# "Your download will start automatically in ten seconds" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 27, 2008, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819 "2008-05-27T22:14:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Absolute](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b2d939/32.png) [@Absolute](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Absolute)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/1 "2008-05-27T22:14:07Z")
Go fuck yourselves! Why do you think I want to wait ten seconds to download a 2MB file that will be finished downloading in less than a second in the first place? Why does there need to be a delay at all? Why can’t you just redirect me directly to my fucking file, instead of making me click on your stupid “Click here if it does not start” link? For that matter, why do you need to stick your stupid HTML pages between the original download link and the file anyway? Sourceforge is the biggest offender here. ---
**Author:** ![DCTrekkie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dctrekkie/32/18862_2.png) [@DCTrekkie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCTrekkie)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/2 "2008-05-27T22:17:21Z")
Because you might have missed some of their adverts ---
**Author:** ![DudleyGarrett](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d9b06d/32.png) [@DudleyGarrett](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DudleyGarrett)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/3 "2008-05-27T22:18:01Z")
Click == cha-ching No click == no cha-ching So how can we make the people click? ---
**Author:** ![smiling\_bandit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@smiling\_bandit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smiling_bandit)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/4 "2008-05-27T22:29:31Z")
It’s still a stupid idea and it doesn’t actually work at getting people to pay attntion to ads. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/5 "2008-05-27T22:31:39Z")
[QUOTE=smiling bandit] It’s still a stupid idea and it doesn’t actually work at getting people to pay attntion to ads. [/QUOTE] The website doesn’t really care if you pay attention to the ads, as long as you click on them. They aren’t being paid to get your attention. They’re being paid to get you to click. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/6 "2008-05-27T22:38:09Z")
Go fuck yourselves! Why do you think I want to wait three minutes of commercials in the middle of a program that’s only twenty minutes in the first place? Why do you need to be a delay in my program at all? Why can’t you just put all the commercials at the end of my fucking show, instead of making me watch them or “using Tivo”? For that matter, why do you need to stick your stupid upcoming show banner on the bottom of my programs anyway? Fox is the biggest offender here. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 27, 2008, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/7 "2008-05-27T22:38:41Z")
If it’s one of those sites hosting a large number of files, the delay may also be partly to serve as a disincentive to downloading _everything_, then setting up your own version of the site, hosting the files yourself. ---
**Author:** ![Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7993a0/32.png) [@Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamaika_a_jamaikaiake)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/8 "2008-05-28T05:07:36Z")
[QUOTE=Santo Rugger] Go fuck yourselves! Why do you think I want to wait three minutes of commercials in the middle of a program that’s only twenty minutes in the first place? Why do you need to be a delay in my program at all? Why can’t you just put all the commercials at the end of my fucking show, instead of making me watch them or “using Tivo”? For that matter, why do you need to stick your stupid upcoming show banner on the bottom of my programs anyway? Fox is the biggest offender here. [/QUOTE] Are you parodying the OP? Because I do think this is a good enough reason to not watch TV… ETA: Shit, wait, I get your point. I of course don’t blame the networks for trying to make a buck. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/9 "2008-05-28T05:18:17Z")
😃 Then how can we blame the websites? Especially if you’re not paying for the service. OTOH, I haven’t had the TV hooked up at my place in years. I don’t miss it. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 5:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/10 "2008-05-28T05:58:59Z")
[QUOTE=Absolute] Go fuck yourselves! Why do you think I want to wait ten seconds to download a 2MB file that will be finished downloading in less than a second in the first place? Why does there need to be a delay at all? Why can’t you just redirect me directly to my fucking file, instead of making me click on your stupid “Click here if it does not start” link? For that matter, why do you need to stick your stupid HTML pages between the original download link and the file anyway? Sourceforge is the biggest offender here. [/QUOTE] Well, would you look at that. A visit from the Emperor of the World. Shall I bow, Your Imperial Majesty? ---
**Author:** ![Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7993a0/32.png) [@Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamaika_a_jamaikaiake)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 6:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/11 "2008-05-28T06:01:14Z")
[QUOTE=Santo Rugger] 😃 Then how can we blame the websites? Especially if you’re not paying for the service. OTOH, I haven’t had the TV hooked up at my place in years. I don’t miss it. [/QUOTE] I’ve been thinking, and I do sort of blame the networks, and people who make soul-sucking advertisements. I mean, _their job is making the world a worse place_. This is a moral failure! We should not have to excuse it just because it is part of the system, and it gives them a paycheck. I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore? ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/12 "2008-05-28T12:03:16Z")
I thought the message was put into the downloads page after Internet Explorer started putting a bar at the top which people had to click to allow possible malicious downloads to occur. People didn’t notice the bar and got pissed at the web page, not realizing it was IE stopping the download. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [May 28, 2008, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-download-will-start-automatically-in-ten-seconds/450819/13 "2008-05-28T13:32:29Z")
How far we’ve fallen from the old BBS days, when there were no ads. Sure, you had to leave your C64 running overnight to download a 128K “ware” at 300bps using Punter, but still… no ads!