What is a “Pop-Up Blocker”?

The term “pop-up” refers to a Web browser window that opens as soon as you navigate to a Web site or when you click a link on a Web site. In recent years many companies have begun using “pop-up” windows to advertise their product since they can be set to open whether you want to see them or not. This can be rather annoying, so “pop-up” blocking software has become increasingly popular. Unfortunately, pop-up blocking software often prevents well-meaning programs, such as My Virtual Manager, from running. In such cases, the pop-up blocker programs must be disabled in order to use My Virtual Manager.

You may be running one or several of pop-up blocker programs, perhaps without even knowing it, as they are often included in firewall, anti-virus, anti-Spam or other security programs.

How do I Disable my Pop-Up Blocker so I can use My Virtual Manager?

Listed below are some of the most common pop-up blockers with instructions on how to turn them off. Pop-up blockers that are not listed should follow similar procedures. When you are not using My Virtual Manager you can use the same procedure to turn the pop-up blocker back on.

Windows XP Service Pack 2:

When you install SP2, Pop-up Blocker is turned on in Internet Explorer and set to the medium setting, which means it will block most automatic pop-ups. The default settings for the pop-up blocker allow you to see pop-ups that are opened when you click a link or button on a Web site. Pop-up Blocker will also play a sound and show the Information Bar when a pop-up is blocked. You can adjust these settings so that Pop-up Blocker works the way you want it to.

To change Pop-up Blocker settings

   1. Open Internet Explorer.

   2. On the Tools menu, point to Pop-up Blocker, and then click Pop-up Blocker Settings.

Internet Explorer Tools menu

If you want to see pop-up windows from a specific Web site, type the address (or URL) of the site
in the Address of Web site to allow box, and then click Add.

Pop-up Blocker Settings window

Tip To temporarily allow a site to display pop-ups, click the Information Bar when it notifies you that a pop-up has been blocked. Then click Temporarily Allow Pop-ups.

To block pop-ups even if they are launched when you click a link or button on a Web site

   1. Open Internet Explorer.

   2. On the Tools menu, point to Pop-up Blocker, and then click Pop-up Blocker Settings.

   3. Select the High setting in the box near the bottom of the dialog box.

Note If you want to see pop-ups that are blocked when you have this setting turned on, hold down the CTRL key while the window opens.

More information is available at:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/web/sp2_popupblocker.mspx

Browser Toolbars:

Google Toolbar

Many browser toolbars include pop-up blockers. Generally these are easily detected and turned off. Below are some of the most common toolbars and how to disable them.

1. In order to disable the pop-up blocker, click the "Options" button on the toolbar.
2. Uncheck the check box next to "Popup Blocker".

Note: It is not enough to click the "blocked" button. It will then say   .   This will only allow pop-ups from the home page, not the application server where labs are run. You must turn the pop-up blocker off as described above.

1. Click the down arrow next to the pop-up blocker icon   
2. In the menu, you will see a check next to "Enable Pop-Up Blocker".
3. Click "Enable Pop-Up Blocker" to turn it off.

MSN Toolbar

1. Click the down arrow next to the "Pop-ups Blocked" icon.
2. Click "Allow Pop-ups".

Earthlink and AOL

1. Simply click the pop-up blocker's icon to disable them.

	Earthlink	AOL

1. How do I know if a popup was blocked?
   The Popup Blocker's counter (to the right of the Popup Blocker icon) will increase by the number of popups that were blocked on a webpage.
   
   
2. How can I disable (or re-enable) the Popup Blocker?
   You can disable (and re-enable) the Popup Blocker by selecting the popup blocker button to the right of the NavExcel Search Toolbar's 'Go' button.

   When the Popup Blocker is enabled, you will see this icon:
   

   When the Popup Blocker is disabled, you will see this icon:
   

   When you disable the Popup Blocker while you are viewing a page, the Popup Blocker will refresh the contents of the page that you are viewing to enable you to view any popups that were blocked on the page.
   

3. What if the Popup Blocker blocked a popup that I wanted to see?
   You can disable the Popup Blocker by clicking on the Popup Blocker icon and then attempt to launch the popup again. Note that the page you are viewing will be automatically refreshed when you disable the Popup Blocker.
   
   
4. How can I reset the Popup Blocker count of blocked popups?
   The counter is automatically reset when you close out of Internet Explorer and relaunch.

Norton AntiSpam and Norton Internet Security

The status (on or off) of Pop-up and Ad Blocking is displayed on the Norton AntiSpam interface.

1. In the main window, on the left side click Norton AntiSpam.
2. Click Ad Blocking > Turn On.
3. If an Ad Blocking window appears click OK.

To disable Ad Blocking

1. In the main window, on the left side click Norton AntiSpam.
2. Click Ad Blocking > Turn Off.
   

1. In the main window, on the left side click Norton AntiSpam.
2. Click Pop-up Blocking > Turn On.

1. In the main window, on the left side click Norton AntiSpam.
2. Click Pop-up Blocking > Turn Off.

Norton AntiSpam and Norton Internet Security 2004 and earlier to enable Ad Blocking or Pop-up Blocking

1. In the main window, double-click Ad Blocking.
2. Check Ad Blocking.
3. Check Pop-up Window Blocking.
4. Click OK.

1. In the main window, double-click Ad Blocking.
2. Uncheck Ad Blocking.
3. Uncheck Pop-up Window Blocking.
4. Click OK.

Once you have configured Ad Blocking or Pop-up Blocking, information may still be blocked on the Web site. This may be because the Web site information is being stored in your Web browser's cache. You must clear the cache for the changes to work.

To clear the cache in Internet Explorer

1. Start Internet Explorer.
2. Click Tools > Internet Options.
3. Click Delete Cookies.
4. When you see the prompt "Delete all cookies in the Temporary Internet File folder?" click OK.
5. Click Clear History.
6. When you see the prompt "Are you sure you want Windows to delete your history of visited Web sites?" click Yes.
7. Click OK.

If you are using a 2004 product, you can configure Ad Blocking from the Web Assistant icon in the Web browser's taskbar. Just click the globe icon next to the words "Web assistant" and uncheck "Block ads on this site" or "Block pop-ups on this site". This automatically refreshes the Web site.

Other Standalone Pop-Up Blocker Programs:

There are over 100 pop-up blocking programs available. Some common ones are:

Often the hardest part of disabling a pop-up blocker is finding where the pop-up blocking software resides on your PC. A good place to start looking is in the system tray of your computer (next to the clock). Roll your mouse over each of the small icons that appear when you work on the Internet. If you are running a pop-up blocker it should appear here. They usually will say pop-up blocker, ad blocker, security, or another similar language. If you do not see anything there, try searching your hard drive for programs with "pop-up" in the title.

Once you locate the pop-up blocking program, you often can right click its icon and disable it. Other pop-up blockers require finding the programs location (usually by clicking Start -> Programs -> and clicking the program) and selecting a menu option to allow pop-ups. Check the program's website or user manual for more information.

It is often possible to override pop-up blockers by holding Ctrl or Shift while clicking "Go" to log in to the lab manager and again when running a lab. This is not ideal, but it can be used as a temporary fix.

If you locate your pop-up blocker, but are unable to disable it, check the user manual or the company's website. A list of over 100 pop-up blocking programs and their website is available at http://www.popup-killer-review.com/