[thelist] Email address hiding question

[Robert Vreeland]

David,
I don't if this will help, but I'm including the method I use. I prefer it
over other anti-email harvesting spiders for two reasons. One, it doesn't
use mailto in the href of the anchor tag just a '# ' so it appears as a
named anchor tag to the spiders and uninteresting. Two, it still allows a
user with javascript disabled to at least view the email address. So here it
is:

Setup your email link like so:
<a  href="#"
onclick="changeMyColor(this)"><span>info</span>&#064;<span>someplace.com</sp
an></a>
The span tags make it unlikely to be parsed by a spider as an email address
through a regular expression, but won't effect the visual display so
individuals can still get the email address to manually use.

I would recommend the onclick function being included in an external
javascript file, but either way use a misleading function name.
Here is the function I've successfully used in a couple of sites.

function changeMyColor(){
 linkArray = "";
 if(arguments[0].nodeName == ("A" || "a")){
  linkArray = "mailto:";
  linkArray = linkArray + arguments[0].firstChild.innerHTML;
  linkArray = linkArray + "@";
  linkArray = linkArray +
arguments[0].firstChild.nextSibling.nextSibling.innerHTML;
  arguments[0].href = linkArray;

 }
Basicly it extracts the pertinent info and rebuilds the link as a mailto
link when clicked by a user with a javascript enabled browser, otherwise the
link does nothing.

I have tested the script in IE and Firefox, not sure how it works in safari
though.
Good luck
Robert

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "David Bailey" <d.bailey at dab-hand.co.nz>
To: <thelist at lists.evolt.org>
Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2005 8:55 PM
Subject: [thelist] Email address hiding question


> Hi,
>
> I am having trouble with a JS script designed to hide email addresses on a
> web site. It was supplied in a newsletter and I can't get hold of the
> developer of the script.
>
> It appeals to me in that it is supposed to work if Javascript is turned
off
> in the user's browser.
>
> What the script is meant to do:
> ======================================
> The URL has been 'decorated' with some spam blocking parts, and a hint
> appears in the message body ('Please remove spam blocker'). If a user has
> JavaScript enabled, the onClick() event handler takes control, which
> exchanges the spam-blocking part with an at-sign. Additionally, the hint
is
> removed because it is no longer needed.
>
> The Problem:
> ============
> It works correctly in a non-JS-enabled browser, but in a JS enabled web
> browser the following problems occur:
> 1. When the link is clicked it opens two email windows!
> 2. The first window opens as it should with the "no-spam" text stripped
from
> the email address, but contains the 'Please remove spam blocker' message
in
> the Body.
> 3. The second window (which opens over the top of the correct window)
> contains the 'no-spam' text in the email address (and "correctly" contains
> the Subject message).
> 4. The process seems to open another browser window
>
> I don't know enough about js to work out what is wrong. Can anyone help
> here?
>
> I reproduce the script below, but it can also be found as a working
example
> at:
> http://www.dab-hand.co.nz/testbay/email/emailtest.html
> (The script works the top link called "Information"
>
> The script goes:
> ================
>
> In the head of the page:
>
> function sendmail() {
>    // cancel std event processing
>    event.returnValue = false;
>    // remove spam blocker
>    var url = event.srcElement.href.replace(".no-spam at please.", "@");
>    url = url.replace("Please remove spam blocker. ", "");
>    // open email window
>    window.open(url);
> }
>
> In the body:
>
> <p>
> <a href="mailto:info.no-spam at please.adomain.com
> ?subject=Put you subject header here.
> &body=Please remove spam blocker. Place your message here. Thank you!"
> onClick="sendmail()">Information</a>
> </p>
>
>
> Thanks for any help anyone can give me!
>
> David
>
> -- 
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