So I'm browsing through Yahoo! news today, and upon clicking on one of the links the page begins to load... then my computer freezes up for about 10 seconds. Thankfully I didn't get the ol' blue screen, and I was able to resume what I was doing. Then all of a sudden I hear this horrific sound coming out of my headphones, and upon scrolling down the page just a bit more, I saw it.... an embedded video stream advertisement for Pringles of all things (a joke was made in the office that Yahoo! must have my profile on hand).
Now I think pop-up banners are the most annoying thing in the world, especially when they tie up my computer trying to load (can you say X-10 spy camera?). But this streaming video ad is much worse, because it crashed my browser, not once, but twice (I had to get a screenshot). And I'm on a T1... what happens to those who are using a modem? How long will their browser be tied up trying to serve this intrusive ad?
Now I think the new Absolut Flash ads that also show up on Yahoo's site are pretty cool; they don't tie up my computer and they are interactive. I'll stop going to Yahoo if they continue with the embedded streaming media though. I usually have many windows open at once, and I really don't feel like crashing my browser everytime I visit their site. If video advertisements on web pages are the wave of future, I might reconsider this whole web career I've got going on, for fear of guilt by association.
Steve McCannell is a writer/producer for the O'Reilly Network and the founder of Lost Dog Found Music.
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