#1728 Simple filter to replace character in <title> tags fails to match

[Mark Craig]

This filter does not succeed in matching the intended Web pages:

FILTER: replace-bad-char-from-title Replaces the extended ASCII arrow out of the page titles
s@(<title.)\ \→\ (.)@$1 - $2@i

Is there anything syntactically wrong with it? I have been using version 3.0.24, but am downloading 3.0.28 at this moment (I don't expect that to be significant to the problem).

[Mark Craig]

Still very much hoping for some help and insight into what I'm doing wrong. I miss the good old days using Proxomitron - while Scott Lemmon was still alive - when there was an active HTTP proxy community that eagerly helped each other. Just finding another human who even understands the concept or its value now, much less the technicalities, is an impossible task.

[Lee]

On 5/2/19, Mark Craig wrote:

Still very much hoping for some help and insight into what I'm doing wrong.

It would help if you told us how to duplicate the problem.

But if the problematic site url starts with "https://" that's the
problem. Privoxy can't filter encrypted traffic. If that's not it,
please give us the steps to reproduce the problem.

I miss the good old days using Proxomitron - while Scott Lemmon was still
alive - when there was an active HTTP proxy community that eagerly helped
each other. Just finding another human who even understands the concept or
its value now, much less the technicalities, is an impossible task.

Is it that surprising for something that hasn't been officially
supported for over 15 years?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxomitron
All future development of the program was ceased in 2003

Regards,
Lee

---

** [support-requests:#1728] Simple filter to replace character in <title><br> tags fails to match**</p> <p><strong>Status:</strong> open<br> <strong>Group:</strong> 3.0.21<br> <strong>Labels:</strong> user.filter<br> <strong>Created:</strong> Wed May 01, 2019 06:33 AM UTC by Mark Craig<br> <strong>Last Updated:</strong> Wed May 01, 2019 06:33 AM UTC<br> <strong>Owner:</strong> nobody</p> <p>This filter does not succeed in matching the intended Web pages:</p> <p>FILTER: replace-bad-char-from-title Replaces the extended ASCII arrow out of<br> the page titles<br> s@(<title.<em>)\ \→\ (.</em></title>)@$1 - $2@i

Is there anything syntactically wrong with it? I have been using version
3.0.24, but am downloading 3.0.28 at this moment (I don't expect that to be
significant to the problem).

---

[Mark Craig]

But if the problematic site url starts with "https://" that's the
problem. Privoxy can't filter encrypted traffic.

That is indeed the problem, then. I mistakenly thought that privoxy had overcome that limitation, which was also (mostly) shared by Proxomitron. Since virtually all my surfing now relies on HTTPS:, privoxy unfortunately won't serve a purpose. :-(

Thank you for the accurate preemptive educated guess.

Is it that surprising for something that hasn't been officially
supported for over 15 years?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxomitron
All future development of the program was ceased in 2003

Development ceased at precisely the moment that its sole author, Scott Lemmon, died abruptly and unexpectedly. I know that a few people in its community who had known him more intimately made overtures to his family about releasing it as open source, but his family was not technically inclined and otherwise not motivated, so it remained proprietary and shared a grave next to Scott's. Some tried to duplicate its function from scratch and keep the filter syntax and behavior identical, but to my knowledge none were ever completed.

[Lee]

On 5/2/19, Mark Craig wrote:

But if the problematic site url starts with "https://" that's the
problem. Privoxy can't filter encrypted traffic.

That is indeed the problem, then. I mistakenly thought that privoxy had
overcome that limitation, which was also (mostly) shared by Proxomitron.
Since virtually all my surfing now relies on HTTPS:, privoxy unfortunately
won't serve a purpose. :-(

It's still a lot nicer than merging various blacklists into your
hostfile & then trying to figure out which host needs to be unblocked

• eg
  https://lists.debian.org/debian-user/2019/04/msg01116.html

Thank you for the accurate preemptive educated guess.

You're welcome :) Just out of curiosity - did you look at the FAQ?
Would it have helped if we made it the 1st answer?

Is it that surprising for something that hasn't been officially
supported for over 15 years?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proxomitron
All future development of the program was ceased in 2003

Development ceased at precisely the moment that its sole author, Scott
Lemmon, died abruptly and unexpectedly. I know that a few people in its
community who had known him more intimately made overtures to his family
about releasing it as open source, but his family was not technically
inclined and otherwise not motivated, so it remained proprietary and shared
a grave next to Scott's. Some tried to duplicate its function from scratch
and keep the filter syntax and behavior identical, but to my knowledge none
were ever completed.

That's a shame. I've read about Proxomitron but never used it.

Regards,
Lee

---

** [support-requests:#1728] Simple filter to replace character in <title><br> tags fails to match**</p> <p><strong>Status:</strong> open<br> <strong>Group:</strong> 3.0.21<br> <strong>Labels:</strong> user.filter<br> <strong>Created:</strong> Wed May 01, 2019 06:33 AM UTC by Mark Craig<br> <strong>Last Updated:</strong> Thu May 02, 2019 02:43 PM UTC<br> <strong>Owner:</strong> nobody</p> <p>This filter does not succeed in matching the intended Web pages:</p> <p>FILTER: replace-bad-char-from-title Replaces the extended ASCII arrow out of<br> the page titles<br> s@(<title.<em>)\ \→\ (.</em></title>)@$1 - $2@i

Is there anything syntactically wrong with it? I have been using version
3.0.24, but am downloading 3.0.28 at this moment (I don't expect that to be
significant to the problem).

---