X-Git-Url: http://www.privoxy.org/gitweb/?p=privoxy.git;a=blobdiff_plain;f=doc%2Fsource%2Ffaq.sgml;h=dfdd88cbebcdd21f0ae7d7589cba2bb44636563a;hp=af9d6d64083feaadf7c8cf8fd46b4d3e075dbf20;hb=72081f829de368392d04076728f8c991178c0080;hpb=701f0d2c06084708ab71fe06ded88d4b666dc826 diff --git a/doc/source/faq.sgml b/doc/source/faq.sgml index af9d6d64..dfdd88cb 100644 --- a/doc/source/faq.sgml +++ b/doc/source/faq.sgml @@ -8,10 +8,10 @@ - - + + - + @@ -24,9 +24,9 @@ This file belongs into ijbswa.sourceforge.net:/home/groups/i/ij/ijbswa/htdocs/ - $Id: faq.sgml,v 2.9 2002/10/29 03:22:22 hal9 Exp $ + $Id: faq.sgml,v 1.61.2.41 2004/04/05 13:44:05 oes Exp $ - Copyright (C) 2001, 2002 Privoxy Developers + Copyright (C) 2001-2004 Privoxy Developers See LICENSE. Based partially on the Internet Junkbuster FAQ originally written by and @@ -50,9 +50,12 @@ ======================================================================== NOTE: Please read developer-manual/documentation.html before touching - anything in this, or other Privoxy documentation. You have been warned! - Failure to abide by this rule will result in the revocation of your license - to live a peaceful existence! + this file! + + Please we keep the info in this file as version independent as possible + so we only have to maintain one FAQ. Where significant changes are + made to Privoxy configuration, please note the change in such a way that + it makes sense to both users of older and newer versions. ======================================================================== @@ -67,12 +70,12 @@ - Copyright &my-copy; 2001, 2002 by + Copyright &my-copy; 2001-2004 by Privoxy Developers -$Id: faq.sgml,v 2.9 2002/10/29 03:22:22 hal9 Exp $ +$Id: faq.sgml,v 1.61.2.41 2004/04/05 13:44:05 oes Exp $ - + the state at the release of version &p-version;. You can find the latest version of the document at http://www.privoxy.org/faq/. Please see the Contact section if you want to @@ -274,8 +276,8 @@ an ad, and what is not? This does not sound very scientific. Actually, it's a black art ;-) And yes, it is always possible to have a broad - rule accidentally block or change something by mistake. There is a good chance - you may run into such a situation at some point. It is tricky writing rules to + rule accidentally block or change something by mistake. You will almost surely + run into such situations at some point. It is tricky writing rules to cover every conceivable possibility, and not occasionally get false positives. @@ -290,6 +292,24 @@ This does not sound very scientific. + +Will I have to configure <application>Privoxy</application> + before I can use it? + + No, not really. The default installation should give you a good starting + point, and block most unwanted content. + + + But you will certainly run into situations where there are false positives, + or ads not being blocked that you may not want to see. In these cases, you + would certainly benefit by customizing Privoxy's + configuration to more closely match your individual situation. And we would + encourage you to do this. This is where the real power of + Privoxy lies! + + + + My browser does the same things as <application>Privoxy</application>. Why should I use <application>Privoxy</application> at all? @@ -397,12 +417,13 @@ Include supported.sgml here: Can I use <application>Privoxy</application> with my email client? - As long as there is some way to set a HTTP proxy for the client, then yes, + 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 browser or not. Though this may not be the best approach for dealing with some of the common abuses of HTML in email. See How can I configure Privoxy with - Outlook Express? below for more on this. + linkend="outlook">How can I configure Privoxy + with Outlook Express? below for more on + this. Be aware that HTML email presents a number of unique security and privacy @@ -440,7 +461,7 @@ special I have to do now? 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 any stored cookies. + cached junk items, and remove any stored cookies. @@ -476,8 +497,7 @@ special I have to do now? Privoxy does not currently handle - protocols such as FTP, SMTP, IM, IRC, ICQ, or other Internet - protocols. + any other protocols such as FTP, SMTP, IM, IRC, ICQ, etc. @@ -491,7 +511,9 @@ All the ads are there. What's wrong? the browser's caches to force a full re-reading of pages. You can verify that Privoxy is running, and your browser is correctly configured by entering the special URL: - http://config.privoxy.org/. + http://p.p/. + This should take you to a page titled This is Privoxy.. with access to Privoxy's internal configuration. If you see this, then you are good to go. If you receive a page saying @@ -500,11 +522,47 @@ All the ads are there. What's wrong? If you receive anything else (probably nothing at all), it could either be that the browser is not set up correctly, or that Privoxy is not running at all. Check the log file. + url="../user-manual/config.html#LOGFILE">log file. For instructions + on starting Privoxy and browser configuration, + see the chapter + on starting Privoxy in the + user manual. + +I get a <quote>Privoxy is not being used</quote> dummy page although +<application>Privoxy</application> is running and being used. + + + First, make sure that Privoxy is really running and + being used by visiting http://p.p/. You + should see the Privoxy main page. If not, see + the chapter + on starting Privoxy in the + user manual. + + + + Now if http://p.p/ works for you, but + other parts of Privoxy's web interface show + the dummy page, your browser has cached a redirection it encountered before + Privoxy was being used. You need to clear your + browser's cache. Note that shift-reloading the dummy page won't help, since + that'll only refresh the dummy page, not the redirection that lead you there. + + + + The procedure for clearing the cache varies from browser to browser. As an + example, Mozilla users would click + Edit --> Preferences --> + Advanced --> Cache and + then click both Clear Memory Cache + and Clear Disk Cache. + + + @@ -597,7 +655,6 @@ way to do this? - There are several different <quote>actions</quote> files. What are the differences? @@ -643,152 +700,29 @@ the differences? What's the difference between the -<quote>Cautious</quote>, <quote>Medium</quote> and <quote>Radical</quote> defaults? +Cautious, Medium and Adventuresome defaults? Configuring Privoxy is not entirely trivial. To help you get started, we provide you with three different default action profiles in the web based actions file editor at http://config.privoxy.org/show-status. - The following table shows you, which of the most important features are - enabled in each configuration: + See the User + Manual for a list of actions, and how the default + profiles are set. - -Default Configurations - - - - - - - - Feature - Cautious - Intermadiate - Radical - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Ad-blocking by URL - yes - yes - yes - - - - Ad-filtering by size - yes - yes - yes - - - - GIF de-animation - no - yes - yes - - - - Referer forging - no - yes - yes - - - - Cookie handling - none - session-only - kill - - - - Pop-up killing - no - yes - yes - - - - Fast redirects - no - no - yes - - - - HTML taming - yes - yes - yes - - - - JavaScript taming - yes - yes - yes - - - - Web-bug killing - yes - yes - yes - - - - Fun text replacements - no - no - yes - - - - Image tag reordering - no - no - yes - - - - Ad-filtering by link - no - no - yes - - - - Demoronizer - no - no - yes - - - - -
- + Where the defaults are likely to break some sites, exceptions for known popular problem sites are included, but in - general, the more aggressive your default settings are, the more - exceptions you will have to make later. See the user manual for a more - deatiled discussion. + general, the more aggressive your default settings are, the more exceptions + you will have to make later. See the User Manual + for a more deatiled discussion. + - It should be noted that the Radical profile is not only more + It should be noted that the Adventuresome profile (formerly known + as the Advanced profile) is not only more aggressive, but also includes fun and, extreme usage of most of Privoxy's features. Use at your own risk! @@ -868,7 +802,7 @@ with a browser? Does that not raise security issues? url="../user-manual/config.html#LISTEN-ADDRESS">listen-address option, which may be commented out with a # symbol. Make sure it is uncommented, and assign it the address of the LAN gateway interface, - and port number to use. Assuming your server's LAN address is 192.168.1.1 and you + and port number to use. Assuming your LAN address is 192.168.1.1 and you wish to run Privoxy on port 8118, this line should look like: @@ -908,7 +842,7 @@ with a browser? Does that not raise security issues? If you run Privoxy on a LAN with untrusted users, - we recommend that you double-check all access control and security options! @@ -1073,6 +1007,7 @@ on Win2K/NT? + How can I make <application>Privoxy</application> work with other proxies like <application>Squid</application>? @@ -1139,8 +1074,8 @@ and thus avoid individual browser configuration? Privoxy just blindly proxies all requests. In the case of Outlook Express (see above), OE uses IE anyway, and there is no way for Privoxy to ever - be able to distinguish between them (nor could any other proxy type - application for that matter). + be able to distinguish between them (nor could any other proxy type application for + that matter). For a good discussion of some of the issues involved (including privacy and @@ -1172,7 +1107,7 @@ and thus avoid individual browser configuration? be off by default anyway, so this might be redundant, but there is no harm being explicit in what you want to happen. user.action includes an alias for this situation, called - allow-cookies. + allow-all-cookies. @@ -1226,7 +1161,12 @@ delays in page requests compared to the old Junkbuster. What's wrong? noticeable on slow dialup connections. - Filtering is automatically disabled for inappropriate MIME types. + Filtering is automatically disabled for inappropriate MIME types. But note + that if the web server mis-reports the MIME type, then content that should + not be filtered, could be. Privoxy only knows how + to differentiate filterable content because of the MIME type as reported by + the server, or because of some configuration setting that enables/disables + filtering. @@ -1577,24 +1517,65 @@ from a webserver? FTP server? viewing a document (i.e. a page), and downloading a file. The same is true of Privoxy. If there is a match for a block pattern, - it will still be blocked, and of course this is obvious. Filtering is - potentially more of a concern since the results are not always so obvious. + it will still be blocked, and of course this is obvious. + + + 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, + one of these presumably is bad content that we don't want, and + the other is good content that we do want. + Privoxy is blind to the differences, and can only + distinguish good from bad by the configuration parameters + we give it. Privoxy knows the differences in files according to the Document Type as reported by the webserver. If this is reported accurately (e.g. application/zip for a zip archive), then Privoxy knows to ignore these where - appropriate. It is possible, however, that documents that are of an unknown - type (generally assumed to be text/plain) will be filtered, as - will those that might be incorrectly reported by the webserver. If such a - file is a downloaded file that is intended to be saved to disk, then any - content that might have been altered by filtering, will be saved too, for - these (probably very rare) cases. + appropriate. Privoxy potentially can filter HTML + as well as plain text documents, subject to configuration parameters of + course. Also, documents that are of an unknown type (generally assumed to be + text/plain) can be filtered, as will those that might be + incorrectly reported by the webserver. If such a file is a downloaded file + that is intended to be saved to disk, then any content that might have been + altered by filtering, will be saved too, for these (probably rare) cases. + + + Note that versions later than 3.0.2 do NOT filter document types of + text/plain. Prior to this, Privoxy + did filter this document type. + + + In short, filtering is ON if a) the Document Type as reported + by the webserver is appropriate and b) the configuration + allows it (or at least does not disallow it). That's it. There is no magic + cookie anywhere to say this is good and this is + bad. It's the configuration that let's it all happen or not. + + + If you download text files, you probably do not want these to be filtered, + particularly if the content is source code, or other critical content. Source + code sometimes might be mistaken for Javascript (i.e. the kind that might + open a pop-up window). It is recommended to turn off filtering for download + sites (particularly if the content may be plain text files and you are using + version 3.0.2 or earlier) in your user.action file. And + also, for any site or page where making any changes at + all to the content is to be avoided. Privoxy does not do FTP at all, only HTTP - protocols. + protocols, so please don't even try. + + + + +I just downloaded a Perl script, and <application>Privoxy</application> +altered it! Yikes, what is wrong! + + Please read above. @@ -1625,7 +1606,8 @@ and related issues? activated the fun filter which is clearly labeled Text replacements for subversive browsing fun! or you have implicitly activated it by choosing the - Radical profile in the web-based editor. + Adventuresome profile in the web-based editor (formerly known + as the Advanced profile). @@ -1787,7 +1769,8 @@ every time I start IE. What gives? Privoxy cannot act as a proxy for FTP traffic, so do not configure your browser to use Privoxy - as an FTP proxy. The same is true for any protocol other than HTTP or HTTPS. + as an FTP proxy. The same is true for any protocol other than HTTP + or HTTPS. Most browsers understand FTP as well as HTTP. If you connect to a site, with @@ -1796,6 +1779,18 @@ every time I start IE. What gives? speak FTP, Privoxy does not, and cannot proxy such traffic. + + To complicate matters, some systems may have a generic proxy + setting, which will silently enable both HTTP and FTP + proxying! So it is possible to accidentally enable FTP proxying in these + cases. And of course, if this happens, Privoxy + will indeed cause problems since it does not know FTP. + + + Will Privoxy ever proxy FTP traffic? Unlikely. + There just is not much reason, and the work to make this happen is more than + it may seem. + @@ -1833,6 +1828,19 @@ every time I start IE. What gives? + + +In Mac OSX Panther (10.3), images often fail to load and/or I + experience random delays in page loading. I'm using + <literal>localhost</literal> as my browser's proxy setting. + + We believe this is due to an IPv6-related bug in OSX, but don't fully + understand the issue yet. In any case, changing the proxy setting to + 127.0.0.1 instead of localhost + works around the problem. + + + I get a completely blank page at one site. <quote>View Source</quote> @@ -1875,20 +1883,123 @@ every time I start IE. What gives? - - + +My logs show many <quote>Unable to get my own hostname</quote> lines. +Why? + + Privoxy tries to get the hostname of the system + its running on from the IP address of the system interface it is bound to + (from the config file + listen-address setting). If the system cannot supply + this information, Privoxy logs this condition. + + + Typically, this would be considered a system configuration error. It is not a + fatal error to Privoxy however, but may result in + a much slower response from Privoxy due to DNS + timeouts. + + - - Contacting the developers, Bug Reporting and Feature Requests @@ -1904,6 +2015,7 @@ FIXME: Commented out until we have something to put here. HB 03/18/02. ©right; + Portions of this document are borrowed from the original Junkbuster (tm) FAQ, and modified as @@ -1946,8 +2058,6 @@ FIXME: Commented out until we have something to put here. HB 03/18/02.