KBLinker News

Redirection v1.0.1 Critical Update

In light of a discovered bug, the redirection file (goto.php) has been updated ahead of schedule and is being released separately from KBLinker 1.1 for all users of KBLinker v1.0+. Essentially the bug lies in the usage of Double Meta or JS to Meta redirect method, in the event you passed on additional variables, those variables would have been lost in the prior version of the file. This has now been fixed in v1.0.1.

As an added bonus, v1.0.1 of the redirect file now supports Refferer and SubID filters when used in a non-direct linking manner such as on a Landing Page. If you are using a KBlinker link on a landing page with a code of bizkit for example, you would put this at the top of your landing page (PHP only). For the javascript method of setting a cookie visit W3Schools.

setcookie("kbl_ref_bizkit", $_SERVER['HTTP_REFERER'], time()+3600);

The above cookie named kbl_ref_[code] will store the HTTP_REFERER that led to the landing page. When a visitor clicks the kblinker link to be redirected to the offer, the cookie will be used in comparing for a match in the Referrer or SubID filter as opposed to the link's HTTP_REFERER (which would always be your landing page's address). Before redirection occurs the cookie gets deleted as not to be seen by advertisers that view cookie data.

If you use the kblinker link several times on a landing page and would like to also pass any querystring data passed to the landing page onto the advertiser the following code below maybe helpful (/visit/code/ is an example of url rewriting the default is usually goto.php?kbl_id=code)

$mycode = "acai";
$query = $_SERVER['QUERY_STRING'];
$target = "http://www.mydomain.com/visit/{$mycode}/?".$query;

Then any place you need the link url to appear in the landing page you would simply place <?=$target;> in that location.

Download Redirection v1.0.1 (zip | tar.gz)

Updating simply requires replacing your existing goto.php file (or whatever it was renamed to) with the new file. Remember this file is only intended to work with KBLinker version 1.0 and above.

From version 1.0.1 all KBLinker variables will begin with kbl_, this version of the goto.php file will still look for 'id' in the event that it cannot find a kbl_id value. There will be a support article soon on how to use KBLinker with Tracking or Propser 202 in a landing page setup.

KBLinker v1.0 Released

a BIG Thank You goes out to the existing users who provided feedback for version 0.5.3. Because of this a good number of useful features have found its way into version 1.0.

What's new in 1.0?

Easy Install and Upgrade

For new users installation is easier than ever, simply upload the files, set a few as writable and everything else involving the manager's installation can be done from your webbrowser. If you're already a KBLinker user prior to version 1.0, simply remove your existing files and replace them with the new v1.0 files. Upon detection of the existing data, KBLinker will automatically upgrade the database records for the new features. (backing up your configuration information, database and any existing .htaccess configurations is strongly encouraged)

Settings

  • It is now possible to change and save settings from within KBLinker.
  • The sort order of the Links table can now be changed easily.
  • Most output can be quickly paginated due to small AJAX implementations.
  • Expiration style, and testing url can now be easily set.

Groups and Filters

  • You can now create groups and assign links to them for better organization.
  • Easy Cleanup; You have the option of removing assigned links along with the deleted groups.
  • Through 'Settings' you can select a default group to be shown on the home screen.
  • You can now save filter presets to be quickly applied to new and existing links.
  • Through Presets, IP and Referrer filters can accept multiple destinations for multiple matches.
  • IP Filter (both in preset and manual) now accepts hostnames.
  • IP, Referrer and SubID filter can now take wildcards for matches.

SubID Filter

It is now possible to automatically assign a SubID to a link. Much like the Referer filter it matches the HTTP_REFERRER, but unlike it, it does not change the entire destination link, but rather appends a SubID variable with the matched SubID value onto the end of the current target. SubID can be attached to the default link, Geo targeted matches, IP/hostname matches, and any combination of the three.

Randomize your Geo Targeting

Ever wish you could randomly rotate multiple destinations for the same country? Well now you can. Simply turn off the primary location for Geo Routing in either the manual configuration or filter preset, and you can use multiple lines of the same countries but with different targets.

New redirection methods

Two new features have been added when it comes to redirection methods; Javascript to Meta and Custom HTML. JS to Meta is simply a combination of the Javascript (Stealth) redirect and a single Meta Redirect, the link will first be redirected via Javascript, and then a single Meta Refresh will send the user to their destination.

Custom HTML is for users that may have a slightly unique way of redirecting. If a kbl_custom.html file exists in the same folder as the redirect script (it's recommended to place the redirect script with the custom html file into it's own folder), then all links that are not set to PHP 301, will instead be redirected with your custom HTML. Simply place the word %target% into the html file, and KBLinker will replace it with a target url and load the html content to the visitor. This can be very handy if you want to have your own Redirect page with a slower Meta Refresh to show your company logo or other offers. You can also use this method to create your own frameset showing the destination in one frame and your "ad bar" in another.

KBLinker v1.0 Soon

In the next few days, version 1.0 will be ready for release. Fixes a few annoying issues as well as introduces many features requested by users.

Version 0.5.3 Released

0.5.3 fixes a few small annoyances and cosmetic issues. Also introduces the new Licensing system to more easily deploy your purchases.