Hello there...

In my snipes, the links do not work..
The sniping etc works fine, but when I click on the links to view the auction on ebay.. (cos the current bid shown on AS is always outdated, so I like to check to see if my bid is more than the current bid, so I could adjust my bid on AS) it always comes up with this blank browser page:

http://www.qksrv.net/click-1446521-5463217? etc.


What's happening?
It is frustrating, cos they used to work just fine... Why doesn't the links work for me anymore

Is this something that's happening to everyone, or just me?

-Sad Hippo-

Turn off your ad blocking softare, or authorize that link.

I don't use any Ad Blocker.
I even tried deactivating my Norton Anti-Virus (Internet)..
Still doesn't work.
It used to work just fine with my Norton on.. This just started playing up about a few days or so ago. All the links do not work - title, picture (thumbnail) etc.
It used to work just fine. I have not added any new software etc. in the past week.... everything is the same on my comp.

The links just keep leading me to www.auctiva.com with nothing displayed..
And it looks like I'm not the only one, cos I saw posts from other people *after* I posted, with the same problem...
Please help! I can't live without the convenience of those links.. It's stuffing up my bids cos I couldn't check the status conveniently...

When you click this link what happens? Do you make it to the eBay auction?

http://ebaylink.auctionsniper.com/showcase/ShowcaseItems.aspx?item=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D4910387430

You should also download, and install this spyware/adware removing program. It's free and will remove all the spy type programs on your computer and other hidden advertising software. You should run it monthly. As you'll see it's very popular, 54 million downloads, and a 5 star rating from download.com:

http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10045910.html?part=69274&subj=dlpage&tag=button

Thanks! I've restored my computer to an 'EARLIER' state, and everything's now working as per normal...!

Regards,
moi

Thanks for the update. I'm glad it worked out for you but I hope we can find out a more generic solution for anyone else that has this happen to them.

HI Sarah, I see you're closing other inquiries (including mine)to get them onto this thread. I still have the exact same problem.

This is NOT due to Norton, Google popup blocker or Zone alarm. It DID just start in the past couple of weeks.

I don't know why you recommend a spyware detector in relation to this problem. I regularly scan with Spybot Search & Destroy, and also use Ad Aware. That hasn't helped this issue for me.

OK, here's an example link showing the problem again. Any other ideas? It is happening to EVERY link from My Snipes now....

http://ebaylink.auctionsniper.com/showcase/ShowcaseItems.aspx?item=http%3A//cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll%3FViewItem%26item%3D6910947515

Thank you! Kent

Not much help, but wanted to let you know...
The link above you posted works for me.

sniperfan, sorry to say but the problem is on your computer. Try a different web browser and see. Use Netscape, Opera, or whatever. I'd be curious to know if it works in another web browser.

All we do is create a link. The same link every site on the internet is made up of.

Adware type of programs do affect linking, they interpret each action taken in Internet Explorer and pop up ads and do other things based on the pages you are going to, so yes, adware can and usually does have a direct relation to this problem. In your case it may not be, or perhaps it's not a spyware in ad-awares signature file, so it's not detecting it.

The entire office can get to the link fine, everyone can get to it from home, etc. That's at least 30 people that can. There have been only a few support cases, and a few posts here. I'd assume that means that nearly everyone can get to the eBay item. So the problem is on your computer, and I'd love to help figure out what it is. Lets try a secondary browser to start with just so we can narrow down if it's a computer wide problem or just with Internet Explorer on your computer.

I found a likely solution for the folks having this problem. You may have a modified hosts file. This is most commonly caused by using Kazaa or ad-blocking software. You'll need to edit your hosts file to allow the links to work.

"How do I edit my hosts file?"

1.) Find the following file:

Windows 95/98/ME: "c:\windows\hosts"
Windows XP Home/Pro: "c:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts"
Windows NT or 2000: "c:\winnt\system32\drivers\etc\hosts"

2.) Edit the "host" file by right-clicking the file, then select "open with" and then select "Notepad".

3.) Delete the following lines if present:

- commission-junction.com
- cj.com
- qksrv.net

4.) Save the file. The file may be read-only. To make it writeable right-click the file, select Properties, and uncheck Read-only.

5.) You should be able to use the view links now.

Hey, guess what? Sniperfan is not the only one experiencing this problem, so it can't only be his computer, and the solution offer by Sniper Sara with respect didn't work for me. I attempted to delete the suggested files from the "hosts" file, but I had nothing like that contained in there to delete, so that didn't work. Any other suggestions on how to get the links working again?
Also, does this affect my ability to snipe items I have listed in my snipes page or in a bid group I've created? I hope not.

My LINKS from search page to ebay do not work eitheer. I removed the listings from the HOSTS file. Still no good. This problem is growing FAST and will eventually have to be solve by one of the experts..

quote:

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This problem is growing FAST and will eventually have to be solve by one of the experts..

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"Growing fast"? Huh? Did I miss something?

I have same problem, but suggestioned offered did not work for me. But deleting hosts works

I am getting more confused as each new post is posted!

Looks like some Ad blocking softwares make changes to the hosts file to filter ads, and auctionsniper is somehow connected to one of servers on the list.

The ad server in question is eBays affiliate server. So if it's evil then it's eBays evil, not ours. eBay uses the most reputable company out there when it comes to this so I would be comfortable removing the cj.com and qksrv.net portions from your hosts file. Most popup window advertising spam comes from elsewhere and it's not likely you'd get any more popups by removing those 2 entries.

Must be something else, because neither of those servers are in my hosts file and I still can not access the links.

You must have some other sort of ad blocking software.

Are you 100% sure that all ad blocking software is off, and 100% sure you found the correct hosts file?