# Obnoxious New Internet Site Trick **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 22, 2002, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424 "2002-10-22T20:46:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Mike.V](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/82dd89/32.png) [@Mike.V](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike.V)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/21 "2002-10-23T04:04:43Z")
As pointed out before, it originall designed to foward the use to website locations that have changed. I believe there are two main ways to do this: Meta tag: ```auto ``` (whereas the “0” is seconds delay in the refresh) Java script: ```auto ``` If anybody wants to see it in action, try going to [http://www.digital.com](http://www.digital.com) ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/22 "2002-10-23T04:51:50Z")
I had to implement this “trick” on one of the sites I did recently. the way the directories worked out, it was easier if everything was in a folder. So instead of making people go to [www.mysite.com/foldername](http://www.mysite.com/foldername) I just made [www.mysite.com/index.html](http://www.mysite.com/index.html) redirect to /foldername. Sucks for you I guess if you’re quickly surfing around for firefighter equipment, but it was the quickest way for me to get it done. I apologize in advance 😉 PS I don’t need a bunch of advice on how I could have done it differently, thanks. I just wanted to post an example of how not ALL Webmasters are out to get you! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/23 "2002-10-23T04:57:13Z")
I had to implement this “trick” on one of the sites I did recently. the way the directories worked out, it was easier if everything was in a folder. So instead of making people go to [www.mysite.com/foldername](http://www.mysite.com/foldername) I just made [www.mysite.com/index.html](http://www.mysite.com/index.html) redirect to /foldername. Sucks for you I guess if you’re quickly surfing around for firefighter equipment, but it was the quickest way for me to get it done. I apologize in advance 😉 PS I don’t need a bunch of advice on how I could have done it differently, thanks. I just wanted to post an example of how not ALL Webmasters are out to get you! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Urban\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e9c0ed/32.png) [@Urban\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Urban_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/24 "2002-10-23T05:56:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AHunter3 \* > Who the heck clicks directly on a link these days? That is SO 1988! Really? The Web didn’t exist back then. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Duckster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/duckster/32/1244_2.png) [@Duckster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duckster)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/25 "2002-10-23T06:05:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AHunter3 \* > Who the heck clicks directly on a link these days? That is SO 1988! 1988? Really!?!? You quit doing this on the web in 1988? Wow! ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/26 "2002-10-23T12:42:24Z")
Umm… It was a top secret project me and my friends over at NCSA had going…? :o ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/27 "2002-10-23T14:24:58Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AHunter3 \* > \*\*It was a top secret project me and my friends over at NCSA had going…? :o \*\* The Web came out of [CERN](http://public.web.cern.ch/Public/ACHIEVEMENTS/web.html), not NCSA: > [@](#): > > In late 1990, Tim Berners-Lee, a CERN computer scientist invented the World Wide Web (that you are currently using). The “Web” as it is affectionately called, was originally conceived and developed for the large high-energy physics collaborations which have a demand for instantaneous information sharing between physicists working in different universities and institutes all over the world. Now it has millions of academic and commercial users. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/28 "2002-10-23T14:58:19Z")
**Eleusis** , as you seem to be in the know about adult sites, could you explain to me exactly how the horrible redirect trick “increases revenue”. My first reaction (and that of most web users I know) when faced with this sort of deviousness is to shut the whole window down (or the whole browser, if needs be to avoid new windows being spawned) and start again on a different site. Are you seriously trying to tell me that people think “Darn, that Back button won’t work. Ah well, might as well stay here now that I’m trapped. Might even get the ol’ Visa card out while I’m here…”? ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/29 "2002-10-23T17:02:33Z")
I’m with **r\_k** ; I can’t understand how this trick can increase revenue. My instinctive reaction to any site that tries to “trap” me is to get out of it immediately. Usually, I never go back. I wouldn’t even think about giving my credit card number to such a site. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/30 "2002-10-23T18:16:17Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mike.V \* > \*\*Meta tag: > > ```auto > > > > ``` > > (whereas the “0” is seconds delay in the refresh)\*\* If you change the 0 to a 5, or even a 2, then it’s much more likely for the double-click feature to work, because the browser will linger on the intermediate page long enough for you to get past it. Just a tip for everyone using this thread as a resource. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/31 "2002-10-23T19:46:13Z")
**r\_\_k** and **Diceman** : I’ve seen this technique (known as “circle jerking”) cited in a few articles – [such as this old Salon piece](http://www.salon.com/21st/feature/1997/12/cov_01feature.html) – as one of the more successful ways to force surfers to pay up. Not because they want to, but generally because they’re naive or worried their parents/teachers/boss will see them stuck on this website if they don’t. It’s not about resignation, it’s about fear. It also (in the early days at least) provided guaranteed click-through revenue for blind links leading in a circle. I would question how effective it is nowadays given the suspicion with which credit card companies treat porn and gambling websites, and their resultant readiness to refund without too much fuss. ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/32 "2002-10-23T19:50:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\ ***Eleusis** , as you seem to be in the know about adult sites, could you explain to me exactly how the horrible redirect trick “increases revenue”. My first reaction (and that of most web users I know) when faced with this sort of deviousness is to shut the whole window down (or the whole browser, if needs be to avoid new windows being spawned) and start again on a different site. > > Are you seriously trying to tell me that people think “Darn, that Back button won’t work. Ah well, might as well stay here now that I’m trapped. Might even get the ol’ Visa card out while I’m here…”? \*\* ---
**Author:** ![Eleusis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Eleusis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eleusis)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/33 "2002-10-23T19:50:17Z")
[ > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by r\_k \* > \*\ ***Eleusis** , as you seem to be in the know about adult sites, could you explain to me exactly how the horrible redirect trick “increases revenue”. My first reaction (and that of most web users I know) when faced with this sort of deviousness is to shut the whole window down (or the whole browser, if needs be to avoid new windows being spawned) and start again on a different site. > > Are you seriously trying to tell me that people think “Darn, that Back button won’t work. Ah well, might as well stay here now that I’m trapped. Might even get the ol’ Visa card out while I’m here…”? \*\* Yes, I’m serious. Think about it. Once somebody clicks the back button, you’ve already lost them, right? Well in this case, maybe they happen to be an ass man instead of a tit man. They aren’t so much into Mellon Land, so they click back to go back from whence they came. “Oh hey, what’s this? Petite Teen Asses! Now this is more my style - where is my wallet?” It can increase increase signup ratios and thus revenue in pay sites by a few percent. I agree with everybody who said it’s a dirty trick, and I still don’t like it. This has been a hotbed of debate along with other misleading practices such as blind links and circle jerk sites - things that do work and will make money for the site owner, but IMO poorly affect the image of the industry as a whole and result in lower revenues across the board. (haha internet pornography’s pristine image has been tarnished - very funny) ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/34 "2002-10-23T23:26:43Z")
This is what you sick suckers get for going to porn sites in the first place. “Petite Teen Asses”??? Where? 😃 Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2002, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424/35 "2002-10-23T23:33:37Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Eleusis \* > \*\*things that do work and will make money for the site owner, but IMO poorly affect the image of the industry as a whole and result in lower revenues across the board. (haha internet pornography’s pristine image has been tarnished - very funny) \*\* Yeah, I know you meant that sarcastically, and fair enough. Because of what it is, why should it have a good image to begin with? But even ignoring the fact that it’s pornography, and that it’s an internet site, you have to admit that internet porn has a serious reputation of employing these sleazy tricks, and disrespecting their potential clientele. Only warez sites even come close. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/obnoxious-new-internet-site-trick/133424.md?page=1)