About TopText and Gator. These are optional installs in limewire, however some users may inadvertantly enable them:


TOP TEXT supplied by E Zula:

"This software super-imposes advertiser contextual links over Web pages viewed by the user via MSIE. Currently, eZula has not made available a way for Webmasters to disable links from showing on their sites. Those links can lead your site viewers/customers to your competitors.

Users can experience interrupted navigation on web sites since TopText also hijacks links within Web pages. When a user clicks on a navigation link that is also a TopText link, the user gets a small popup box with a small link to continue with normal navigation and another link of the same size or at times a larger advertisement encouraging the user to leave the site. This can be both frustrating for the user as well as the site owner."

-- http://www.thiefware.com/info/data.toptext.shtml


GATOR:

"Gator is a software product that can automatically fill in passwords and other form-elements on Web pages. But its main purpose is to load an advertising spyware module called OfferCompanion, which displays pop-up ads when visiting some Web sites. Gator boasts that since it's software is always running, it can spam users with "Special Offers" and other ads anywhere they go--even competitors' sites--with remarkable targeting capabilities, since it can spy on what sites the user is visiting."

-- http://www.cexx.org/gator.htm

"Gator tracks the sites that users visit and forwards that data back to the company's servers. Gator sells the use of this information to advertisers who can purchase the opportunity to make ads pop up at certain moments, such as when specific words appear on a screen. It also lets companies launch a pop-up ad when users visit a competitor's Web site."

-- Tribune media (http://www.azstarnet.com/public/star...roundzero.html)
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Regarding TopMoxie, the NON-OPTIONAL software that installs with free limewire:

If I go to amazon.com (for example), of my own accord, TopMoxie redirects my url to make it seem like I was referred there by limewire. Limewire then gets a percentage of the money I spend. That is, in my opinion, stealing.

If I was visiting ebay.com and clicked their amazon.com banner, ebay would not get the referral, limewire would.* That is, in my opinion, stealing.

Numerous companies engage in fraudulent activities. That does not mean that it is ok.