Peter Bosher: Fwd: [vires] 'Cleaning up' Web Pages

Thanks Peter for forwarding this tool.

I haven't tried the rool but one interesting piece is the way their
set up their filter as a client side proxy.

I'd like to understand how this work in practive for several
platforms.


------- Forwarded Message
 
>Reply-To: vires@egroups.com
>Delivered-To: listsaver-egroups-vires@egroups.com
>Date: Sat, 03 Jul 1999 19:45:31 GMT
>From: keith@g8eap.demon.co.uk (keith rothwell)
>To: bcab@cs.man.ac.uk
>Cc: hal95@egroups.com, vires@egroups.com, raibc@onelist.com,
>         keith@g8eap.demon.co.uk
>X-Mailer: PCElm 1.11
>Lines: 242
>Subject: [vires] 'Cleaning up' Web Pages
>
>TO: BCAB, HAL95, VIRES, and RAIBC Mailing Lists
>
>3rd July, 1999.
>
>Hi All
>
>Sorry about the Multiple Posting but I thought that this Item might be of
>interest to a number of People on each of these Lists but who may not
>subscribe to a common one.
>
>A couple of Days ago, I found a Reference on a TeleText Page to a Program
>called "PROXOMITRON" which seemed as though it may be one of those Programs
>written for the 'Sighted World' which may prove beneficial to the Visually
>Impaired.
>
>Yesterday, I 'visited' the Web Site(http://proxomitron.cbj.net) and
>downloaded the Main Page. Subsequently, I downloaded the Download Page
>also. After passing these two Pages through a HTML to ASCII Converter, I
>edited them together and the Synthesised Page is appended below - there
>should be sufficient there to let you know whether you want to go any
>further with it.
>
>After reading the 'blurb', I decided to download the Programs and having
>obtained the URLs from the Links in the HTML Download Page, I downloaded
>the two Programs from the Recommended Site
>(http://www.241computers.com/software/ProxN3.zip and
>http://www.241computers.com/software/ProxN3i.zip). Unfortunately, despite
>several downloads the received ".zip" Files refused to unarchive properly.
>
>I sent an E-Mail to 241 Computer Services and to the Author
>(proxomitron@apexmail.com) and the Author (Scott R Lemon) wrote back saying
>that there was a Fault on the 241 Site and providing an Alternative
>Source:-
>
>http://www.concentric.net/~Slemmon/ProxN3i.zip and
>http://www.concentric.net/~Slemmon/ProxN3.zip
>
>The Downloads from this Alternative Source worked fine and I now have both
>Programs - one with an Installer and one without - ready for when I am
>ready to start using Internet Explorer 302/500 under Windows 98 in two or
>three months time.
>
>The Author had not thought of this Program in terms of it being useful to
>the Visually Impaired until I contacted him. Whilst it should make the
>'Life' of Screen Readers a little easier as it is, he feels that in time
>the User may find that producing their own Filter(s) for greater
>compatability with their Screen Reader may be advantageous. He feels that a
>Range of such Filters covering the various Screen Readers would be a
>worthwhile addition to the Project and, therefore, I have said that I will
>ask that if any of you do produce Filter(s) for your particular Screen
>Reader that you let him have the details on proxomitron@apexmail.com. If
>enough are written, it is always possible that the Next Version of this
>Program may come with Filters for all the commonly available Screen
>Readers.
>
>As you will realise from the above, I have not tried this Program myself
>just yet but I have no reason to doubt its effectiveness and if it does
>only half of what is claimed of it it should make browsing under Speech,
>Screen Magnification, or with Braille Output much more pleasant and easy.
>
>All the best,
>
>Bi de Keith Rothwell
>
>* * * WEB PAGES EXTRACT BEGINS * * *
>
>  The Proxomitron - Universal Web Filter
>
>ZD Net gives it five stars!
>
>   Welcome to The Proxomitron web page!
>
>  Have you ever wished you could turn off some of those fancy new HTML 
> features
>your web browser supports? Are you tired of pages filled to the brim with
>  blinking banners, pop-up windows, and other such aggravations?
>
>Enter The Proxomitron, Re-Writing the web Your way...
>
>Using special HTML filters, the Proxomitron can transform web pages on the fly
>- changing most anything you wish. Speed your browsing by saying goodbye to
>  slow loading cyber spam and other web-gimmickry. Customize pages to suit 
> your
>tastes. Take control of your web viewing, and don't be slave to some
>  web-master's whims.
>
>It works with most any browser (not just the big two) and, for starters, 
>can do
>the following keen things...     Stop or limit Pop-up windows
>          Control MIDI music and other sounds
>          Freeze animated .GIFs - load only the first frame
>          Kill most all advertising banners
>          Stop Web-Branding and other scripts added by web space providers
>          Stop Pop-up alert/confirm boxes
>          Remove slow web counters
>          Stop web pages and ads from "auto-refreshing"
>          Remove Dynamic HTML
>          Prevent getting stuck in someone's frames
>          Remove frames or tables altogether for that matter
>          Kill or change selected Java scripts and applets
>          Add your own scripts to pages!
>          Remove or replace web page and/or table background images
>          Stop Status bar scrollers
>          Unhide URLs obscured by status line text
>          Convert blinking text to bold
>          Remove Layers and Style sheets
>          And as they say, much, much more...
>
>This is just a taste of what the many included filtering rules can do, but 
>best
>of all, you have the freedom to create new, equally powerful, rules of your
>  own!
>
>The secret life of a web browser revealed!
>
>Not everyone is aware that there's a hidden conversation going on between your
>web browser and the sites you visit. Known as HTTP header messages they can
>  contain all sorts of information - some of which you might rather keep to
>  yourself. The Proxomitron not only lets you view all messages, but also lets
>  you alter, add, or delete them. If security is important to you, make it 
> your
>business to know what your browser is telling the world and have it say only
>  what you want!
>
>Choose your proxy.
>
>If you already use web proxies to speed your internet viewing, the Proxomitron
>can help here too. It can maintain a list of different proxy servers and allow
>you to easily switch between them. You can even test proxy servers for
>  accessability and see what, if any, HTTP headers they may add.
>
>What's it cost?
>
>Nothing - It's Free...
>This isn't demo-ware! It's fully functional with no nag screens or time limits
>- use it as often as you like for as long as you like. Released as ShonenWare,
>you can support the program's future development by purchasing any album 
>by the
>female, Japanese power-trio Shonen Knife! They are an amazing band who's music
>I dearly love. By supporting them you not only make me happier, but can 
>perhaps
>help make the entire world a happier place!
>
>Origins...
>
>Some time ago I began to notice that many of the wonderful new features added
>  to web browsers, far from making pages better, were instead making the web a
>  more and more hostile place! Cramped frames, pop-up windows, music you can't
>  shut off, stroboscopic animations, and and ever increasing deluge of slow
>  loading advertising content were making web viewing something akin to trying
>  to read a novel in the middle of Times Square on New Years Eve!
>
>I decided to try and create a general purpose solution - one that could not
>  only stop the argivations of today, but also any demonic HTML tags 
> lurking in
>the future. Thus the Proxomitron was born! At it's heart is a powerful text
>  matching engine. Similar to wildcards and regular expressions, but specially
>  designed for HTML, it can re-write web pages on the fly. Think of it like a
>  very powerful "Search and Replace" for the web. Troublesome HTML can be
>  altered or removed and new content can be added - even your own JavaScripts!
>  By simply selecting some of the many included filters, you can say 
> goodbye to
>common nuciances like animated GIFs, pop-up windows, advertising banners,
>  dynamic HTML and more. Best of all, these rules are not hard-coded. More 
> than
>simply flexible - You can completely change them, make them more powerful, and
>of course, add rules of your own! If it can be written in HTML, it can 
>probably
>be controled by the Proxomitron. The final power is yours!
>
>Not only can the filters stop general aggravations, but web pages you visit
>  often can be completely customized to suit your own taste. Don't like 
> someone
>else's choice of colors, fonts, or backgrounds? Use your own instead. Delete
>  useless frames or even change their JavaScripts to work the way you want.
>  There's really no limit!
>
>  The Proxomitron Download Page
>
>  Download a *NEW* Proxomitron of your very own!
>
>Proxomitrion version Naoko-3 (a)
>
>If you've already downloaded Naoko-3, Naoko-3a fixes a few small matching
>  expression bugs and a more serious bug that would cause a crash on Win98 
> or NT
>if the "Abort" button was pressed. So as not to break links the filename has
>  not been changed - check the "About" box to see which version you are using.
>
>The Proxomitron comes in two flavors - one with an installer/uninstaller and
>  one without. Why two? Well, the main program is the same in both, but if
>  you're comfortable copying files on your PC you really don't need the
>  installer. The Proxomitron never places files outside its own directory and
>  makes no changes to your system registry or .ini files. Simply copy it
>  wherever you like and it'll work! Also, deleting the program's directory 
> will
>fully "Un-install" it: no files will be left elsewhere on your system. If,
>  however, you prefer the familiarity of an installer program, get the version
>  with install/uninstall included. For this release of the Proxomitron, I've
>  ditched the bloated "Install Shield" for the much smaller Inno Setup 
> installer
>(a very nice freely available program). Because of this, there's now much less
>of a size difference between the Installer, and plain versions of the
>  Proxomitron. I'll continue to provide both however.
>
>  Download just the Proxomitron (668k)
>  [http://www.241computers.com/software/ProxN3.zip]
>
>Download the Proxomitron with InstallShield (847k)
>[http://www.241computers.com/software/ProxN3i.zip]
>
>  My thanks go to 241 Computer Services for kindly providing the above links!
>
>  For the Installer version extract the zip file and run "setup".
>For the plain version just unzip it to wherever you like.
>
>After installation you'll also have to set your web browser to use the
>  Proxomitron. This is usually easy - Just set your browser's HTTP proxy 
> option
>to a hostname of localhost and a port number of 8080. Change only the HTTP
>  entry: leave any entries for other protocols (FTP, gopher, etc) alone. If
>  you're unsure how to do this, check the Proxomitron's help file for a more
>  detailed explanation.
>
>History
>
>     6/20/1999:  Two new user filters to add to the list - check them out.
>
>  6/4/1999:  Good news: it looks like my email's finally working again and 
> some
>new user created filters have been added! Also, if you use Opera please 
>see the
>support page for new info regarding pop-up windows and such.
>
>  5/9/1999: UPDATE
>  Another Proxomitron update. Just a bug fix this time. Version Naoko-3a 
> stomps
>a few bugs. In particular, a problem that affected Win98 and NT users where
>  pressing the "Abort" button would cause the program to crash.
>
>  5/1/99: NEW VERSION!
>  Proxomitron version Naoko-3 is out! It has many new features and 
> improvements
>including the *much* asked for ability to minimize to the system tray. See the
>features page for a list of what's new or go to the download page and see for
>  yourself!
>
>[The above is a Synthesis of the Text recovered by an HTML to ASCII
>Converter from the Main Page (http://proxomitron.cbj.net) and the Download
>Page (http://proxomitron.cbj.net/download.html) of the Proxomitron Web Site
>on the 2nd July, 1999.]
>
>* * * END OF EXTRACT * * *
>
>--
>
>Keith Rothwell
>Bury, Lancashire, United Kingdom
>
>keith@g8eap.demon.co.uk
>
>[BLIND PERSON - TEXT ONLY PLEASE - NO GRAPHICS, BRAILLE, OR PRINT]
>
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Received on Thursday, 26 August 1999 08:07:21 UTC