FAQ

• In the top left of the matrix, what is "other"?
• How can I see the full URL of requests made on a page?
• What does HTTP Switchboard does more than, say, AdBlock+ or AdBlock?
• What do you gain out of this?

Under construction.

In the top left of the matrix, what is "other"?

So far, here is what I found:

• favicon.ico
• web fonts
• HTML5 <audio> tag
• HTML5 <video> tag

How can I see the full URL of requests made on a page?

• Open the popup menu of HTTP Switchboard
• Click on the Global info icon in the top-right corner
• HTTP Switchboard info page opens
• Scroll down to the Geeky stats section
• There you can see the full URL of all requests, blocked or allowed, made by your browser
• Use the drop-down list to select the stats for a specific page

What does HTTP Switchboard does more than, say, AdBlock+ or AdBlock?

There is AdBlock, and there is AdBlock Plus (which the EFF advise to install).

If you really care about your privacy, it is good to know what is happening behind a web page, so I did some tests to compare AdBlock and AdBlock Plus vs HTTP Switchboard. See the differences for yourself when using real web pages, and make an informed choice:

• AdBlock vs HTTP Switchboard:
  • edition.cnn.com
  • nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com.
• AdBlock Plus (using EFF installation instructions) vs HTTP Switchboard:
  • edition.cnn.com
  • nbcpolitics.nbcnews.com.

Using out of the box settings for AdBlock and HTTP Switchboard. Using settings suggested by EFF for AdBlock Plus. Note that with HTTP Switchboard, the user does not need to explicitly change the cookie settings in chromium/chrome (as required with AdBlock Plus). If cookies are blacklisted for a domain, any outbound cookie will be removed, regardless of chromium/chrome owns settings.

What do you gain out of this?

Nothing, the project is GPLv3. I am having fun doing this though.