think I have pretty much kept it to a minimum.

I think at most for me it's a little disconcerting but not tacky or otherwise. Then again, I've been working on the pages for the last week or two, so the ads seem to fit in fine for me now.

There are only two ads on the page, but the google ad dominates the page. I guess that's what I meant by "advertisement hell". I'm not against using advertising to support a product, but the trend these days seems to be more and more about the advertising and less about the content all the time. It's not just websites, but television and radio as well. Websites just seem to shove it more in your face because, well... it is in your face. Why was the ad in the dialog unsuccessful? Also the TrialPay, how's that working out?

Wow, I think thats the most i've ever seen Khaled speak.

Perhaps something other than Google Ads would be a better idea? It just looks wrong... It stands out more than anything else and seems like its an advertisement page with mIRC, if you get me?

Anyhow, it's your site and its up to you... I have noticed the ads moving around on the main homepage a little.

It is just ashame to see something we have lived with for so long change so much... The new design was a welcomed change... the ads.. err... dont seem to fit in.

Anyhow, I guess we will get used to it either way!

Personally I have no problem with google ads whatsoever. They're not in your face unlike some flash ads or ones with sound, and they're usually related to the website you're on.

Yes, two... but the one on the side shows (I think) 5 ads. And they aren't exactly appropriate ads for this site most of the time... usually dating and singles and "sexy" this or that. I think it detracts considerably. 2 ads is fine.. if they are only 2 ads. When one ad is multiple ads in one, it appears as though it's a lot more.

I think it would look better if you found a good ad "program" that is somehow related to IRC (unlikely) or just computers in general somehow. I know there are a lot of game ads out there, but not sure if they really fit here either. But one ad the size of the current google one on the side that's just on ad wouldn't be so bad, imo. That or just something much smaller.

Also keep in mind that more ads don't necessarily increase income. If the ads make the site look bad (it seems most here agree that it does), people are less likely to click them. That means less income, not more. Fewer/smaller ads make it more likely people will choose to click on the ad.

I think the google ads on the main page is a great idea, as long as the main application is free of advertisements! I agree with the others that the adds are poorly placed if you look at http://www.mirc.net for instance the google adds, eventhough they take in a prominent place on the website, don't really degrade the overal feel of the website. But i support your efforts in making the main mIRC app add free! Even a google toolbar option in the installer (not sure how profitable that is) would be a better option.

Yes, mirc.net is a great example of a well placed google ad. It almost looks like part of the menu and I'd be willing to bet that most don't even realize right away that it's a google ad. As I said earlier, I'm not against the ads whatsoever (not that I have a say) but I just thought they needed to be better placed and sized because they were dominating the pages.

I know Khaled is experimenting, But atm I can only see the google ads on the left - no ad on top... This looks considerably better IMO.

Most of the google ads are "fix mirc.exe" etc... My geographical location is "Sydney, Australia" which is why I might be seeing these.

The ad on top was mostly IMVU... This IMO, would take away visitors from mIRC alltogether.

Well, Khaled, I have to say that I think the new ad looks a LOT better. It takes up the same amount of space, but it doesn't seem like ads are being spammed across the entire page because it's just the on large ad. It's also not a lot of ads about stupid dating stuff all of the time, which is good.

Am I missing something? I have:



Quiet obviously dating ads in there. I don't know why but it appears better, Maybe because the ad in the middle isnt there atm.

Well, it's back to those ugly Google ads again. It was a nice vertical banner ad (the particular one I saw was a Circuit City one). I definitely preferred that one.

I don't like it at all, it makes the site appear to be more 'dodgy'
I reckon we can say goodbye to the end of an era.

Don't really like these adds, Dating, Gay Chat rooms, Parents Dating etc. is this really what irc is about?

For many people it is, do you have a problem with that?

Unfortunately, the first things that come to the minds of many when anything -chat- is mentioned are perverts and pedophiles. It seems to me that having advertisements like that on the main page of the leading IRC client would just further fuel that way of thinking.

Not only is IRC about dating, gay chat rooms, parents dating, etc., IRC is also about other stuff.

But you knew that.

As per what I think your objective is (the pain and suffering of having to see those ads everytime you go to the site), you have my sympathy.

-Neal.

Why? Do single parents and gay people stir images of perverts and pedophiles in your mind? Not mine. If not yours, then surely it's the minds of the ignorant that it would, and quite frankly I couldn't care less if mIRC's website caters for them or not. In fact there are networks/channels on IRC itself dedicated to certain groups of people, some of which are mentioned in the example ads given by Sh4dow.

Regards,

Yea I get what your saying Mentality, but I agree with RoCk, I am not against having dating rooms etc. etc. but for some people it give the wrong image. Besides this is only a small portion of what irc is about but it seems to completly dominate the website.

Making mIRC look like a place onlyfor dating, when there is so much more to it, Scripting, Chatting with friends, Gaming. etc.

Hope ya get me,

Shadow.

Remember, keep in mind Khaled might be making a profit from these ads. Or is he doing them for free? You have to weigh in your pain of seeing those ads versus how much he makes.



The argument is whether or not the site should advertise more intelligent chats versus lesser-intelligent chats. And it's certainly not going to be more intelligent chats if the majority of people are idiots. Advertising a science or politics chat could lessen their interests - but I would actually support that - since it might make the pedophiles go away.

However, you should know, probably the average Internet-addict searching for chatrooms, would be looking for dating chats. A chemistry Ph.D professor, on the other hand, that's looking for a chemistry chat, the fact that he see dating ads won't prevent him from looking for the science chats. So I'm not sure the minority is affected in this case.

-Neal C.

Google displays whatever ads it thinks are appropriate based on the content of your website. There is no way to influence what Google chooses since it is doing it all automatically. If you are seeing "fix mirc.exe" ads, then a company has most likely decided to advertise with Google using those key words. I've also seen other adds that use "mIRC" as a keyword to advertise dating, anti-virus software, gaming, chat sites, and so on. These seem fine to me.

IRC is used by millions of people for all kinds of reasons - all of which revolve around the idea of meeting and communicating with other people. This includes making friends, dating, learning, gaming, scripting, or otherwise. So far, I've seen Google ads that cover a wide range of topics appropriate to the wide range of interests that IRC users, as human beings, have. As I mentioned in my previous post, Google displays ads contextually - based on the content and type of website you have, so there's no way to change what it displays, although I can block ads on an ad by ad basis - however I haven't seen anything particularly odd so far.

Arg.. Khaled's is talking to much *kills self*

Anyways I get you Khaled, but google is annoying >.> with lots of adds that are 0.01% to do with mIRC :P

*sigh* Khaled has silence me.. for now

-Shadow

I hadn't noticed the ads until I saw this thread and disabled Firefox's Ad-Block extension.