Huolong

GFW blocked My Opera Community

Wednesday, 9. May 2007, 12:50:57

A few moments ago, when I clicked a button on my Firefox to visit this blog, I was very surprised to find my Firefox connection to my blog here was "reset" and only get a blank page, which is a typical method used by the notorious Great Firewall of China (this link also GFWed) designed to filter out "banned" IP addresses or pages containing sensitive key words GWF watchdogs don't like.

To make sure it was truly GFW that worked against my blog, I tried to visit other parts of Opera.com, the homepage, the download page, the products page, the company page, the investors page and the support page. Nothing was wrong. But, the exception was the community page. When I clicked its link, I only got a "connection reset" note in a blank page. To make sure it was not My Opera's mistake, I tried to use one of Firefox's functions to take a detour around the Great Firewall. Then, I successfully landed on this blog.

The reason why I moved my blogs at Google's Blogger to My Opera Community was that the Blogger.com was a constant target of the GFW and I couldn't bear its always interrupted services when accessed by Web surfers in the Chinese mainland.

I couldn't dream that the guys working for the GFW would finally lock this blogging service on their radar screen. Actually, before I moved my blogs here, I had worried about MOC being GWFed if too many Chinese users chose to set up their blogs here. It was a dream realized though a very bad one.

I'm awfully ashamed of what our government has perpetrated with its Great Firewall.

My six pet peevesHere comes a guessing game (not for the Chinese)

Comments

DrLaunch # 9. May 2007, 14:04

Yeah. I've been kind of worried about the great firewall of china blocking My Opera. Not because I live in China but because of all the Chinese members.

I don't see it as "filtering out content that might be unsuitable for the Chinese people." What they're doing is something much worse in my eyes.

David # 9. May 2007, 15:04

I have to say to the brain police an ancient Chinese epitaph, "May you live in interesting times..."

Anonymous # 9. May 2007, 15:20

nanheyangrouchuan writes:

The GFW is more proof about how bad China is.

Kimberly # 9. May 2007, 18:14

i will not comment on the chinese government as i know nothing of how they operate, but i will say, that if i can come to your blog and read it, is all that matters. i like to read your pages, and i also like to try to get the translator's that i find to translate into english for me ur other pages.

there are some pages that i get blocked from, but i guess that's my own problem as i have 3 firewalls & 5 antivirus programs that are constantly running on my computer at the same time...i am totally surprised that they don't work against each other, but with each other. most won't do that.

so as long as i can come and comment, i am fine with it.

Kim

张弛 Sir AzureTimm, Kingdom of Love # 9. May 2007, 23:37

Why I can access my Opera in our school internet bar?

Huolong # 10. May 2007, 02:28

It beats me why they think blogging is so bad they keep bothering blog service providers (BSPs) so much. I can give a very long list of BSPs that were and are being GFWed.

GFW guys forced networking hardware providers such as Cisco to install certain applications on their routers supplied to China's telecom carriers to block IP addresses and pages contain their hated key words.

GFW only works against Web surfers in the Chinese mainland. It's clear GFW guys cannot tamper with routers located outside of the mainland.

Timm, you can wait and see if Harbin's telecom carriers will finally follow suit.

Kimberly # 10. May 2007, 02:29

Timm,

if u r unable to access Opera, try just typing in the address, www.myopera.com and see if that lets you in.

sometimes there is just a glitch in the system. sometimes, like Huolong said, it is the government doing it. but always try typing the address of the site in, b4 u get too worried. like i said, there are some pages on Opera that i can't get into either, and if it were meant for me to be able to get into, then i'd go.

otherwise, i can't help you with getting into Opera from school....sry.

Kim

Huolong # 10. May 2007, 02:36

Firefox can help:

Read: http://cgh.blogs.ie/2006/11/16/p39/

Huolong # 10. May 2007, 02:50

Google is a large company and can at leat bring some pressure to bear on the Chinese government. Its Blogger.com is currently available to users in the Chinese mainland, but can be blocked at any moment for no reason. Its blocking happens frequently.

Opera is a small fry company compared to Google. I've never heard Opera has any offices over here. Is Opera able to bring at least some kind of pressure to bear on the watchdogs here?

Huolong # 10. May 2007, 05:30

MOC is now available to users (at least to me) in the Chinese mainland. But, this is how the GFW behaves: on and off in an arbitrary circle.

Kimberly # 10. May 2007, 13:44

not right. should be able to be on when u want to be, not when they want u to be.

Kim

Huolong # 11. May 2007, 03:29

Now on against Opera and Blogger.

张弛 Sir AzureTimm, Kingdom of Love # 14. May 2007, 01:50

I can still visit freely in our internet bar. Maybe it's connection problem? Our school has a filter to block porn sites from students, security will only be tighter than most... I didn't kre proxy, by the way...

Huolong # 14. May 2007, 13:40

Connection problem? Out of the question. You have been kept in the dark if you even try to think in this way. Mine is a not false warning.

Check the following pages to know what GFW has been up to.

http://ppeddy.blogspot.com/2007/05/gfwgfw.html
http://www.williamlong.info/archives/889.html

Kimberly # 14. May 2007, 14:51

well, at least you have notice that you're going to be blocked, some ppl don't.

Kim

Huolong # 14. May 2007, 15:15

Notice? No one has given me any notice when those sites are going to be blocked.

Let's look at an enteresting example. GFW filters out Google'com's pages containing Chinese characteres "Nanjing Massacre" (for reasons that I could not possible dream of!! GFW behaves as if it works for the Japanese government that denies the Nanjing Massacre). Some stupid Chinese web serfers plant that blame on Google.com, complaining that Google.com blocks them from reading pages that tell about the Massacre. IT IS THE GFW THAT BLOCKS THOSE PAGES, NOT GOOGLE.COM.

Don't tell me your Google can produce results when you use 南京大屠杀 as the key word. Watch carefully, it is the Google.CN, not Google.COM, that produce the pages.

Almost each Google.cn's search result pages has an ugly tail, reading like this: "Some search results have not been displayed as required by local laws, regulationjs and policies. "

At least Google gives a reason why the search results are not complete.

GFW does everything it sees fit, and does not bother to give any reasons for their actions.

Kimberly # 14. May 2007, 15:34

oh ok, sry, misread it then.

Kim

Huolong # 14. May 2007, 16:02

I think you misread the previous comment again.

Only the first sentence "Notice? No one has given me any notice when those sites are going to be blocked. " was in response to your "i-have-notice" comment. and the rest was for your information. and some bad feeling you may sense from the comment was for the GFW idiots.

I hope you can understand.

Kimberly # 14. May 2007, 16:28

yes, i do understand.

no offense was taken, as i had figured that the "length" of your post was to help me to understand what it was you were trying to say.

Kim

张弛 Sir AzureTimm, Kingdom of Love # 16. May 2007, 04:25

I'm sorry, but now I have to use ultra for Opera... I'll write about it...

Anonymous # 16. May 2007, 07:07

Huolong writes:

Boy, you were finally GFWed.

Kimberly # 16. May 2007, 07:41

me or Timm?

Kim

Huolong # 16. May 2007, 09:25

Timm. He did not believe there was something that would block him.

张弛 Sir AzureTimm, Kingdom of Love # 16. May 2007, 11:31

No no not that. See my new post. I'm not an unbelievable person... Just this case is too... Opera is by no means against Chinese government in my opinion... Strange thing really. But thank goodness I have opera mini... So It's fine. Nobody I know in my real life knows my blog..,

regards, a boy busy cleaning his desk, timm.