how to make the internet not suck (as much) has made a hosts file that contains known IP addresses of scum websites; that is, sites that contain spyware, pop-ups, ads, and other annoyances that Internet Explorer is more prone to than Firefox (why are you still using IE?).
Instructions on where to save it on your computer are included, and its contents look good. I’ve been using it for a couple of weeks with no problem.
Update: In the hosts file you can specifiy short-cuts to websites, such as:
66.35.250.150 s # slashdot.org
Typing “s” in the address bar of your browser will then take you to slashdot. Unfortunately, you have to specify it by IP address, so if the site’s IP changes, you have to manually change it in your hosts file.
(via haslo.ch Blog)
Thanks a lot for your link :) I’m using the hosts file for about a day longer than since I posted it (wanted to check if any internet vitals were touched by it, but it doesn’t seem so – unless you’re a spammer or want to access your own dialer site to check stats or something, which most people obviously don’t). I’m really happy with the thing too…
Yeah, even though you posted it a couple of weeks ago, I didn’t want to post it until I was sure it worked okay for me. I saw the same thing over the years but never tried it.