File uploader ads

[Ramses II CP]

Advertisements on the file uploader page load over the completion page immediately after a file uploads, making it impossible to determine if the file uploaded correctly and in some cases being a general nuisance as well. One of the ads installed garbageware called 'Antivirus XP 2008' on my box while I was unwittingly browsing the forum in a couple of other tabs. Easily removed, but still quite irritating.

I'm using IE7 (The horror!) and XP SP3.

[TosaInu]

Hello Ramses II CP,

You mean one of the PHP uploaders?

[Ramses II CP]

Specifically this one:

http://www.totalwar.org/Downloads/Up.../pbmupload.php

I started uploading a save for the BC hotseat, then read a few posts in other tabs. When I went back to that first tab it was at some oddball looking advertisement for that garbageware app. Trying to close that tab caused IE7 to error out, and in the meantime that app had installed itself. It changed a couple of things, installed two .exes with random characters for names ending in elfe.exe.

I deleted them by hand and ran Spybot, which gave me an all clear. So not something really nasty, just an annoyance.

[Privateerkev]

I have firefox and the exact same thing is happening to me.

I'll go to the PBM uploader, and my browser gets totally hijacked.

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

Could it have anything to do with this? Somebody in there mentioned something along the lines of that Anti-Virus XP stuff.

[TosaInu]

It's not doing it on me, some adds are targetted on some countries only though. It's not supposed to be.

[Ramses II CP]

By the way this happened again today after I uploaded a file for a hotseat duel, but I was watching for it and put in an end-task on IE before it could get anything done.

[Caius]

Could it have anything to do with this? Somebody in there mentioned something along the lines of that Anti-Virus XP stuff.

I think it was a joke.

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

Possibly not. Web sites are becoming more and more exploitable by malicious third-parties. Indeed vBulletin 3.7.0 had an XSS vulnerability contained within it (fixed in 3.7.1 which is the current version we're using).

Having said that, we have been bombarded by new advertisements recently which, I wasn't using Ad-Block+, I would consider mildly intrusive. It may indeed be a site ad, but somehow, if they were visable, I would want them moving down to the bottom of the screen with the other advertisements.

Just a quick suggestion BTW, the Links and Downloads Manager, I believe it has an function for uploading files. Rather than using these elaborate PHP uploaders and the suchlike, you could use that, and then transfer the file to Mizus or another server once it's been uploaded. I think there's a switch which allows you to send items for moderation before they are displayed which could be useful if this were to be done. Might be a little more resource intensive though.

Actually, going a little off-topic here, the LDM has a lot of potential for expansion to include different sections for things which it currently fails to cover. Things such as non-modding tools or links to interesting posts by the CA. It also may be convenient for a moderator to be assigned to deal with broken links and the such like. The system could also be promoted through more of those false forums (forums which are actually links) to appear across the place to encourage more page views.

[OverKnight]

Just posting to say I encountered the same aggressive rerouting that Ramses mentioned. It took me three or four tries to succesfully upload a save.

He's made me kind of paranoid, so I'm going to run a scan when I get home.

Edit: It was similar to the experience described in the thread Omanes linked to.

[TosaInu]

Hello,

https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local....php?catid=175 and https://forums.totalwar.org/vb/local....php?catid=138 cover non-modding tools. There are categories for clans and games. If someone is interested to add links to sites about, say, comic books, that category will be added too. All members can add links.

The LDM uploader didn't offer what we need. I haven't looked at the current one yet, but I'm sure it can't do all.

[Omanes Alexandrapolites]

Hmm, odd, I always thought that the LDM could handle unlimited file sizes if the settings were right. According to the manual, uploads are limited by the "php.ini" file and by the attachment table. If these limits are enlarged, then, theoretically, the LDM should have no problems coping with files of an infinite size. The LDM now also comes with an improved Flash based uploader which I don't think was in the older version.

Anyhow, going back, we didn't really discuss this before, the LDM has the capacity to show categories in a variety of different layouts (Jukebox, Gallery and the default view we have at the moment). As I said before, this could be exploited to merge the TW gallery and allow users to upload TW videos and the suchlike to the .Org server through that integrated structure.

The anchor and jump tag are still functional? It doesn't replace the book module. The first can be used for a few pages, the second is capable to create entire libraries, multi volume books, and 1,000+ page novels.

1000+ !? That's quite a lot and I do understand that a thread cannot hold that without some trouble. The question is though is anybody likely to write that much (or even a quarter of that much)?

Thanks for your time BTW

[TosaInu]

Hello Omanes Alexandrapolites,

This version indeed seems to have nice options, very nice ones indeed.

The Flash uploader works reliable up to 100 mb. PHP can't do unlimited to my knowledge. Kudos to the author to allow bypassing Flash.

It may be an option to do such a thing, have to see though.

1000+ pages, not posts. Both are possible though and you can find examples in this board. That still doesn't make a book, and using anchor and jump to link seems quite a task.