v1.18; last modified 2004-12-02 18:20:51 EST by sboisvert

Features New in v0.7

This is a list of new functionality already implemented in the next version of PithHelmet.

1. enabling PithHelmet is now saved as a preference (the "Block Filtered Content" menu item)
2. separate preference checkbox for collapsing content that links to advertising content
3. blocked content allows substitute files (this prevents annoying question mark/missing image graphics from loading)
4. content from localhost and file:/// are not filtered at all
5. block images from server menu item now includes the name of the server that will be blocked
6. there is a special rule set ("Exempt Sites") which disables all PithHelmet blocking for any page matching this ruleset
7. new contextual menu item "Never block content from <current site domain name>"
8. content and error messages are now fully localizable (for info on becoming a translation volunteer see PithHelmetLocalization)
9. sites that are in the location bar do not get blocked (this prevents accidental blocking when you type in a url that matches a block rule)
10. added some new Help menu items to the preference pane contextual menu - mostly on the subject of regular expressions
11. added "Revert to Factory Rules..." contextual menu item - this will remove all custom rules and restore the default set of rules that PithHelmet shipped with (it makes a backup copy of your customized rules first, just in case)
12. completely new blocking mechanism based on new WebKit documentation from Apple
13. collapse blocked content has been rewritten to limit the number of links it examines on a page - this fixes thevery slow performance reading message digests which could contain ~1000 or more links on a single page.
14. merged url and domain-specific rules - this is only a UI change and should simplify the rule editor
15. added GIF-wrangler functionality to control whether GIF animations play Always, Once or Never

v2.0 Potential Features

Suggested by lambertd:

• A shortcut to disable Javascript for the current site (temporarily/permanently).
• wish granted - implemented in v2.0
• A contextual menu item in addition to "Block images from this server" to block only the selected image
• not sure how useful blocking a single image is, but you can easily accomplish it by copying the image source as a url and pasting it into the block rule manually - not the most elegant, but fully functional

Suggested by John Fredx:

• The option to go offline and read cached pages via the History menu (iCab has this)
• I would like to get better acquainted with Safari's caching and noodle around. Some hacking might make cached urls appear without a network connection, but implementing a full offline mode is pretty involved.

Suggested by dick:

• transmogrifier - rules editing from the preferences pane
• This is tricky - it requires a relatively complicated user interface - even worse than different rule-sets by domain.
• link blocking - rules for blocking img and object child elements of anchor elements based on the anchor href attribute contents
• implemented in v2.0 - you can now specify which rules apply to filtering anchor elements
• style snubber - rules mapping domains/URLs to style sheets (local or remote)
• implemented in v2.0

Suggested by sjk:

• Add "loop up to N times" GIF animation control option (per OmniWeb).
• well, i added image blocking per-site. notquitewhat you asked for.

Suggested by grischard:

• A contextual menu to disable flash, or all cross-site content, for the current site (temporarily/permanently).