Do you use ad blockers? (regardless of browser)

[Razzako]

So with the recent news of Google Chrome API changes may disable most ad blockers, many reports of ad block extensions such as uBlock origin failing recently, and companies such as Spotify updating their ToS to ban ad blockers, I was curious to see how much people use ad blockers in these forums (or anywhere else, really) and wanted to ask two questions:

1. Do you usually turn off ad blockers in MMO-C or any of your frequently visited websites?
2. What browser(s) are you currently using?
3. If you are or were on Chrome, have you made the switch or are planning to switch soon?

[Torched]

I use adblocker and NoScript on firefox, no I do not turn them off for any site.

[Razzako]

I use adblocker and NoScript on firefox, no I do not turn them off for any site.

Nice, just read a bit about NoScript and added it as well. Have you had any problems with it before?

For anyone interested here's the description:

NoScript (or NoScript Security Suite) is a free software extension for Mozilla Firefox, SeaMonkey, and other Mozilla-based web browsers, created and actively maintained by Giorgio Maone,[2] an Italian software developer and member of the Mozilla Security Group.[3] It allows executable web content based on JavaScript, Java, Flash, Silverlight, and other plugins only if the site hosting is considered trusted by its user and has been previously added to a whitelist. It also offers specific countermeasures against security exploits.[4]

Source.

[siskokid21]

Nice, just read a bit about NoScript and added it as well. Have you had any problems with it before?

I've had some issues with NoScript stopping videos playing on some video streaming sites. (pirated tv/movies) Otherwise i never turn off ad blocker, unless it's required to visit a web page.

[Ubermensch]

So with the recent news of Google Chrome API changes may disable most ad blockers, many reports of ad block extensions such as uBlock origin failing recently, and companies such as Spotify updating their ToS to ban ad blockers, I was curious to see how much people use ad blockers in these forums (or anywhere else, really) and wanted to ask two questions:

1. Do you usually turn off ad blockers in MMO-C or any of your frequently visited websites?
2. What browser(s) are you currently using?
3. If you are or were on Chrome, have you made the switch or are planning to switch soon?

1. I never turn them off for anything except for websites that I need to use that won't function with them activated. I have a zero tolerance policy when it comes to ads or pop-ups. I despise capitalism and the rabid advertisement it's brought upon us.

2. I only use Google Chrome, always have.

3. If Google Chrome bans my adblock plugins then it's time to switch to a new browser that'll let me use them although I don't know of any and how plugins work on them.

[Xenryusho]

Always use adblock. When it doesn't catch something, I map the domain to 0.0.0.0 for local DNS lookup manually.

[Thelxi]

Of course and I also never turn it off. I switched from adblock to ublock too last year or so; adblock sold out and is kinda shit now.

[Sinyc]

Do you usually turn off ad blockers in MMO-C or any of your frequently visited websites?

No.

What browser(s) are you currently using?

Firefox

If you are or were on Chrome, have you made the switch or are planning to switch soon?

I never used Chrome as my main browser, but as a secondary. I would usually have a Chrome window open on my 2nd monitor while FF was on the main for all my browsing.

Edit: I uninstalled Chrome a while back. Forgot to mention that.

[Ubermensch]

Regarding Chrome: I've used it for a few years, but switched back to FF a couple of weeks ago for several reasons already. Ther announcement of discontinuing support for ad-blockers seals that particular deal for me very firmly.

What's going on with Chrome? Are they really going to ban it? What did they say about it? I'm out of the loop, help me out please.

Also, how do I get plugins on Firefox?

[Thage]

Online safety 101. Too many sites are bogged down with numerous ads per page, many autoplay noisy ads and force sound. Many others use ad providers packed with malware. Others make the ads as fuckin annoying as possible. Once all the aforementioned change and I don't feel like I'm putting my PC at risk by visiting, say, a -booru to check out awesome fanart or watching a movie only to have ~5 minutes of annoying ads every 15-20 minutes (and that's AFTER paying g a subscription for the service), I'll uninstall my adblocker. Until then, I'll whitelist safe sites and block the rest.

[endersblade]

I run AdBlock, AdBlock Plus, and NoScript in Firefox. If a site requires me to turn any of them off, I don't use that site.

[Yunru]

Tos to ban addblockers. This is a sucuide for any site.

Also what will happen now that even less people will use chrome as it will become less safe. (yeh no add is safe)

What needs to happen is internet over-haul. Youtubers for example are already fixing it by putting intergrated adds into their video.

[Queen of Hamsters]

I use Ublock.

And I also try to support websites I like to visit in other ways when possible. It's just that the damned ads are too aggressive, too animated, too many.

[Ubermensch]

What needs to happen is internet over-haul. Youtubers for example are already fixing it by putting intergrated adds into their video.

How is that a fix? What if I don't want to see any adverts at all? Is that a risk I run clicking on any video even if I turn off adblock? Isn't that unfair? I clicked for content, not adverts.

[GutsAP]

Never have, never will.

Messing with people’s livelihoods just so you aren’t mildly inconvienced or annoyed by ads is a scumbag move, period!

[Ubermensch]

Never have, never will.

Messing with people’s livelihoods just so you aren’t mildly inconvienced or annoyed by ads is a scumbag move, period!

So we should watch adverts against our own will? We should make people money just by having their advert on my screen? What if I don't want to watch adverts? Or see any of it on my screen?

[Yunru]

How is that a fix? What if I don't want to see any adverts at all? Is that a risk I run clicking on any video even if I turn off adblock? Isn't that unfair? I clicked for content, not adverts.

This depends on a youtuber. Some will run 2-3 (at start and end), some will make them funny so you wont notice them and so on.
But we do need a youtuber ignore button.

[Aoyi]

Funny enough, this forum was the one that finally made me start using ad blockers. I didn’t for a long time, but after reporting several bad ads to moderators and them completely ingoring reports for months of the same bad ads appearing on their site, I finally started using ad blockers. MMO-champion had proven it wasn’t really interested in addressing the issue. At the time, there was a Christmas season ad for Target that would come up and block the entire page. I reported it at the beginning of the Christmas season. They allowed the ad to run for the entirety of the holiday season without ever getting adressed. After that, I started using adblockers. I do whitelist a few other websites I visit. Just not this one.

[vincink]

I use AdBlock and NoScript plus a Pi-Hole.

I despise capitalism and the rabid advertisement it's brought upon us.

Advertisements have nothing to do with capitalism. So long as there is a market of any kind, vendors will advertise to sell goods and ideas. It is completely decoupled from the economic model.

[God Save The King]

Yes but I am very aggressive with the whitelist.

One of my favorite YouTubers, CGP Grey started a podcast like 4 or 5 years ago called "Hello Internet" in their first 10 or so episodes they go over why adblock is bad and why you need to at least allow the passive advertisements to occur on sites that you enjoy.

The nutshell of the argument is that if enough people start to use adblock, most of the internet we enjoy will begin to fail. I mean even this site relies on adverts and subsidizes that with a premium feature. YouTube could not exist without advertisements, nor could many other sites. They would be relegated to either charging a subscription fee or asking for donations like Wikipedia, and only very large sites like Wikipedia can survive off of donations alone.

People want the internet to be free, but they don't want to "pay" the price of that freedom, which is consuming adverts. I think it's fine to adblock sites you dislike but are generally forced to go to, but you should strongly consider whitelisting sites you enjoy and want to continue existing. I agree that ads are annoying, so if you're able/willing try to support sites through whatever subscription they might have for ad free access.

(Edit: Went back and checked, it was episode 5 of the podcast if anyone wants to listen to his argument, and the beginning of episode 6 lists counterarguments they heard)