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Might not seem like much of a question, but it is.

The below would be why HR thinks I'm looking for jobs (Websense web filter categorization + image from careers.stackoverflow.com on every (?) SF thread).

Sidebar on every SF post.

Anyone have any suggestions for what could be done about that? (No really drastic suggestions, like actually working instead of browsing SF regularly from the office.)

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    Anyone who blindly tries to discipline or berate others over the logs on any web filtering product is a complete idiot who should be fired. I don't mean from their job, I mean out of a cannon. Do they understand the concept of websites running adverts? Do they understand the concept of websites, come to think of it?
    – Rob Moir
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 17:43
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    @DJPon3 Well, they're HR, so... no, they don't. Literally. Last time someone changed one of their homepages, they couldn't figure out how to get to the intranet to do job functions. Having said that, no one's dumb enough to berate or discipline me over it, but it is a corporate environment, so it's more of a how-many-idiots-am-I-going-to-have-to-explain-these-"anomalous"-webfilter-reports-to situation. Unless there's a technical solution I'm unaware of.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 18:04
  • They must be a very concerned employer about all their employees leaving if they've blocked job boards at work...
    – Mark Henderson Mod
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 21:50
  • @MarkHenderson. No, they're just weird. I'm told it's about next to impossible to get in here, and it's a good place to work. They're just corporatey and weird. They don't block the sites, they just get a report of browsing behavior, and it seemed that me and a couple other IT guys are showing up as the top job seekers because of those ads. I think it's not unreasonable to expect employees to not be looking for another job on company time, TBH.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 22:31
  • "I think it's not unreasonable to expect employees to not be looking for another job on company time, TBH" - agreed. But you're not looking for another job on company time. You're browsing a website that contains job adverts in the side bar. Microsoft.com has occasional adverts for working at Microsoft - would they frown at you using technet to debug a Windows problem too?
    – Rob Moir
    Commented Jul 29, 2012 at 21:40

4 Answers 4

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There are many other ways of accessing the stack exchange websites, but they don't offer full interactivity.

Check out https://stackapps.com/ - there's a reasonably comprehensive list of apps/sites that utilise the API. Some of them are alternate browsing methods.

Shameless plug for the one I wrote: https://stackapps.com/questions/542/column-80-plain-text-optimised-sofu

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  • Alright, I'll definitely check it out... more the kind of suggestion I'm looking for.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 21:52
  • Yup, it's the only way... our bloody webproxy/filter resolves requests before even the local hosts file gets a shot, so no adblockers or client settings are going be able to rectify the issue. Maybe I'll just start using a 4G card if I can't find an API I like.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Aug 6, 2012 at 18:52
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How about speaking to HR and taking them through what the site is for, why it benefits them ENORMOUSLY, how they can be seen to contribute/add to the site by spending a moment to actually do their homework instead of blindly and ignorantly overreacting?

Seriously, if all they think their job is is to watch a bunch of web filters then perhaps they should be recruiting for better people for their own jobs - businesses are about communication. Insist they spend a moment or two of their time doing their job and they should see how foolish they're being.

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    Not a bad idea, though I was kinda thinking more along the lines of technical suggestions. Plus, if I talk to HR, I think my answer's going to be more along the lines of "because I deserve a 25% raise." :D
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Jul 28, 2012 at 15:02
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Several options come to mind.

  1. Show them the web site you're using and that it is (at least sometimes) work related and that these are merely ads.
  2. Use whatever method you like for filtering out the adds.
  3. Stop using SF at work. Less desirable I know but it is an option.
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AdBlock for Chrome blocks that particular ad. Not to mention many others.

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    On a website that gets revenue from ads they probably won't approve of us openly discussing such things. ;)
    – John Gardeniers
    Commented Jul 29, 2012 at 6:47
  • Perhaps. Nevertheless, it is one possible solution.
    – Michael Hampton
    Commented Jul 29, 2012 at 15:11
  • ...Plus the Stack Exchange ads are not that obtrusive (particularly once you cross the 200 rep mark). I don't begrudge sites I like their advertising dollars. :-)
    – voretaq7 Mod
    Commented Jul 30, 2012 at 2:39
  • Did not seem to work. I'll double-check tomorrow with shudder IE and AdBlock (because, of course, we have a godawful MS "firewall" in the way that might be mangling my user credentials if not passed by IE). Thanks for the suggestion, at the very least.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Aug 1, 2012 at 3:07
  • Newp, Websense grabs the requst first. Thnaks for the suggestion anyway.
    – HopelessN00b
    Commented Aug 6, 2012 at 18:53

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