*
* Purpose : README file to give a short intro.
*
- * Copyright : Written by and Copyright (C) 2001 the SourceForge
+ * Copyright : Written by and Copyright (C) 2001-2009 the SourceForge
* Privoxy team. http://www.privoxy.org/
*
* Based on the Internet Junkbuster originally written
* The GNU General Public License should be included with
* this file. If not, you can view it at
* http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html
- * or write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59
- * Temple Place - Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111-1307, USA.
+ * or write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc.,
+ * 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301,
+ * USA
*
*********************************************************************/
-This README is included with the development version of Privoxy 2.9.15, which
-will eventually become Privoxy v3.0 (and soon we hope!). See http://
-www.privoxy.org/ for more information. The current code level is beta, and
-seems stable to us :).
+This README is included with Privoxy 3.0.12. See http://www.privoxy.org/ for
+more information. The current code maturity level is "stable".
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-Table of Contents
-1. IMPORTANT CHANGES
-2. INSTALL
-3. RUN
-4. CONFIGURATION
-5. DOCUMENTATION
-6. CONTACTING THE DEVELOPERS, BUG REPORTING AND FEATURE REQUESTS
-
- 6.1. Get Support
- 6.2. Report bugs
- 6.3. Request new features
- 6.4. Report ads or other filter problems
- 6.5. Other
-
-Privoxy is a web proxy with advanced filtering capabilities for protecting
-privacy, filtering web page content, managing cookies, 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
+Privoxy is a non-caching web proxy with advanced filtering capabilities for
+enhancing privacy, modifying web page data and HTTP headers, controlling
+access, and removing ads and other obnoxious Internet junk. Privoxy has a
+flexible configuration and can be customized to suit individual needs and
+tastes. It has application for both stand-alone systems and multi-user
networks.
-Privoxy is based on Internet Junkbuster (tm).
-
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-1. IMPORTANT CHANGES
-
-NEWS! As of 03/24/02, the name of this project has been changed from ijbswa/
-Junkbuster to Privoxy. This is reflected in many of the included files.
+Privoxy is Free Software and licensed under the GPL2.
-WARNING! If upgrading from earlier versions of this project via RPM packages,
-the new package will delete any previously installed 'Junkbuster' packages.
-
-IMPORTANT! READ! Configuration Change as of 17 Mar 2002: The default listening
-port is now 8118 due to conflicts with port 8000 assignment. You will need to
-change your browser if upgrading!!! And maybe firewall, etc.
+Privoxy is an associated project of Software in the Public Interest (SPI).
+Donations are welcome.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-2. INSTALL
-
-To build Privoxy from source, autoconf, GNU make (gmake), and, of course, a C
-compiler like gcc are required.
-
-When building from a source tarball (either release version or nightly CVS
-tarball), first unpack the source:
-
- tar xzvf privoxy-2.9.15-beta-src* [.tgz or .tar.gz]
- cd privoxy-2.9.15-beta
-
-For retrieving the current CVS sources, you'll need CVS installed. Note that
-sources from CVS are development quality, and may not be stable, or well
-tested. To download CVS source:
+1. IMPORTANT CHANGES
- cvs -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.ijbswa.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/ijbswa login
- cvs -z3 -d:pserver:anonymous@cvs.ijbswa.sourceforge.net:/cvsroot/ijbswa co current
- cd current
+March 2009, Privoxy 3.0.12 is released.
-This will create a directory named current/, which will contain the source
-tree.
+This is primarily a bug fix release. See the "ChangeLog", and the "What's New"
+section and the "Upgrader's Notes" in the User Manual for details.
-Then, in either case, to build from unpacked tarball or CVS source:
+February 2009, Privoxy 3.0.11 is released.
- autoheader
- autoconf
- ./configure # (--help to see options)
- make # (the make from gnu, gmake for *BSD)
- su
- make -n install # (to see where all the files will go)
- make install # (to really install)
+As usual there are changes that effect the configuration. See the "ChangeLog",
+and the "What's New" section and the "Upgrader's Notes" in the User Manual for
+details and specifics.
-If you have gnu make, you can have the first four steps automatically done for
-you by just typing:
+This is a stable release, and marks a departure for Privoxy development.
- make
+Previously, odd numbered releases were considered beta versions and were only
+released at the end of the development cycle when the code was already believed
+to be stable. Usually it was, so the stable release contained pretty much the
+same code, but got a higher version number. In the future we intend to release
+several snapshots between stable releases. There will probably still be about
+two stable releases per year, but hopefully about six snapshots instead of the
+two betas we have now. The intentions is to make testing without CVS access
+easier.
-in the freshly downloaded or unpacked source directory.
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-For more detailed instructions on how to build Redhat and SuSE RPMs, Windows
-self-extracting installers, building on platforms with special requirements
-etc, please consult the developer manual.
+2. INSTALL
-For binary RPM installation, and other platforms, see the user-manual as well.
+See the INSTALL file in this directory, for installing from raw source, and the
+User Manual, for all other installation types.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3. RUN
privoxy [--help] [--version] [--no-daemon] [--pidfile PIDFILE] [--user USER
-[.GROUP]] [config_file]
+[.GROUP]] [--chroot] [--pre-chroot-nslookup HOSTNAME ][config_file]
-See the man page or user-manual for a brief explanation of each option.
+See the man page or User Manual for an explanation of each option, and other
+configuration and usage issues.
If no config_file is specified on the command line, Privoxy will look for a
file named 'config' in the current directory (except Win32 which will look for
'config.txt'). If no config_file is found, Privoxy will fail to start.
-Or for Red Hat: /etc/rc.d/init.d/privoxy start
+Or for Red Hat and Fedora based distributions: /etc/rc.d/init.d/privoxy start
-Or for SuSE: /etc/rc.d/privoxy start
+Or Debian and Ubuntu: /etc/init.d/privoxy start
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4. CONFIGURATION
-See: 'config', 'default.action', 'user.action', and 'default.filter'.
-'user.action' is for personal configuration. These are all well commented. Most
-of the magic is in '*.action' files. 'user.action' should be used for any
-actions customizations. On Unix-like systems, these files are installed in /etc
-/privoxy. On Windows, then wherever the executable itself is installed. There
-are many significant changes and advances since Junkbuster v2.0.x. The
-user-manual has a run down of configuration options, and examples: http://
+See: 'config', 'default.action', 'user.action', 'default.filter', and
+'user.filter'. 'user.action' and 'user.filter' are for personal and local
+configuration preferences. These are all well commented. Most of the magic is
+in '*.action' files. 'user.action' should be used for any actions
+customizations. On Unix-like systems, these files are typically installed in /
+etc/privoxy. On Windows, then wherever the executable itself is installed.
+There are many significant changes and advances from earlier versions. The User
+Manual has an explanation of all configuration options, and examples: http://
www.privoxy.org/user-manual/.
Be sure to set your browser(s) for HTTP/HTTPS Proxy at <IP>:<Port>, or whatever
-you specify in the config file under 'listen-address'. DEFAULT is localhost:
-8118.
+you specify in the config file under 'listen-address'. DEFAULT is
+localhost:8118. Note that Privoxy ONLY proxies HTTP (and HTTPS) traffic. Do not
+try it with FTP or other protocols for the simple reason it does not work.
The actions list can be configured via the web interface accessed via http://
p.p/, as well other options.
-All configuration files are subject to unannounced changes during the
-development process.
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5. DOCUMENTATION
-There should be documentation in the 'doc' subdirectory, but it is not
-completed at this point. In particular, see the user-manual there, the faq, and
-those interested in Privoxy development, should look at developer-manual.
+There should be documentation in the 'doc' subdirectory. In particular, see the
+User Manual there, the FAQ, and those interested in Privoxy development, should
+look at developer-manual.
-The most up to date source of information on the current development version,
-may still be either comments in the source code, or the included configuration
-files. The source and configuration files are all well commented. The main
-configuration files are: 'config', 'default.action', and 'default.filter' in
-the toplevel source directory.
+The source and configuration files are all well commented. The main
+configuration files are: 'config', 'default.action', and 'default.filter'.
-Included documentation may vary according to platform and packager.
+Included documentation may vary according to platform and packager. All
+documentation is posted on http://www.privoxy.org, in case you don't have it,
+or can't find it.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6. CONTACTING THE DEVELOPERS, BUG REPORTING AND FEATURE REQUESTS
-We value your feedback. However, to provide you with the best support, please
-note the following sections.
+We value your feedback. In fact, we rely on it to improve Privoxy and its
+configuration. However, please note the following hints, so we can provide you
+with the best support:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.1. Get Support
-To get support, use the Sourceforge Support Forum:
+For casual users, our support forum at SourceForge is probably best suited:
+http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=11118&atid=211118
- http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=11118&atid=211118
+All users are of course welcome to discuss their issues on the users mailing
+list, where the developers also hang around.
+
+Please don't sent private support requests to individual Privoxy developers,
+either use the mailing lists or the support trackers.
+
+Note that the Privoxy mailing lists are moderated. Posts from unsubscribed
+addresses have to be accepted manually by a moderator. This may cause a delay
+of several days and if you use a subject that doesn't clearly mention Privoxy
+or one of its features, your message may be accidentally discarded as spam.
+
+If you aren't subscribed, you should therefore spend a few seconds to come up
+with a proper subject. Additionally you should make it clear that you want to
+get CC'd. Otherwise some responses will be directed to the mailing list only,
+and you won't see them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-6.2. Report bugs
+6.2. Reporting Problems
-To submit bugs, use the Sourceforge Bug Forum:
+"Problems" for our purposes, come in two forms:
- http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=11118&atid=111118.
+ * Configuration issues, such as ads that slip through, or sites that don't
+ function properly due to one Privoxy "action" or another being turned "on".
-Make sure that the bug has not already been submitted. Please try to verify
-that it is a Privoxy bug, and not a browser or site bug first. If you are using
-your own custom configuration, please try the stock configs to see if the
-problem is a configuration related bug. And if not using the latest development
-snapshot, please try the latest one. Or even better, CVS sources. Please be
-sure to include the Privoxy version, platform, browser, any pertinent log data,
-any other relevant details (please be specific) and, if possible, some way to
-reproduce the bug.
+ * "Bugs" in the programming code that makes up Privoxy, such as that might
+ cause a crash.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-6.3. Request new features
+6.2.1. Reporting Ads or Other Configuration Problems
-To submit ideas on new features, use the Sourceforge feature request forum:
+Please send feedback on ads that slipped through, innocent images that were
+blocked, sites that don't work properly, and other configuration related
+problem of default.action file, to http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?group_id=
+11118&atid=460288, the Actions File Tracker.
- http://sourceforge.net/tracker/?atid=361118&group_id=11118&func=browse.
+New, improved default.action files may occasionally be made available based on
+your feedback. These will be announced on the ijbswa-announce list and
+available from our the files section of our project page.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-6.4. Report ads or other filter problems
+6.2.2. Reporting Bugs
+
+Please report all bugs through our bug tracker: http://sourceforge.net/tracker
+/?group_id=11118&atid=111118.
+
+Before doing so, please make sure that the bug has not already been submitted
+and observe the additional hints at the top of the submit form. If already
+submitted, please feel free to add any info to the original report that might
+help to solve the issue.
+
+Please try to verify that it is a Privoxy bug, and not a browser or site bug or
+documented behaviour that just happens to be different than what you expected.
+If unsure, try toggling off Privoxy, and see if the problem persists.
+
+If you are using your own custom configuration, please try the stock configs to
+see if the problem is configuration related. If you're having problems with a
+feature that is disabled by default, please ask around on the mailing list if
+others can reproduce the problem.
+
+If you aren't using the latest Privoxy version, the bug may have been found and
+fixed in the meantime. We would appreciate if you could take the time to
+upgrade to the latest version (or even the latest CVS snapshot) and verify that
+your bug still exists.
+
+Please be sure to provide the following information:
+
+ * The exact Privoxy version you are using (if you got the source from CVS,
+ please also provide the source code revisions as shown in http://
+ config.privoxy.org/show-version).
+
+ * The operating system and versions you run Privoxy on, (e.g. Windows XP
+ SP2), if you are using a Unix flavor, sending the output of "uname -a"
+ should do, in case of GNU/Linux, please also name the distribution.
-You can also send feedback on websites that Privoxy has problems with. Please
-bookmark the following link: "Privoxy - Submit Filter Feedback". Once you surf
-to a page with problems, use the bookmark to send us feedback. We will look
-into the issue as soon as possible.
+ * The name, platform, and version of the browser you were using (e.g.
+ Internet Explorer v5.5 for Mac).
-New, improved default.action files will occasionally be made available based on
-your feedback. These will be announced on the ijbswa-announce list.
+ * The URL where the problem occurred, or some way for us to duplicate the
+ problem (e.g. http://somesite.example.com/?somethingelse=123).
+
+ * Whether your version of Privoxy is one supplied by the Privoxy developers
+ via SourceForge, or if you got your copy somewhere else.
+
+ * Whether you are using Privoxy in tandem with another proxy such as Tor. If
+ so, please temporary disable the other proxy to see if the symptoms change.
+
+ * Whether you are using a personal firewall product. If so, does Privoxy work
+ without it?
+
+ * Any other pertinent information to help identify the problem such as config
+ or log file excerpts (yes, you should have log file entries for each action
+ taken).
+
+You don't have to tell us your actual name when filing a problem report, but
+please use a nickname so we can differentiate between your messages and the
+ones entered by other "anonymous" users that may respond to your request if
+they have the same problem or already found a solution.
+
+Please also check the status of your request a few days after submitting it, as
+we may request additional information. If you use a SF id, you should
+automatically get a mail when someone responds to your request.
+
+The appendix of the Privoxy User Manual also has helpful information on
+understanding actions, and action debugging.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-6.5. Other
+6.3. Request New Features
+
+You are welcome to submit ideas on new features or other proposals for
+improvement through our feature request tracker at http://sourceforge.net/
+tracker/?atid=361118&group_id=11118.
+
+-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-For any other issues, feel free to use the mailing lists:
-
- http://sourceforge.net/mail/?group_id=11118.
+6.4. Other
-Anyone interested in actively participating in development and related
-discussions can also join the appropriate mailing list. Archives are available,
-too. See the page on Sourceforge.
+For any other issues, feel free to use the mailing lists. Technically
+interested users and people who wish to contribute to the project are also
+welcome on the developers list! You can find an overview of all Privoxy-related
+mailing lists, including list archives, at: http://sourceforge.net/mail/?
+group_id=11118.