<!entity % p-doc "INCLUDE"> <!-- and we are a formal doc -->
<!entity % p-supp-userman "INCLUDE"> <!-- Include all from supported.sgml -->
<!entity my-copy "©"> <!-- kludge for docbook2man -->
+<!entity % p-newstuff "INCLUDE"> <!-- exclude stuff from devel versions -->
+<!entity my-app "<application>Privoxy</application>">
]>
<!--
File : $Source: /cvsroot/ijbswa/current/doc/source/faq.sgml,v $
This file belongs into
ijbswa.sourceforge.net:/home/groups/i/ij/ijbswa/htdocs/
- $Id: faq.sgml,v 2.15 2006/09/08 23:05:07 hal9 Exp $
+ $Id: faq.sgml,v 2.16 2006/09/10 15:30:46 hal9 Exp $
- Copyright (C) 2001-2006 Privoxy Developers <developers@privoxy.org>
+ Copyright (C) 2001-2006 Privoxy Developers http://privoxy.org
See LICENSE.
Based partially on the Internet Junkbuster FAQ originally written by and
</subscript>
</pubdate>
-<pubdate>$Id: faq.sgml,v 2.15 2006/09/08 23:05:07 hal9 Exp $</pubdate>
+<pubdate>$Id: faq.sgml,v 2.16 2006/09/10 15:30:46 hal9 Exp $</pubdate>
<!--
<para>
This FAQ gives quick answers to frequently asked questions about
<ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/">Privoxy</ulink>.
- It can't and doesn't replace the
- <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html"><citetitle>User Manual</citetitle></ulink>.
+ It is not a substitute for the
+ <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html"><citetitle>Privoxy User Manual</citetitle></ulink>.
<!--
This works, at least in some situtations:
Test: <ulink url="privoxy-user-manual.pdf"><citetitle>User Manual</citetitle></ulink>.
</para>
<!-- Include privoxy.sgml boilerplate: -->
- &p-intro;
+ <para>What is Privoxy?</para> &p-intro;
<!-- end boilerplate -->
<para>
<!-- ~~~~~ New section ~~~~~ -->
<sect1 id="general"><title>General Information</title>
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="who_uses"><title>Who should use Privoxy?</title>
+ <para>
+ Anyone that is interested in security, privacy, or in
+ finer-grained control over their web and Internet experience.
+ Everyone is encouraged to try &my-app;.
+ </para>
+</sect2>
+
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="bestchoice"><title>Is Privoxy the best choice for
+me?</title>
+ <para>
+ &my-app; is certainly a good choice, especially for those who want more
+ control and security. Those that have the ability to fine-tune their installation
+ will benefit the most. One of <application>Privoxy's</application>
+ strength's is that it is highly configurable giving you the ability to
+ completely personalize your installation. Being familiar with, or at least
+ having an interest in learning about <ulink
+ url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Http">HTTP</ulink> and other networking
+ protocols, <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Html">HTML</ulink>,
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Protocol">IP (Internet
+ Protocol)</ulink>, and
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_expressions"><quote>Regular
+ Expressions</quote></ulink>
+ will be a big plus and will help you get the most out
+ of &my-app;.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Much of <application>Privoxy's</application> configuration can be done
+ with a <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_browser">Web browser</ulink>.
+ But there are areas where configuration is done using a
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_editors">text editor</ulink>
+ to edit configuration files.
+ </para>
+</sect2>
+
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="proxymoron"><title>What is a <quote>proxy</quote>? How does
+Privoxy work? </title>
+ <para>
+ A <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server">web proxy</ulink>
+ is a service, based on a software such as
+ <application>Privoxy</application>, that clients (i.e. browsers) can use
+ instead of connecting directly to web servers on the Internet. The
+ clients then ask the proxy to fetch the objects they need (web pages,
+ images, movies etc) on their behalf, and when the proxy has done so, it
+ hands the results back to the client. It is a <quote>go-between</quote>. See
+ the <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server">Wikipedia proxy
+ definition</ulink> for more.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ There are many reasons to use web proxies, such as security (firewalling),
+ efficiency (caching) and others, and there are any number of proxies
+ to accommodate those needs.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <application>Privoxy</application> is a proxy that is primarily focused on privacy
+ protection, ad and junk elimination and freeing the user from restrictions placed on his
+ activities. Sitting between your browser(s) and the Internet,
+ it is in a perfect position to filter outbound personal information that your
+ browser is leaking, as well as inbound junk. It uses a variety of techniques to do
+ this, all of which are under your complete control via the various configuration
+ files and options.
+ </para>
+</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="newjb"><title>What is this new version of
-<emphasis>Junkbuster</emphasis>?</title>
+<quote><citetitle>Junkbuster</citetitle></quote>?</title>
<!-- Include history.sgml -->
&history;
<application>Privoxy</application> picks up where
<application>Junkbuster</application> left off. All the old features remain.
The new <application>Privoxy</application> still blocks ads and banners,
- still manages cookies, and still helps protect your privacy. But, these are
- all greatly enhanced, and many, many new features have been added, all in the same vein.
+ still manages <ulink
+ url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">cookies</ulink>, and still
+ helps protect your privacy. But, these are all greatly enhanced, and many,
+ many new features have been added, all in the same vein.
</para>
<para>
The configuration has changed significantly as well. This is something that
<application>Junkbuster</application> 2.0.x. The <quote>blocklist</quote>
<quote>cookielist</quote>, <quote>imagelist</quote> and much more has been
combined into the <quote>actions</quote> files, with a completely different
- syntax. See the <ulink url="../user-manual/whatsnew.html">What's New</ulink>
- page for the latest updates.
+ syntax.
<![%p-newstuff;[ See the <ulink url="../user-manual/whatsnew.html">What's New</ulink>
+ page for the latest updates.]]>
</para>
<para>
<application>Privoxy</application>'s new features include:
</sect2>
-<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="proxymoron"><title>What is a <quote>proxy</quote>? How does
-Privoxy work? </title>
- <para>
- A web proxy is a service, based on a software such as <application>Privoxy</application>,
- that clients (i.e. browsers) can use instead of connecting directly to the web
- servers on the Internet. The clients then ask the proxy to fetch the objects
- they need (web pages, images, movies etc) on their behalf, and when the proxy
- has done so, it hands the results back to the client.
- </para>
- <para>
- There are many reasons to use web proxies, such as security (firewalling),
- efficiency (caching) and others, and there are just as many different proxies
- to accommodate those needs.
- </para>
- <para>
- <application>Privoxy</application> is a proxy that is primarily focused on privacy
- protection, junk elimination and freeing the user from restrictions placed on his
- activities. Sitting between your browser(s) and the Internet,
- it is in a perfect position to filter outbound personal information that your
- browser is leaking, as well as inbound junk. It uses a variety of techniques to do
- this, all of which are under your control via the various configuration
- files and options.
- </para>
-</sect2>
-
-
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="whatsanad">
<title id="knows">How does Privoxy know what is
an ad, and what is not?</title>
and the host (blocking the big banner hosting services like doublecklick.net
already helps a lot). <application>Privoxy</application> takes advantage of this
fact by using <ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#AF-PATTERNS">URL
- patterns</ulink> to sort out and block the requests for banners.
+ patterns</ulink> to sort out and block the requests for things that sound
+ like they would be ads or banners.
</para>
<para>
Second, banners tend to come in certain <emphasis>sizes</emphasis>. But you
</para>
<para>
Both of this involves a certain amount of guesswork and is, of course, freely
- configurable.
+ and readily configurable.
</para>
</sect2>
encourage you to do this. This is where the real power of
<application>Privoxy</application> lies!
</para>
+<para>
+ You will have to tell your browser about <application>Privoxy</application>
+ (see the Installation section below).
+</para>
</sect2>
</para>
</sect2>
-
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="whytrust"><title>Why should I trust Privoxy?</title>
+ <para>
+ The most important reason is because you have access to
+ <emphasis>everything</emphasis>, and you can control everything. You can
+ check every line of every configuration file yourself. You can check every
+ last bit of source code should you desire. And even if you can't read code,
+ there should be some comfort in knowing that thousands of other people can,
+ and do read it. You can build the software from scratch, if you want, so
+ that you know the executable is clean, and that it is
+ <emphasis>yours</emphasis>. In fact, we encourage this level of scrutiny. It
+ is one reason we use &my-app; ourselves.
+ </para>
+</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="license"><title>Is there is a license or fee? What about a
warranty? Registration?</title>
</sect2>
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="spyware">
+<title>Can Privoxy remove spyware? Adware? Viruses?</title>
+<para>
+ No. &my-app; cannot remove anything. It is not a removal tool. It is a
+ preventative. &my-app; can help prevent contact from sites
+ that use such tactics, and thus could conceivably prevent contamination from
+ such sites.
+</para>
+</sect2>
+
+
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="otherads">
+<title>Can I use Privoxy with other ad-blocking software?</title>
+<para>
+ &my-app; should work fine with other proxies and other software in general.
+</para>
+<para>
+ But it is probably not necessary to use &my-app; in conjunction with other
+ ad-blocking products, and this could conceivably cause undesirable results.
+ It would be better to choose one software or the other and work a little to
+ tweak its configuration to your liking.
+</para>
+</sect2>
+
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="jointeam"><title>I would like to help you, what can I do?</title>
<sect3 renderas="sect4" id="jointeam-work"><title>Would you like to participate?</title>
files and syntax have substantially changed, so you will need to manually
port your old patterns. See the <ulink url="../user-manual/upgradersnote.html">note
to upgraders</ulink> and <ulink url="../user-manual/installation.html">installation
- chapter</ulink> in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">user manual</ulink>
+ chapter</ulink> in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">User Manual</ulink>
for details.
</para>
<para>
as a proxy by specifying the correct proxy address and port number
in the appropriate configuration area for the browser. See below.
You should also flush your browser's memory and disk cache to get rid of any
- cached junk items, and remove any stored cookies.
+ cached junk items, and remove any stored
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">cookies</ulink>.
</para>
on starting <application>Privoxy</application> and browser configuration,
see the <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/startup.html">chapter
on starting <application>Privoxy</application></ulink> in the
- <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/">user manual</ulink>.
+ <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/">User Manual</ulink>.
</para>
</sect2>
should see the <application>Privoxy</application> main page. If not, see
the <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/startup.html">chapter
on starting <application>Privoxy</application></ulink> in the
- <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/">user manual</ulink>.
+ <ulink url="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/">User Manual</ulink>.
</para>
<para>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="getupdates"><title>Where can I get updated Actions Files?</title>
<para>
- Based on your feedback and the continuing development, updated actions files will be
- made available on the <ulink
+ Based on your feedback and the continuing development, updates of
+ <filename>default.action</filename> will be
+ made available from time to time on the <ulink
url="http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=11118">files section</ulink> of
our <ulink url="http://sf.net/projects/ijbswa/">project page</ulink>.
</para>
versions of <application>Privoxy 2.x</application>. The old files, like
<filename>blocklist</filename> will not work at all.
</para>
- <para>
+ <![%p-newstuff;[ <para>
Refer to the <ulink url="../user-manual/whatsnew.html">What's New</ulink>
page for information on configuration changes that may occur from one release to another.
- </para>
+ </para>]]>
</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3">
-<title id="actionsfile">What is an <quote>actions</quote> file?</title>
+<title id="actionsfile">What exactly is an <quote>actions</quote> file?</title>
<para>
<ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html">Actions files</ulink>
for single URLs, whole web sites, groups or parts thereof etc. Actions can also be
grouped together and then applied to requests matching one or more patterns.
There are many possible actions that might apply to any given site. As an example,
- if you are blocking cookies as one of your default actions, but need to accept
- cookies from a given site, you would need to define an exception for this
- site in one of your actions files, preferably in <filename>user.action</filename>.
+ if you are blocking <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">cookies</ulink>
+ as one of your default actions, but need to accept cookies from a given site,
+ you would need to define an exception for this site in one of your actions
+ files, preferably in <filename>user.action</filename>.
</para>
</sect2>
to make their private customizations, and <filename>standard.action</filename>,
which is for internal <application>Privoxy</application> use only.
Please see <ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html">the actions chapter</ulink>
- in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">user manual</ulink> for a more
+ in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">User Manual</ulink> for a more
detailed explanation.
</para>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="yahoo"><title>How can I make my Yahoo/Hotmail/Gmail account work?</title>
<para>
The default configuration shouldn't impact the usability of any of these services.
- It will, however, make all cookies temporary, so that your browser will forget your
+ It will, however, make all <ulink
+ url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">cookies</ulink>
+ temporary, so that your browser will forget your
login credentials in between browser sessions. If you would like not to have to log
in manually each time you access those websites, simply turn off all cookie handling
for them in the <filename>user.action</filename> file. An example for yahoo might
{ -<ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#CRUNCH-INCOMING-COOKIES">crunch-incoming-cookies</ulink> -<ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#CRUNCH-OUTGOING-COOKIES">crunch-outgoing-cookies</ulink> -<ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#SESSION-COOKIES-ONLY">session-cookies-only</ulink> }
.login.yahoo.com</screen>
</para>
+ <para>
+ These kinds of sites are often quite complex and heavy with
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript">Javascript</ulink> and
+ thus <quote>fragile</quote>. So if <emphasis>still</emphasis> a problem,
+ we have an <ulink
+ url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#ALIASES">alias</ulink> just for such
+ sticky situations:
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ <screen># Gmail is a _fragile_ site:
+#
+{ <literal>fragile</literal> }
+ mail.google.com</screen>
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Be sure to flush your browser's caches whenever making these kinds of
+ changes, just to make sure the changes <quote>take</quote>.
+ </para>
+ <para>
+ Make sure the domain, host and path are appropriate as well. Your browser can
+ tell you where you are specifically and you should use that information for
+ your configuration settings. Note that above it is not referenced as
+ <literal>gmail.com</literal>, which is a valid domain name.
+ </para>
</sect2>
If you are familiar with regular expressions, and HTML, you can look at
the provided <filename>default.filter</filename> with a text editor and define
your own filters. This is potentially a very powerful feature, but
- requires some expertise in both regular expressions and HTML/HTTP. You should
+ requires some expertise in both regular expressions and HTML/HTTP.
+ <![%p-newstuff;[ You should
place any modifications to the default filters, or any new ones you create
in a separate file, such as <filename>user.filter</filename>, so they won't
- be overwritten during upgrades. The ability to define multiple filter files
- in <filename>config</filename> is a new feature as of v. 3.0.4.
+ be overwritten during upgrades.
+ The ability to define multiple filter files
+ in <filename>config</filename> is a new feature as of v. 3.0.4.]]>
</para>
<para>
<title>Can Privoxy run as a service
on Win2K/NT/XP?</title>
<para>
+<![%p-newstuff;[
Yes. Version 3.0.4 introduces full <application>Windows</application> service
functionality. See <ulink url="../user-manual/installation.html#installation-pack-win">
the User Manual</ulink> for details on how to install and configure
<application>Privoxy</application> as a service.
-</para>
+</para>
<para>
- Earlier versions could run as a system service using <command>srvany.exe</command>.
+ Earlier ]]>3.x versions could run as a system service using <command>srvany.exe</command>.
See the discussion at <ulink
url="http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=detail&atid=361118&aid=485617&group_id=11118">http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?func=detail&atid=361118&aid=485617&group_id=11118</ulink>,
for details, and a sample configuration.
<application>Privoxy</application> with those of a another proxy.
See the <ulink
url="../user-manual/config.html#FORWARDING">forwarding chapter</ulink>
- in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">user manual</ulink> which
- describes how to do this.
+ in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">User Manual</ulink> which
+ describes how to do this, and the <link linkend="TOR">
+ How do I use Privoxy together with
+ Tor</link> section below.
</para>
</sect2>
this ability should work though.
See the <ulink
url="../user-manual/config.html#FORWARDING">forwarding chapter</ulink>
- in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">user manual</ulink>. As
+ in the <ulink url="../user-manual/index.html">User Manual</ulink>. As
a transparent proxy to be used for chaining we recommend Transproxy
(<ulink url="http://transproxy.sourceforge.net/">http://transproxy.sourceforge.net/</ulink>).
</para>
</para>
</sect2>
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="sneaky-cookies">
+<title>I sometimes notice cookies sneaking through. How?</title>
+<para>
+ <ulink
+ url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">Cookies</ulink> can be
+ set in several ways. The classic method is via the
+ <literal>Set-Cookie</literal> HTTP header. This is straightforward, and an
+ easy one to manipulate, such as the &my-app; concept of
+ <ulink url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#SESSION-COOKIES-ONLY">session-cookies-only</ulink>.
+ There is also the possibility of using
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript">Javascript</ulink> to
+ set cookies (&my-app; calls these <literal>content-cookies</literal>). This
+ is trickier because the syntax can vary widely, and thus requires a certain
+ amount of guesswork. It is not realistic to catch all of these short of
+ disabling Javascript, which would break many sites. And lastly, if the
+ cookies are embedded in a HTTPS/SSL secure session via Javascript, they are beyond
+ <application>Privoxy's</application> reach.
+</para>
+<para>
+ All in all, &my-app; can help manage cookies in general, can help minimize
+ the loss of privacy posed by cookies, but can't realistically stop all
+ cookies.
+</para>
+</sect2>
+
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="evil-cookies">
+<title>Are all cookies bad? Why?</title>
+<para>
+ No, in fact there are many beneficial uses of
+ <ulink
+ url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">cookies</ulink>. Cookies are just a
+ method that browsers can use to store data between pages, or between browser
+ sessions. Sometimes there is a good reason for this, and the user's life is a
+ bit easier as a result. But there is a long history of some websites taking
+ advantage of this layer of trust, and using the data they glean from you and
+ your browsing habits for their own purposes, and maybe to your potential
+ detriment. Such sites are using you and storing their data on your system.
+ That is why the security conscious watch from whom those cookies come, and why
+ they really <emphasis>need</emphasis> to be there.
+</para>
+<para>
+ See the
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie">Wikipedia cookie
+ definition</ulink> for more.
+</para>
+</sect2>
+
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="allow-cookies">
<title>How can I allow permanent cookies for my trusted sites?</title>
</para>
<para>
Overall, it should not slow you down any in real terms, and may actually help
- speed things up since ads, banners and other junk are not typically being displayed.
- The actual processing time required by <application>Privoxy</application>
- itself for each page, is relatively small in the overall scheme of things,
- and happens very quickly. This is typically more than offset by time saved
- not downloading and rendering ad images (if ad blocking is being used).
+ speed things up since ads, banners and other junk are not typically being
+ retrieved and displayed. The actual processing time required by
+ <application>Privoxy</application> itself for each page, is relatively small
+ in the overall scheme of things, and happens very quickly. This is typically
+ more than offset by time saved not downloading and rendering ad images (if ad
+ blocking is being used).
</para>
<para>
</para>
</sect2>
-<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="slowcrawl">
-<title>I just installed Privoxy, and all my
-browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives? </title>
-<para>
- This should not happen, and for the overwhelming number of users world-wide,
- it does not happen. I would suspect some inadvertent interaction of software
- components such as anti-virus software, spyware protectors, personal
- firewalls or similar components. Try disabling (or uninstalling) these one
- at a time and see if that helps.
-</para>
-</sect2>
-
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="configurl"><title>What are "http://config.privoxy.org/" and
"http://p.p/"?</title>
<para>
with <ulink url="http://tor.eff.org/">Tor</ulink>,
an <ulink url="http://www.eff.org/">EFF</ulink> supported onion routing system.
The configuration details can be found in
- <ulink url="#TOR">How do I use <application>Privoxy</application> together with <application>Tor</application>?</ulink>.
+ <ulink url="#TOR">How do I use <application>Privoxy</application> together with <application>Tor</application> section</ulink>
+ just below.
</para>
<!--
<para>
</sect2>
+<sect2 renderas="sect3">
+<title id="proxytest">A test site says I am not using a Proxy.</title>
+<para>
+ Good! Actually, they are probably testing for some other kinds of proxies.
+ Hiding yourself completely would require additional steps.
+</para>
+</sect2>
+
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="tor"><title>How do I use Privoxy
together with Tor?</title>
<para>
extensive documentation</ulink> to learn how to install <application>Tor</application>,
and make sure <application>Tor</application>'s logfile says that
<quote>Tor has successfully opened a circuit</quote> and it
- <quote>[l]ooks like client functionality is working</quote>.
+ <quote>looks like client functionality is working</quote>.
</para>
<para>
If either <application>Tor</application> or <application>Privoxy</application>
to make sure <application>Privoxy's</application> DNS requests are
done through <application>Tor</application> and thus invisible to your local network.
</para>
+
+<![%p-newstuff;[
<para>
Since <application>Privoxy</application> 3.0.4, its configuration (section 5.2)
is already prepared for <application>Tor</application>, if you are using a
of <application>Tor's</application> documentation. Make sure you understand
what <application>Tor</application> does, why it is no replacement for
application level security, and why you shouldn't use it for unencrypted logins.
-</para>
+</para> ]]>
</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3">
Filtering is potentially more of a concern since the results are not always
so obvious, and the effects of filtering are there whether the file is simply
viewed, or downloaded. And potentially whether the content is some obnoxious
- advertizement, or Mr. Jimmy's latest/greatest source code jewel. Of course,
+ advertisement, or Mr. Jimmy's latest/greatest source code jewel. Of course,
one of these presumably is <quote>bad</quote> content that we don't want, and
the other is <quote>good</quote> content that we do want.
<application>Privoxy</application> is blind to the differences, and can only
</para>
<para>
<application>Privoxy</application> does not do FTP at all, only HTTP
- protocols, so please don't try.
+ and HTTPS (SSL) protocols, so please don't try.
</para>
</sect2>
</para>
<para>
Troubleshooting actions is discussed in more detail in the <ulink
- url="../user-manual/appendix.html#ACTIONSANAT">user-manual appendix</ulink>.
+ url="../user-manual/appendix.html#ACTIONSANAT">User Manual appendix</ulink>.
There is also an <ulink
url="../user-manual/actions-file.html#ACT-EXAMPLES">actions tutorial</ulink>.
</para>
<emphasis>both</emphasis> HTTP and FTP proxying! So it is possible to
accidentally enable FTP proxying in these cases. And of course, if this
happens, <application>Privoxy</application> will indeed cause problems since
- it does not know FTP. Newer version will give a sane error message if a FTP
- connection is attempted.
+ it does not know FTP. <![%p-newstuff;[Newer version will give a sane error
+ message if a FTP connection is attempted.]]>
</para>
<para>
Will <application>Privoxy</application> ever proxy FTP traffic? Unlikely.
result in a much slower response from <application>Privoxy</application> on
some platforms due to DNS timeouts.
</para>
+<para>
+ This can be caused by a problem with the local <filename>HOSTS</filename>
+ file. If this file has been changed from the original, try reverting it to
+ see if that helps.
+</para>
</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="inuse">
</title>
<para>
<application>Privoxy</application> is attempting to disable malicious
- Javascript in this case, with the <literal>unsolicited-popups</literal>
+ <ulink url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript">Javascript</ulink>
+ in this case, with the <literal>unsolicited-popups</literal>
filter. <application>Privoxy</application> cannot tell very well
<quote>good</quote> code snippets from <quote>bad</quote> code snippets.
</para>
the <quote>messenger</quote> which is reporting whatever problem occurred
downstream, and not the root cause of the error.
</para>
+<![%p-newstuff;[
<para>
In any case, v. 3.0.4 includes various improvements to help
<application>Privoxy</application> better handle these cases.
-</para>
+</para>]]>
</sect2>
<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="allcpu">
</para>
</sect2>
+<sect2 renderas="sect3" id="slowcrawl">
+<title>I just installed Privoxy, and all my
+browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives? </title>
+<para>
+ This should not happen, and for the overwhelming number of users world-wide,
+ it does not happen. I would suspect some inadvertent interaction of software
+ components such as anti-virus software, spyware protectors, personal
+ firewalls or similar components. Try disabling (or uninstalling) these one
+ at a time and see if that helps.
+</para>
+</sect2>
</sect1>
51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA
$Log: faq.sgml,v $
+Revision 2.16 2006/09/10 15:30:46 hal9
+Spell check.
+
Revision 2.15 2006/09/08 23:05:07 hal9
Fix broken links. Add faq on hosts files. Move most of new windows service
feature to user manual and reference in faq. Various other small changes.
></A
>3.1. Where can I get updated Actions Files?</H3
><P
-> Based on your feedback and the continuing development, updated actions files will be
- made available on the <A
+> Based on your feedback and the continuing development, updates of
+ <TT
+CLASS="FILENAME"
+>default.action</TT
+> will be
+ made available from time to time on the <A
HREF="http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=11118"
TARGET="_top"
>files section</A
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN332"
+NAME="AEN358"
></A
->3.3. What is an <SPAN
+>3.3. What exactly is an <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"actions"</SPAN
> file?</H3
for single URLs, whole web sites, groups or parts thereof etc. Actions can also be
grouped together and then applied to requests matching one or more patterns.
There are many possible actions that might apply to any given site. As an example,
- if you are blocking cookies as one of your default actions, but need to accept
- cookies from a given site, you would need to define an exception for this
- site in one of your actions files, preferably in <TT
+ if you are blocking <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>
+ as one of your default actions, but need to accept cookies from a given site,
+ you would need to define an exception for this site in one of your actions
+ files, preferably in <TT
CLASS="FILENAME"
>user.action</TT
>.</P
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN351"
+NAME="AEN378"
></A
>3.5. How are actions files configured? What is the easiest
way to do this?</H3
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN359"
+NAME="AEN386"
></A
>3.6. There are several different <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
in the <A
HREF="../user-manual/index.html"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
> for a more
detailed explanation.</P
><P
>3.7. How can I make my Yahoo/Hotmail/Gmail account work?</H3
><P
> The default configuration shouldn't impact the usability of any of these services.
- It will, however, make all cookies temporary, so that your browser will forget your
+ It will, however, make all <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>
+ temporary, so that your browser will forget your
login credentials in between browser sessions. If you would like not to have to log
in manually each time you access those websites, simply turn off all cookie handling
for them in the <TT
></TABLE
>
</P
+><P
+> These kinds of sites are often quite complex and heavy with
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Javascript</A
+> and
+ thus <SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"fragile"</SPAN
+>. So if <SPAN
+CLASS="emphasis"
+><I
+CLASS="EMPHASIS"
+>still</I
+></SPAN
+> a problem,
+ we have an <A
+HREF="../user-manual/actions-file.html#ALIASES"
+TARGET="_top"
+>alias</A
+> just for such
+ sticky situations:
+ </P
+><P
+> <TABLE
+BORDER="0"
+BGCOLOR="#E0E0E0"
+WIDTH="100%"
+><TR
+><TD
+><PRE
+CLASS="SCREEN"
+># Gmail is a _fragile_ site:
+#
+{ <TT
+CLASS="LITERAL"
+>fragile</TT
+> }
+ mail.google.com</PRE
+></TD
+></TR
+></TABLE
+>
+ </P
+><P
+> Be sure to flush your browser's caches whenever making these kinds of
+ changes, just to make sure the changes <SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"take"</SPAN
+>.
+ </P
+><P
+> Make sure the domain, host and path are appropriate as well. Your browser can
+ tell you where you are specifically and you should use that information for
+ your configuration settings. Note that above it is not referenced as
+ <TT
+CLASS="LITERAL"
+>gmail.com</TT
+>, which is a valid domain name.
+ </P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
>User Manual</I
></A
>
- for a more deatiled discussion.</P
+ for a more detailed discussion.</P
><P
> It should be noted that the <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN424"
+NAME="AEN464"
></A
>3.10. What is the <TT
CLASS="FILENAME"
>default.filter</TT
> with a text editor and define
your own filters. This is potentially a very powerful feature, but
- requires some expertise in both regular expressions and HTML/HTTP. You should
+ requires some expertise in both regular expressions and HTML/HTTP.
+ You should
place any modifications to the default filters, or any new ones you create
in a separate file, such as <TT
CLASS="FILENAME"
>user.filter</TT
>, so they won't
- be overwritten during upgrades. The ability to define multiple filter files
+ be overwritten during upgrades.
+ The ability to define multiple filter files
in <TT
CLASS="FILENAME"
>config</TT
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN442"
+NAME="AEN482"
></A
->3.11. How can I set up <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> to act as a proxy for my
+>3.11. How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my
LAN?</H3
><P
> By default, <SPAN
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN468"
+NAME="AEN507"
></A
>3.12. Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want to see anything.</H3
><P
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN485"
+NAME="AEN524"
></A
>3.13. Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?</H3
><P
is rather smart, it can and will make errors. The checkerboard image is visually
decent, but it shows you that and where images were blocked, which can be very
helpful in case some navigation aid or otherwise innocent image was
- erraneously blocked. Some people might also enjoy seeing how many banners
+ erroneously blocked. Some people might also enjoy seeing how many banners
they <SPAN
CLASS="emphasis"
><I
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN490"
+NAME="AEN529"
></A
>3.14. I see some images being replaced by a text
instead of the checkerboard image. Why and how do I get rid of this?</H3
><A
NAME="SRVANY"
></A
->3.15. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> run as a service
+>3.15. Can Privoxy run as a service
on Win2K/NT/XP?</H3
><P
> Yes. Version 3.0.4 introduces full <SPAN
>Privoxy</SPAN
> as a service.</P
><P
-> Earlier versions could run as a system service using <B
+> Earlier 3.x versions could run as a system service using <B
CLASS="COMMAND"
>srvany.exe</B
>.
><A
NAME="OTHERPROXY"
></A
->3.16. How can I make <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> work with other
-proxies like <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Squid</SPAN
-> or <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Tor</SPAN
->?</H3
+>3.16. How can I make Privoxy work with other
+proxies like Squid or Tor?</H3
><P
> This can be done and is often useful to combine the benefits of
<SPAN
in the <A
HREF="../user-manual/index.html"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
> which
- describes how to do this.</P
+ describes how to do this, and the <A
+HREF="misc.html#TOR"
+> How do I use Privoxy together with
+ Tor</A
+> section below.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
NAME="PORT-80"
></A
->3.17. Can I just set <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> to use port 80
+>3.17. Can I just set Privoxy to use port 80
and thus avoid individual browser configuration?</H3
><P
> No, its more complicated than that. This only works with special kinds
><A
NAME="TRANSPARENT"
></A
->3.18. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> run as a <SPAN
+>3.18. Can Privoxy run as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"transparent"</SPAN
> proxy?</H3
in the <A
HREF="../user-manual/index.html"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
>. As
a transparent proxy to be used for chaining we recommend Transproxy
(<A
><A
NAME="OUTLOOK"
></A
->3.19. How can I configure <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> for use with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Outlook
- Express</SPAN
->?</H3
+>3.19. How can I configure Privoxy for use with Outlook
+ Express?</H3
><P
> <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
+NAME="SNEAKY-COOKIES"
+></A
+>3.21. I sometimes notice cookies sneaking through. How?</H3
+><P
+> <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Cookies</A
+> can be
+ set in several ways. The classic method is via the
+ <TT
+CLASS="LITERAL"
+>Set-Cookie</TT
+> HTTP header. This is straightforward, and an
+ easy one to manipulate, such as the <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> concept of
+ <A
+HREF="../user-manual/actions-file.html#SESSION-COOKIES-ONLY"
+TARGET="_top"
+>session-cookies-only</A
+>.
+ There is also the possibility of using
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Javascript</A
+> to
+ set cookies (<SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> calls these <TT
+CLASS="LITERAL"
+>content-cookies</TT
+>). This
+ is trickier because the syntax can vary widely, and thus requires a certain
+ amount of guesswork. It is not realistic to catch all of these short of
+ disabling Javascript, which would break many sites. And lastly, if the
+ cookies are embedded in a HTTPS/SSL secure session via Javascript, they are beyond
+ <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy's</SPAN
+> reach.</P
+><P
+> All in all, <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> can help manage cookies in general, can help minimize
+ the loss of privacy posed by cookies, but can't realistically stop all
+ cookies.</P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="EVIL-COOKIES"
+></A
+>3.22. Are all cookies bad? Why?</H3
+><P
+> No, in fact there are many beneficial uses of
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>. Cookies are just a
+ method that browsers can use to store data between pages, or between browser
+ sessions. Sometimes there is a good reason for this, and the user's life is a
+ bit easier as a result. But there is a long history of some websites taking
+ advantage of this layer of trust, and using the data they glean from you and
+ your browsing habits for their own purposes, and maybe to your potential
+ detriment. Such sites are using you and storing their data on your system.
+ That is why the security conscious watch from whom those cookies come, and why
+ they really <SPAN
+CLASS="emphasis"
+><I
+CLASS="EMPHASIS"
+>need</I
+></SPAN
+> to be there.</P
+><P
+> See the
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Wikipedia cookie
+ definition</A
+> for more.</P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
NAME="ALLOW-COOKIES"
></A
->3.21. How can I allow permanent cookies for my trusted sites?</H3
+>3.23. How can I allow permanent cookies for my trusted sites?</H3
><P
> There are several actions that relate to cookies. The default behavior is to
allow only <SPAN
><A
NAME="MULTIPLES"
></A
->3.22. Can I have separate configurations for different users?</H3
+>3.24. Can I have separate configurations for different users?</H3
><P
> Each instance of <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
><A
NAME="WHITELISTS"
></A
->3.23. Can I set-up <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> as a whitelist of
+>3.25. Can I set-up Privoxy as a whitelist of
<SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"good"</SPAN
> ############################################################
# Blacklist
############################################################
- { +block }
+ { <A
+HREF="../user-manual/actions-file.html#BLOCK"
+TARGET="_top"
+>+block</A
+> }
/ # Block *all* URLs
############################################################
# Whitelist
############################################################
- { -block }
+ { <A
+HREF="../user-manual/actions-file.html#BLOCK"
+TARGET="_top"
+>-block</A
+> }
kids.example.com
toys.example.com
games.example.com</PRE
></LI
><LI
><P
-> The operating system and verions you run
+> The operating system and versions you run
<SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
><H2
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN1209"
+NAME="AEN1244"
></A
>7.1. License</H2
><P
>GNU General Public License</I
> for
- more details, which is available from the Free Software Foundation, Inc, 59
- Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.</P
+ more details, which is available from the Free Software Foundation, Inc,
+51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301, USA</P
><P
> You should have received a copy of the <A
HREF="http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html"
> Free Software<br>
Foundation, Inc. <SPAN
CLASS="STREET"
->59 Temple Place</SPAN
-> - Suite 330<br>
+>51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor</SPAN
+><br>
<SPAN
CLASS="CITY"
>Boston</SPAN
>MA</SPAN
> <SPAN
CLASS="POSTCODE"
->02111-1307</SPAN
+>02110-1301</SPAN
><br>
<SPAN
CLASS="COUNTRY"
><H2
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN1225"
+NAME="AEN1260"
></A
>7.2. History</H2
><P
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="NEWJB"
+NAME="WHO_USES"
></A
->1.1. What is this new version of <SPAN
+>1.1. Who should use Privoxy?</H3
+><P
+> Anyone that is interested in security, privacy, or in
+ finer-grained control over their web and Internet experience.
+ Everyone is encouraged to try <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+>.
+ </P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="BESTCHOICE"
+></A
+>1.2. Is Privoxy the best choice for
+me?</H3
+><P
+> <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> is certainly a good choice, especially for those who want more
+ control and security. Those that have the ability to fine-tune their installation
+ will benefit the most. One of <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy's</SPAN
+>
+ strength's is that it is highly configurable giving you the ability to
+ completely personalize your installation. Being familiar with, or at least
+ having an interest in learning about <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Http"
+TARGET="_top"
+>HTTP</A
+> and other networking
+ protocols, <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Html"
+TARGET="_top"
+>HTML</A
+>,
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Protocol"
+TARGET="_top"
+>IP (Internet
+ Protocol)</A
+>, and
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_expressions"
+TARGET="_top"
+><SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"Regular
+ Expressions"</SPAN
+></A
+>
+ will be a big plus and will help you get the most out
+ of <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+>.
+ </P
+><P
+> Much of <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy's</SPAN
+> configuration can be done
+ with a <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_browser"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Web browser</A
+>.
+ But there are areas where configuration is done using a
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Text_editors"
+TARGET="_top"
+>text editor</A
+>
+ to edit configuration files.
+ </P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="PROXYMORON"
+></A
+>1.3. What is a <SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"proxy"</SPAN
+>? How does
+Privoxy work?</H3
+><P
+> A <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server"
+TARGET="_top"
+>web proxy</A
+>
+ is a service, based on a software such as
+ <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+>, that clients (i.e. browsers) can use
+ instead of connecting directly to web servers on the Internet. The
+ clients then ask the proxy to fetch the objects they need (web pages,
+ images, movies etc) on their behalf, and when the proxy has done so, it
+ hands the results back to the client. It is a <SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"go-between"</SPAN
+>. See
+ the <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Wikipedia proxy
+ definition</A
+> for more.
+ </P
+><P
+> There are many reasons to use web proxies, such as security (firewalling),
+ efficiency (caching) and others, and there are any number of proxies
+ to accommodate those needs.
+ </P
+><P
+> <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> is a proxy that is primarily focused on privacy
+ protection, ad and junk elimination and freeing the user from restrictions placed on his
+ activities. Sitting between your browser(s) and the Internet,
+ it is in a perfect position to filter outbound personal information that your
+ browser is leaking, as well as inbound junk. It uses a variety of techniques to do
+ this, all of which are under your complete control via the various configuration
+ files and options.
+ </P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="NEWJB"
+></A
+>1.4. What is this new version of
+<SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"Junkbuster"</SPAN
>?</H3
><P
> Along time ago, there was the
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN45"
+NAME="AEN74"
></A
->1.2. Why <SPAN
+>1.5. Why <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"Privoxy"</SPAN
>? Why change the name from
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
-> at all?</H3
+Junkbuster at all?</H3
><P
> <A
HREF="http://junkbusters.com/"
><A
NAME="DIFFERS"
></A
->1.3. How does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> differ
-from the old <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster?</SPAN
-></H3
+>1.6. How does Privoxy differ
+from the old Junkbuster?</H3
><P
> <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
> still blocks ads and banners,
- still manages cookies, and still helps protect your privacy. But, these are
- all greatly enhanced, and many, many new features have been added, all in the same vein.
+ still manages <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>, and still
+ helps protect your privacy. But, these are all greatly enhanced, and many,
+ many new features have been added, all in the same vein.
</P
><P
> The configuration has changed significantly as well. This is something that
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"actions"</SPAN
> files, with a completely different
- syntax. See the <A
HREF="../user-manual/whatsnew.html"
TARGET="_top"
>What's New</A
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="PROXYMORON"
-></A
->1.4. What is a <SPAN
-CLASS="QUOTE"
->"proxy"</SPAN
->? How does
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> work?</H3
-><P
-> A web proxy is a service, based on a software such as <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->,
- that clients (i.e. browsers) can use instead of connecting directly to the web
- servers on the Internet. The clients then ask the proxy to fetch the objects
- they need (web pages, images, movies etc) on their behalf, and when the proxy
- has done so, it hands the results back to the client.
- </P
-><P
-> There are many reasons to use web proxies, such as security (firewalling),
- efficiency (caching) and others, and there are just as many different proxies
- to accommodate those needs.
- </P
-><P
-> <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> is a proxy that is primarily focused on privacy
- protection, junk elimination and freeing the user from restrictions placed on his
- activities. Sitting between your browser(s) and the Internet,
- it is in a perfect position to filter outbound personal information that your
- browser is leaking, as well as inbound junk. It uses a variety of techniques to do
- this, all of which are under your control via the various configuration
- files and options.
- </P
-></DIV
-><DIV
-CLASS="SECT2"
-><H3
-CLASS="SECT2"
-><A
NAME="WHATSANAD"
></A
->1.5. How does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> know what is
+>1.7. How does Privoxy know what is
an ad, and what is not?</H3
><P
> <SPAN
TARGET="_top"
>URL
patterns</A
-> to sort out and block the requests for banners.</P
+> to sort out and block the requests for things that sound
+ like they would be ads or banners.</P
><P
> Second, banners tend to come in certain <SPAN
CLASS="emphasis"
your browser doesn't request them anymore in the first place.</P
><P
> Both of this involves a certain amount of guesswork and is, of course, freely
- configurable.</P
+ and readily configurable.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN138"
+NAME="AEN155"
></A
->1.6. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> make mistakes?
+>1.8. Can Privoxy make mistakes?
This does not sound very scientific.</H3
><P
> Actually, it's a black art ;-) And yes, it is always possible to have a broad
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN145"
+NAME="AEN161"
></A
->1.7. Will I have to configure <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>1.9. Will I have to configure Privoxy
before I can use it?</H3
><P
> No, not really. The default installation should give you a good starting
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
> lies!</P
+><P
+> You will have to tell your browser about <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+>
+ (see the Installation section below).</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
NAME="BROWSERS2"
></A
->1.8. My browser does the same things as
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->. Why should I use
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> at all?</H3
+>1.10. My browser does the same things as
+Privoxy. Why should I use
+Privoxy at all?</H3
><P
> Modern browsers do indeed have <SPAN
CLASS="emphasis"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
+NAME="WHYTRUST"
+></A
+>1.11. Why should I trust Privoxy?</H3
+><P
+> The most important reason is because you have access to
+ <SPAN
+CLASS="emphasis"
+><I
+CLASS="EMPHASIS"
+>everything</I
+></SPAN
+>, and you can control everything. You can
+ check every line of every configuration file yourself. You can check every
+ last bit of source code should you desire. And even if you can't read code,
+ there should be some comfort in knowing that thousands of other people can,
+ and do read it. You can build the software from scratch, if you want, so
+ that you know the executable is clean, and that it is
+ <SPAN
+CLASS="emphasis"
+><I
+CLASS="EMPHASIS"
+>yours</I
+></SPAN
+>. In fact, we encourage this level of scrutiny. It
+ is one reason we use <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> ourselves.
+ </P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
NAME="LICENSE"
></A
->1.9. Is there is a license or fee? What about a
+>1.12. Is there is a license or fee? What about a
warranty? Registration?</H3
><P
> <SPAN
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
+NAME="SPYWARE"
+></A
+>1.13. Can Privoxy remove spyware? Adware? Viruses?</H3
+><P
+> No. <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> cannot remove anything. It is not a removal tool. It is a
+ preventative. <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> can help prevent contact from sites
+ that use such tactics, and thus could conceivably prevent contamination from
+ such sites.</P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="OTHERADS"
+></A
+>1.14. Can I use Privoxy with other ad-blocking software?</H3
+><P
+> <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> should work fine with other proxies and other software in general.</P
+><P
+> But it is probably not necessary to use <SPAN
+CLASS="APPLICATION"
+>Privoxy</SPAN
+> in conjunction with other
+ ad-blocking products, and this could conceivably cause undesirable results.
+ It would be better to choose one software or the other and work a little to
+ tweak its configuration to your liking.</P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
NAME="JOINTEAM"
></A
->1.10. I would like to help you, what can I do?</H3
+>1.15. I would like to help you, what can I do?</H3
><DIV
CLASS="SECT3"
><H4
><A
NAME="JOINTEAM-WORK"
></A
->1.10.1. Would you like to participate?</H4
+>1.15.1. Would you like to participate?</H4
><P
> Well, we <SPAN
CLASS="emphasis"
><A
NAME="JOINTEAM-MONEY"
></A
->1.10.2. Contribute!</H4
+>1.15.2. Contribute!</H4
><P
> We, of course, welcome donations and could use money for domain registering,
buying software to test <SPAN
><A
NAME="JOINTEAM-SOFTWARE"
></A
->1.10.3. Software</H4
+>1.15.3. Software</H4
><P
> If you are a vendor of a web-related software like a browser, web server
or proxy, and would like us to ensure that <SPAN
><BR></P
><P
CLASS="PUBDATE"
->$Id: faq.sgml,v 2.14 2006/09/05 13:25:12 david__schmidt Exp $<BR></P
+>$Id: faq.sgml,v 2.16 2006/09/10 15:30:46 hal9 Exp $<BR></P
><DIV
><DIV
CLASS="ABSTRACT"
TARGET="_top"
>Privoxy</A
>.
- It can't and doesn't replace the
+ It is not a substitute for the
<A
HREF="../user-manual/index.html"
TARGET="_top"
><I
CLASS="CITETITLE"
->User Manual</I
+>Privoxy User Manual</I
></A
>.
</P
><P
-> <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> is a web proxy with advanced filtering
- capabilities for protecting privacy, modifying web page data, managing
- cookies, controlling access, and removing ads, banners, pop-ups and other
- obnoxious Internet junk. <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> has a very
- flexible configuration and can be customized to suit individual needs and
- tastes. <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> has application for both
- stand-alone systems and multi-user networks.</P
+>What is Privoxy?</P
><P
-> <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> is based on <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Internet
- Junkbuster</SPAN
-> (tm).</P
+> Privoxy is a
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxy_server"
+TARGET="_top"
+>web proxy</A
+>
+ with advanced filtering capabilities for protecting
+ privacy, modifying web page data, managing
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>,
+ controlling access, and removing ads, banners, pop-ups and other obnoxious
+ Internet junk. Privoxy has a very flexible configuration and can be
+ customized to suit individual needs and tastes. Privoxy has application for
+ both stand-alone systems and multi-user networks.</P
+><P
+> Privoxy is based on Internet Junkbuster (tm).</P
><P
> Please note that this document is a work in progress. This copy represents
the state at the release of version 3.0.4.
><DL
><DT
>1.1. <A
-HREF="general.html#NEWJB"
->What is this new version of <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
->?</A
+HREF="general.html#WHO_USES"
+>Who should use Privoxy?</A
></DT
><DT
>1.2. <A
-HREF="general.html#AEN45"
->Why <SPAN
-CLASS="QUOTE"
->"Privoxy"</SPAN
->? Why change the name from
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
-> at all?</A
+HREF="general.html#BESTCHOICE"
+>Is Privoxy the best choice for
+me?</A
></DT
><DT
>1.3. <A
-HREF="general.html#DIFFERS"
->How does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> differ
-from the old <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster?</SPAN
-></A
-></DT
-><DT
->1.4. <A
HREF="general.html#PROXYMORON"
>What is a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"proxy"</SPAN
>? How does
+Privoxy work?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.4. <A
+HREF="general.html#NEWJB"
+>What is this new version of
<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> work?</A
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"Junkbuster"</SPAN
+>?</A
></DT
><DT
>1.5. <A
+HREF="general.html#AEN74"
+>Why <SPAN
+CLASS="QUOTE"
+>"Privoxy"</SPAN
+>? Why change the name from
+Junkbuster at all?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.6. <A
+HREF="general.html#DIFFERS"
+>How does Privoxy differ
+from the old Junkbuster?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.7. <A
HREF="general.html#WHATSANAD"
->How does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> know what is
+>How does Privoxy know what is
an ad, and what is not?</A
></DT
><DT
->1.6. <A
-HREF="general.html#AEN138"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> make mistakes?
+>1.8. <A
+HREF="general.html#AEN155"
+>Can Privoxy make mistakes?
This does not sound very scientific.</A
></DT
><DT
->1.7. <A
-HREF="general.html#AEN145"
->Will I have to configure <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>1.9. <A
+HREF="general.html#AEN161"
+>Will I have to configure Privoxy
before I can use it?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="general.html#BROWSERS2"
>My browser does the same things as
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->. Why should I use
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> at all?</A
+Privoxy. Why should I use
+Privoxy at all?</A
></DT
><DT
->1.9. <A
+>1.11. <A
+HREF="general.html#WHYTRUST"
+>Why should I trust Privoxy?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.12. <A
HREF="general.html#LICENSE"
>Is there is a license or fee? What about a
warranty? Registration?</A
></DT
><DT
->1.10. <A
+>1.13. <A
+HREF="general.html#SPYWARE"
+>Can Privoxy remove spyware? Adware? Viruses?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.14. <A
+HREF="general.html#OTHERADS"
+>Can I use Privoxy with other ad-blocking software?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>1.15. <A
HREF="general.html#JOINTEAM"
>I would like to help you, what can I do?</A
></DT
><DD
><DL
><DT
HREF="general.html#JOINTEAM-WORK"
>Would you like to participate?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="general.html#JOINTEAM-MONEY"
>Contribute!</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="general.html#JOINTEAM-SOFTWARE"
>Software</A
></DT
><DT
>2.1. <A
HREF="installation.html#WHICHBROWSERS"
->Which browsers are supported by <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</A
+>Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?</A
></DT
><DT
>2.2. <A
><DT
>2.3. <A
HREF="installation.html#EMAIL-CLIENT"
->Can I use <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> with my email client?</A
+>Can I use Privoxy with my email client?</A
></DT
><DT
>2.4. <A
HREF="installation.html#NEWINSTALL"
>Can I install
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> over <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
->?</A
+ Privoxy over Junkbuster?</A
></DT
><DT
>2.5. <A
-HREF="installation.html#AEN235"
->I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->. Is there anything
+HREF="installation.html#AEN263"
+>I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything
special I have to do now?</A
></DT
><DT
>2.6. <A
HREF="installation.html#LOCALHOST"
->What is the proxy address of <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</A
+>What is the proxy address of Privoxy?</A
></DT
><DT
>2.7. <A
HREF="installation.html#NOTHING"
->I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, and nothing is happening.
+>I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening.
All the ads are there. What's wrong?</A
></DT
><DT
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"Privoxy is not being used"</SPAN
> dummy page although
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> is running and being used.</A
+Privoxy is running and being used.</A
></DT
></DL
></DD
></DT
><DT
>3.3. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN332"
->What is an <SPAN
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN358"
+>What exactly is an <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"actions"</SPAN
> file?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.5. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN351"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN378"
>How are actions files configured? What is the easiest
way to do this?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.6. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN359"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN386"
>There are several different <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"actions"</SPAN
></DT
><DT
>3.10. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN424"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN464"
>What is the <TT
CLASS="FILENAME"
>default.filter</TT
></DT
><DT
>3.11. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN442"
->How can I set up <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> to act as a proxy for my
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN482"
+>How can I set up Privoxy to act as a proxy for my
LAN?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.12. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN468"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN507"
>Instead of ads, now I get a checkerboard pattern. I don't want to see anything.</A
></DT
><DT
>3.13. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN485"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN524"
>Why would anybody want to see a checkerboard pattern?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.14. <A
-HREF="configuration.html#AEN490"
+HREF="configuration.html#AEN529"
>I see some images being replaced by a text
instead of the checkerboard image. Why and how do I get rid of this?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.15. <A
HREF="configuration.html#SRVANY"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> run as a service
+>Can Privoxy run as a service
on Win2K/NT/XP?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.16. <A
HREF="configuration.html#OTHERPROXY"
->How can I make <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> work with other
-proxies like <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Squid</SPAN
-> or <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Tor</SPAN
->?</A
+>How can I make Privoxy work with other
+proxies like Squid or Tor?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.17. <A
HREF="configuration.html#PORT-80"
->Can I just set <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> to use port 80
+>Can I just set Privoxy to use port 80
and thus avoid individual browser configuration?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.18. <A
HREF="configuration.html#TRANSPARENT"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> run as a <SPAN
+>Can Privoxy run as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"transparent"</SPAN
> proxy?</A
><DT
>3.19. <A
HREF="configuration.html#OUTLOOK"
->How can I configure <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> for use with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Outlook
- Express</SPAN
->?</A
+>How can I configure Privoxy for use with Outlook
+ Express?</A
></DT
><DT
>3.20. <A
></DT
><DT
>3.21. <A
+HREF="configuration.html#SNEAKY-COOKIES"
+>I sometimes notice cookies sneaking through. How?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>3.22. <A
+HREF="configuration.html#EVIL-COOKIES"
+>Are all cookies bad? Why?</A
+></DT
+><DT
+>3.23. <A
HREF="configuration.html#ALLOW-COOKIES"
>How can I allow permanent cookies for my trusted sites?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="configuration.html#MULTIPLES"
>Can I have separate configurations for different users?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="configuration.html#WHITELISTS"
->Can I set-up <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> as a whitelist of
+>Can I set-up Privoxy as a whitelist of
<SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"good"</SPAN
><DL
><DT
>4.1. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN584"
->How much does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> slow my browsing down? This
+HREF="misc.html#AEN637"
+>How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This
has to add extra time to browsing.</A
></DT
><DT
></DT
><DT
>4.3. <A
-HREF="misc.html#SLOWCRAWL"
->I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, and all my
-browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives?</A
-></DT
-><DT
->4.4. <A
HREF="misc.html#CONFIGURL"
>What are "http://config.privoxy.org/" and
"http://p.p/"?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="misc.html#NEWADS"
>How can I submit new ads, or report
problems?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="misc.html#NOONECARES"
>Why doesn't anyone answer my support
request?</A
></DT
><DT
HREF="misc.html#IP"
>How can I hide my IP address?</A
></DT
><DT
+>4.7. <A
+HREF="misc.html#AEN699"
+>Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?</A
+></DT
+><DT
>4.8. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN651"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> guarantee I am anonymous?</A
+HREF="misc.html#AEN717"
+>A test site says I am not using a Proxy.</A
></DT
><DT
>4.9. <A
HREF="misc.html#TOR"
->How do I use <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
- together with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Tor</SPAN
->?</A
+>How do I use Privoxy
+ together with Tor?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.10. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN722"
+HREF="misc.html#AEN770"
>Might some things break because header information or
content is being altered?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.11. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN733"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> act as a <SPAN
+HREF="misc.html#AEN781"
+>Can Privoxy act as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"caching"</SPAN
> proxy to
></DT
><DT
>4.12. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN743"
->What about as a firewall? Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> protect me?</A
+HREF="misc.html#AEN790"
+>What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.13. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN749"
+HREF="misc.html#AEN795"
>I have large empty spaces / a checkerboard pattern now where
ads used to be. Why?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.14. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN754"
->How can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?</A
+HREF="misc.html#AEN800"
+>How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.15. <A
-HREF="misc.html#AEN769"
-><SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> runs as a <SPAN
+HREF="misc.html#AEN814"
+>Privoxy runs as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"server"</SPAN
>. How
><DT
>4.16. <A
HREF="misc.html#TURNOFF"
->How can I temporarily disable <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</A
+>How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.17. <A
>When <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"disabled"</SPAN
-> is <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> totally
+> is Privoxy totally
out of the picture?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.18. <A
HREF="misc.html#CRUNCH"
->My logs show <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> <SPAN
+>My logs show Privoxy <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"crunches"</SPAN
>
><DT
>4.19. <A
HREF="misc.html#DOWNLOADS"
->Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> effect files that I download
+>Can Privoxy effect files that I download
from a webserver? FTP server?</A
></DT
><DT
>4.20. <A
HREF="misc.html#DOWNLOADS2"
->I just downloaded a Perl script, and <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>I just downloaded a Perl script, and Privoxy
altered it! Yikes, what is wrong!</A
></DT
><DT
><DT
>4.22. <A
HREF="misc.html#SEEALSO"
->Where can I find more information about <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>Where can I find more information about Privoxy
and related issues?</A
></DT
><DT
><DL
><DT
>5.1. <A
-HREF="trouble.html#AEN925"
+HREF="trouble.html#AEN963"
>I am getting <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"connection refused"</SPAN
></DT
><DT
>5.2. <A
-HREF="trouble.html#AEN938"
+HREF="trouble.html#AEN976"
>I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is
still getting through. How?</A
></DT
><DT
>5.3. <A
HREF="trouble.html#BADSITE"
->One of my favorite sites does not work with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->.
+>One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy.
What can I do?</A
></DT
><DT
>5.4. <A
HREF="trouble.html#DUN"
->After installing <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, I have to log in
+>After installing Privoxy, I have to log in
every time I start IE. What gives?</A
></DT
><DT
>5.5. <A
HREF="trouble.html#FTP"
->I cannot connect to any FTP sites. <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
- seems to be blocking me.</A
+>I cannot connect to any FTP sites. Privoxy
+ is blocking me.</A
></DT
><DT
>5.6. <A
HREF="trouble.html#OSXIE"
>In Mac OSX, I can't configure Microsoft Internet Explorer to use
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> as the HTTP proxy.</A
+ Privoxy as the HTTP proxy.</A
></DT
><DT
>5.7. <A
CLASS="MARKUP"
><html><body></body></html></SPAN
>. Without
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> the page loads fine.</A
+ Privoxy the page loads fine.</A
></DT
><DT
>5.10. <A
><DT
>5.12. <A
HREF="trouble.html#INUSE"
->When I try to launch <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, I get an
+>When I try to launch Privoxy, I get an
error message <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"port 8118 is already in use"</SPAN
><DT
>5.14. <A
HREF="trouble.html#DEMORONIZER2"
->Why are binary files (such as images) corrupted when <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>Why are binary files (such as images) corrupted when Privoxy
is used?</A
></DT
><DT
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"404 No Such Domain"</SPAN
>. Why
- can't <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> do this better?</A
+ can't Privoxy do this better?</A
></DT
><DT
>5.18. <A
HREF="trouble.html#ALLCPU"
->At one site <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> just hangs, and starts taking
+>At one site Privoxy just hangs, and starts taking
all CPU. Why is this?</A
></DT
+><DT
+>5.19. <A
+HREF="trouble.html#SLOWCRAWL"
+>I just installed Privoxy, and all my
+browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives?</A
+></DT
></DL
></DD
><DT
><DL
><DT
>7.1. <A
-HREF="copyright.html#AEN1209"
+HREF="copyright.html#AEN1244"
>License</A
></DT
><DT
>7.2. <A
-HREF="copyright.html#AEN1225"
+HREF="copyright.html#AEN1260"
>History</A
></DT
></DL
><A
NAME="WHICHBROWSERS"
></A
->2.1. Which browsers are supported by <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</H3
+>2.1. Which browsers are supported by Privoxy?</H3
><P
> Any browser that can be configured to use a proxy, which
should be virtually all browsers, including
><A
NAME="EMAIL-CLIENT"
></A
->2.3. Can I use <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> with my email client?</H3
+>2.3. Can I use Privoxy with my email client?</H3
><P
> As long as there is some way to set a HTTP proxy for the client, then yes,
any application can be used, whether it is strictly speaking a
NAME="NEWINSTALL"
></A
>2.4. Can I install
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> over <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Junkbuster</SPAN
->?</H3
+ Privoxy over Junkbuster?</H3
><P
> We recommend you un-install <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
> in the <A
HREF="../user-manual/index.html"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
>
for details.
</P
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN235"
+NAME="AEN263"
></A
->2.5. I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->. Is there anything
+>2.5. I just installed Privoxy. Is there anything
special I have to do now?</H3
><P
> All browsers must be told to use <SPAN
as a proxy by specifying the correct proxy address and port number
in the appropriate configuration area for the browser. See below.
You should also flush your browser's memory and disk cache to get rid of any
- cached junk items, and remove any stored cookies. </P
+ cached junk items, and remove any stored
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browser_cookie"
+TARGET="_top"
+>cookies</A
+>. </P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
NAME="LOCALHOST"
></A
->2.6. What is the proxy address of <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</H3
+>2.6. What is the proxy address of Privoxy?</H3
><P
> If you set up the <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
><A
NAME="NOTHING"
></A
->2.7. I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, and nothing is happening.
+>2.7. I just installed Privoxy, and nothing is happening.
All the ads are there. What's wrong?</H3
><P
> Did you configure your browser to use <SPAN
<A
HREF="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
>.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"Privoxy is not being used"</SPAN
> dummy page although
-<SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> is running and being used.</H3
+Privoxy is running and being used.</H3
><P
> First, make sure that Privoxy is <SPAN
CLASS="emphasis"
<A
HREF="http://www.privoxy.org/user-manual/"
TARGET="_top"
->user manual</A
+>User Manual</A
>.</P
><P
> Now if <A
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN584"
+NAME="AEN637"
></A
->4.1. How much does <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> slow my browsing down? This
+>4.1. How much does Privoxy slow my browsing down? This
has to add extra time to browsing.</H3
><P
> How much of an impact depends on many things, including the CPU of the host
- system, how agressive the configuration is, which specific actions are being triggered,
+ system, how aggressive the configuration is, which specific actions are being triggered,
the size of the page, etc.</P
><P
> Overall, it should not slow you down any in real terms, and may actually help
- speed things up since ads, banners and other junk are not typically being displayed.
- The actual processing time required by <SPAN
+ speed things up since ads, banners and other junk are not typically being
+ retrieved and displayed. The actual processing time required by
+ <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
->
- itself for each page, is relatively small in the overall scheme of things,
- and happens very quickly. This is typically more than offset by time saved
- not downloading and rendering ad images (if ad blocking is being used).</P
+> itself for each page, is relatively small
+ in the overall scheme of things, and happens very quickly. This is typically
+ more than offset by time saved not downloading and rendering ad images (if ad
+ blocking is being used).</P
><P
> <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="SLOWCRAWL"
-></A
->4.3. I just installed <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, and all my
-browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives?</H3
-><P
-> This should not happen, and for the overwhelming number of users world-wide,
- it does not happen. I would suspect some inadvertent interaction of software
- components such as anti-virus software, spyware protectors, personal
- firewalls or similar components. Try disabling (or uninstalling) these one
- at a time and see if that helps.</P
-></DIV
-><DIV
-CLASS="SECT2"
-><H3
-CLASS="SECT2"
-><A
NAME="CONFIGURL"
></A
->4.4. What are "http://config.privoxy.org/" and
+>4.3. What are "http://config.privoxy.org/" and
"http://p.p/"?</H3
><P
> <A
><A
NAME="NEWADS"
></A
->4.5. How can I submit new ads, or report
+>4.4. How can I submit new ads, or report
problems?</H3
><P
>Please see the <A
><A
NAME="NOONECARES"
></A
->4.6. Why doesn't anyone answer my support
+>4.5. Why doesn't anyone answer my support
request?</H3
><P
>Rest assured that it has been read and considered. Why it is not answered,
could be for various reasons, including no one has a good answer for it, no
-one has had time to yet investigate it thorougly, it has been reported
+one has had time to yet investigate it thoroughly, it has been reported
numerous times already, or because not enough information was provided to help
us help you. Your efforts are not wasted, and we do appreciate them.</P
></DIV
><A
NAME="IP"
></A
->4.7. How can I hide my IP address?</H3
+>4.6. How can I hide my IP address?</H3
><P
> If you run both the browser and the proxy locally, you cannot hide your IP
address with <SPAN
> together with <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Tor</SPAN
->?</A
->.</P
+> section</A
+>
+ just below.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN651"
+NAME="AEN699"
></A
->4.8. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> guarantee I am anonymous?</H3
+>4.7. Can Privoxy guarantee I am anonymous?</H3
><P
> No. Your chances of remaining anonymous are greatly improved, but unless you
<A
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
+NAME="AEN717"
+></A
+>4.8. A test site says I am not using a Proxy.</H3
+><P
+> Good! Actually, they are probably testing for some other kinds of proxies.
+ Hiding yourself completely would require additional steps.</P
+></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
NAME="TOR"
></A
->4.9. How do I use <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
- together with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Tor</SPAN
->?</H3
+>4.9. How do I use Privoxy
+ together with Tor?</H3
><P
> Before you configure <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
> and it
<SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
->"[l]ooks like client functionality is working"</SPAN
+>"looks like client functionality is working"</SPAN
>.</P
><P
> If either <SPAN
></TABLE
></P
><P
-> This is enough to reach the internet, but additionally you should
+> This is enough to reach the Internet, but additionally you should
uncomment the following forward rules, to make sure your local network is still
reachable through Privoxy:</P
><P
>Tor</SPAN
>.</P
><P
-> Afterwards, please take the time to at least skim through the rest
+> Afterward, please take the time to at least skim through the rest
of <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Tor's</SPAN
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN722"
+NAME="AEN770"
></A
>4.10. Might some things break because header information or
content is being altered?</H3
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN733"
+NAME="AEN781"
></A
->4.11. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> act as a <SPAN
+>4.11. Can Privoxy act as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"caching"</SPAN
> proxy to
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN743"
+NAME="AEN790"
></A
->4.12. What about as a firewall? Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> protect me?</H3
+>4.12. What about as a firewall? Can Privoxy protect me?</H3
><P
> Not in the way you mean, or in the way a true firewall can.
<SPAN
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN749"
+NAME="AEN795"
></A
>4.13. I have large empty spaces / a checkerboard pattern now where
ads used to be. Why?</H3
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN754"
+NAME="AEN800"
></A
->4.14. How can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?</H3
+>4.14. How can Privoxy filter Secure (HTTPS) URLs?</H3
><P
> Since secure HTTP connections are encrypted SSL sessions between your browser
and the secure site, and are meant to be reliably <SPAN
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN769"
+NAME="AEN814"
></A
->4.15. <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> runs as a <SPAN
+>4.15. Privoxy runs as a <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"server"</SPAN
>. How
><A
NAME="TURNOFF"
></A
->4.16. How can I temporarily disable <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->?</H3
+>4.16. How can I temporarily disable Privoxy?</H3
><P
> The easiest way is to access <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>4.17. When <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"disabled"</SPAN
-> is <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> totally
+> is Privoxy totally
out of the picture?</H3
><P
> No, this just means all filtering and actions are disabled.
><A
NAME="CRUNCH"
></A
->4.18. My logs show <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> <SPAN
+>4.18. My logs show Privoxy <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"crunches"</SPAN
>
><A
NAME="DOWNLOADS"
></A
->4.19. Can <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> effect files that I download
+>4.19. Can Privoxy effect files that I download
from a webserver? FTP server?</H3
><P
> From the webserver's perspective, there is no difference between
> Filtering is potentially more of a concern since the results are not always
so obvious, and the effects of filtering are there whether the file is simply
viewed, or downloaded. And potentially whether the content is some obnoxious
- advertizement, or Mr. Jimmy's latest/greatest source code jewel. Of course,
+ advertisement, or Mr. Jimmy's latest/greatest source code jewel. Of course,
one of these presumably is <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"bad"</SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
> does not do FTP at all, only HTTP
- protocols, so please don't try.</P
+ and HTTPS (SSL) protocols, so please don't try.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
NAME="DOWNLOADS2"
></A
->4.20. I just downloaded a Perl script, and <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>4.20. I just downloaded a Perl script, and Privoxy
altered it! Yikes, what is wrong!</H3
><P
> Please read above.</P
><A
NAME="SEEALSO"
></A
->4.22. Where can I find more information about <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>4.22. Where can I find more information about Privoxy
and related issues?</H3
><P
> Other references and sites of interest to <SPAN
>,
<SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
->TOR</SPAN
+>Tor</SPAN
> can help anonymize web browsing,
web publishing, instant messaging, IRC, SSH, and other applications.
</TD
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN925"
+NAME="AEN963"
></A
>5.1. I am getting <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
><H3
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
-NAME="AEN938"
+NAME="AEN976"
></A
>5.2. I just added a new rule, but the steenkin ad is
still getting through. How?</H3
><A
NAME="BADSITE"
></A
->5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->.
+>5.3. One of my favorite sites does not work with Privoxy.
What can I do?</H3
><P
> First verify that it is indeed a <SPAN
> Troubleshooting actions is discussed in more detail in the <A
HREF="../user-manual/appendix.html#ACTIONSANAT"
TARGET="_top"
->user-manual appendix</A
+>User Manual appendix</A
>.
There is also an <A
HREF="../user-manual/actions-file.html#ACT-EXAMPLES"
><A
NAME="DUN"
></A
->5.4. After installing <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, I have to log in
+>5.4. After installing Privoxy, I have to log in
every time I start IE. What gives?</H3
><P
> This is a quirk that effects the installation of
><A
NAME="FTP"
></A
->5.5. I cannot connect to any FTP sites. <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
- seems to be blocking me.</H3
+>5.5. I cannot connect to any FTP sites. Privoxy
+ is blocking me.</H3
><P
> <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
><I
CLASS="EMPHASIS"
>any protocol other than HTTP
- or HTTPS</I
+ or HTTPS (SSL)</I
></SPAN
>.
</P
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
> will indeed cause problems since
- it does not know FTP. Newer version will give a sane error message if a FTP
- connection is attempted.
+ it does not know FTP. Newer version will give a sane error
+ message if a FTP connection is attempted.
</P
><P
> Will <SPAN
NAME="OSXIE"
></A
>5.6. In Mac OSX, I can't configure Microsoft Internet Explorer to use
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> as the HTTP proxy.</H3
+ Privoxy as the HTTP proxy.</H3
><P
> Microsoft Internet Explorer (in versions like 5.1) respects system-wide
network settings. In order to change the HTTP proxy, open System
CLASS="MARKUP"
><html><body></body></html></SPAN
>. Without
- <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> the page loads fine.</H3
+ Privoxy the page loads fine.</H3
><P
> Chances are that the site suffers from a bug in
<A
>Privoxy</SPAN
> on
some platforms due to DNS timeouts.</P
+><P
+> This can be caused by a problem with the local <TT
+CLASS="FILENAME"
+>HOSTS</TT
+>
+ file. If this file has been changed from the original, try reverting it to
+ see if that helps.</P
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="SECT2"
><A
NAME="INUSE"
></A
->5.12. When I try to launch <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->, I get an
+>5.12. When I try to launch Privoxy, I get an
error message <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"port 8118 is already in use"</SPAN
><A
NAME="DEMORONIZER2"
></A
->5.14. Why are binary files (such as images) corrupted when <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
->
+>5.14. Why are binary files (such as images) corrupted when Privoxy
is used?</H3
><P
> This may also be caused by the <SPAN
CLASS="APPLICATION"
>Privoxy</SPAN
> is attempting to disable malicious
- Javascript in this case, with the <TT
+ <A
+HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Javascript"
+TARGET="_top"
+>Javascript</A
+>
+ in this case, with the <TT
CLASS="LITERAL"
>unsolicited-popups</TT
>
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"404 No Such Domain"</SPAN
>. Why
- can't <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> do this better?</H3
+ can't Privoxy do this better?</H3
><P
> There are potentially several factors here. First of all, the DNS resolution
is done by the underlying operating system -- not
merely initiates the process and hands it off, and then later reports
whatever the outcome was. And tries to give a coherent message if there seems
to be a problem. In some cases, this might otherwise be mitigated by the
- browser itself which might try some work-arounds and alernate approaches (e.g
+ browser itself which might try some work-arounds and alternate approaches (e.g
adding <SPAN
CLASS="QUOTE"
>"www."</SPAN
><A
NAME="ALLCPU"
></A
->5.18. At one site <SPAN
-CLASS="APPLICATION"
->Privoxy</SPAN
-> just hangs, and starts taking
+>5.18. At one site Privoxy just hangs, and starts taking
all CPU. Why is this?</H3
><P
> This is probably a manifestation of the <SPAN
>
filters.</P
></DIV
+><DIV
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><H3
+CLASS="SECT2"
+><A
+NAME="SLOWCRAWL"
+></A
+>5.19. I just installed Privoxy, and all my
+browsing has slowed to a crawl. What gives?</H3
+><P
+> This should not happen, and for the overwhelming number of users world-wide,
+ it does not happen. I would suspect some inadvertent interaction of software
+ components such as anti-virus software, spyware protectors, personal
+ firewalls or similar components. Try disabling (or uninstalling) these one
+ at a time and see if that helps.</P
+></DIV
></DIV
><DIV
CLASS="NAVFOOTER"
projects / privoxy.git / commitdiff