Off Topic Discussions

[Axxemann]

Okay, mad is probably the most diplomatic way I could say it. I've used ad blockers for YEARS. Mostly because I find 99.99995% of ads to be a combination if irrelevant, intrusive, or just plain objectionable.

Then Youtube started rolling out this anti-adblocking campaign a few months ago. At first it was just a popup that made you wait to watch. Okay, no biggie. I usually pop multiple tabs worth of videos anyways. Well, last night it gave me a countdown... 3 videos then I'm locked out. Well, I got in about a half dozen. All the work-arounds seem to have failed miserably.

No more watching Youtube on my PC, I guess. At least I still have ReVanced on my Android device. If I get one of those new-fangled Smart TVs that can do Youtube... I better be able to patch that app with ReVanced, too. Otherwise... NO TV. If ReVanced dies, I'm done with Youtube.

My hatred for Youtube and their parent company, Alphabet, spans many years... I demonetized and made private what little content I had because I had copyright claims against videos that had Creative Commons, Royalty-free music on them. Nuked my AdSense around the same time in protest. Then came the woke, anti-freedom policies. It's just a daggone shame that there isn't a viable alternate platform. Otherwise, I'd be deleting my Google accounts in their entirety and moving on from there.

[Dragokar]

Well, there are alternatives out there if you don't like what they are doing. By the way, have you ever tried to host up to 4k video services? The costs eat u alive.....and I am not saying that they don't make tons of money, but the uplift in costs from 1080p standard to 4k is enormous.

[Axxemann]

So if they go ahead and charge for 4k, I'm not gonna cry about it. They want to hide commenting behind a paywall? I'm fine with that, too. But a Free-to-Watch service shouldn't dictate to me what ads I watch, if any at all. Especially of the political, religious or woke variety. Or the mail-order brides and dating sites. Really not interested in that garbage.

[Dragokar]

Your browsing behavior somewhat collects and add to your ads. I never got ads with brides and so on......you can combat that with a strict cookie policy and some other stuff.

Comments are free to do if the creator does allow comments, and I don't see anything that they want to change that. Youtube was never intended to be a totally free to watch service for anyone.....ask the og owners what they wanted to do with it, you can find the email via Google 😉

[Axxemann]

That's just it. I've been running an ad block for so daggone long, that they have no idea what to show me for ads, so when I disable the ad blocking, I get EVERYTHING thrown at me. I get so fed up with the garbage that I turn it back on and refuse to surf certain sites.

If the Google data collector is reading this, my interests are: Guns, Motorcycles, Archery, Computer Hardware, Aviation, Barbecue, Bourbon and Beer. If you show me that stuff in the ad spaces, I'll be less likely to block things. If you have a statuesque model posing with said stuff (think Swedish Bikini Team, SHOT Booth Girls, F1 Paddock Girls etc) then I'll leave everything adblock related turned off. I don't want a date, or a bride from a foreign country, discount prescription medication or even some US politician vying for my vote when I'm in Canada... I just want some eye candy to sweeten my browsing. Is that really too much to ask? It wasn't in the 80s and 90s.

[bimbom]

very true. streaming services are starting to charge for extra premium tiers to deliver 4K HDR. I dont think Twitch has ever turned a profit and their distribution does everything it can to downrez if they think you arent watching.

[elstaci]

Well, blocking ads prevents the company from getting AD Revenues and generating a profit. So you can understand why companies are getting stricter with Ad Blocking programs.

But you also understand that Ad Blocking creators are also getting more creative in blocking Anti-Ad blocking programs.  It is like the Arms race. Someone comes out with a new type of weapon and the enemy comes out with a new way to defend against the new type of weapon.

In my case, I use Malwarebyte's extension on Firefox. Often I would need to disable Malwarebyte's extension to allow a video to play or to get access to a website because it says I need to disable my Ad Blocker software in my browser.

Yet strangely enough, I never have to disable McFee WebAdvisor or WOT browser extensions. Only Malwarebytes and in some cases my VPN.

NOTE: I personally haven't had that issue occur to me but I also don't log on to YouTube. When you reach you limits go to your browser's settings and delete all data and history and see if you again now can view youtube videos as before.

[Axxemann]

If you've got a loss in revenue from one stream, find another. Just don't punish me for not wanting to part with my info unless I give it to you voluntarily. 

I'm with Joey Ramone regarding what he said about Politics.

[Dragokar]

Well, if you want to gain something without any form of compensation, that is not a good business for anyone. That's why you have the choice, same like with WhatsApp and other messengers,  there are alternatives out there. Simply use them.

[Axxemann]

I'm just waiting for ReVanced to move from the Android space to Windows. I'd be all over Brave ReVanced in a heartbeat.

[Anonymous]

I still do not see ads when I watch videos on youtube.

[elstaci]

I do see an ad appear, once in a while,  for about maybe a one second and then the YouTube video starts with no more ads.

Most likely it is either Firefox browser itself or Malwarebyte's extension that is blocking the ads from appearing.

[Anonymous]

I use firefox and origin extension.

[johnnyenglish]

Well.. I'm no big or small (maybe tiny) creator so i can't have add block when using my Ytuber account.

However, the browser does have a simple but effective add blocker for regular web surfing, the clean look does feel good. 

[lowteck]

Sounds like someones ready to

[Justifier]

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No more watching Youtube on my PC, I guess. At least I still have ReVanced on my Android device

 Learn about sideloading on Windows, or Android virtualization through something like Bluestacks

I've been using a 3rd party client to watch YT videos on PC since I found them, maybe 18 months now

[blazek]

Firefox + uBlock Origin extension, never have a problem with ads.

[Goobernaculum]

I don't have a lot of things to add, but I get your frustrations. Particularly this one

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Mostly because I find 99.99995% of ads to be a combination if irrelevant, intrusive, or just plain objectionable.

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I took an embroylogy course a while back, and for a few months, all my ads were for a company called that was specializing in cryogenically storing male sperm. It had a not subtle name.

Thats a hard one to not look awkward with since the banner was huge

[philiprickard]

I completely understand your frustration with YouTube's anti-adblocking policy. It can be incredibly frustrating when a platform you rely on takes steps that seem to inconvenience users. Many people have turned to YouTube Vanced as a workaround to block ads and enhance their viewing experience. It's unfortunate that these battles between content creators, advertisers, and users often leave us feeling caught in the middle. Hopefully, YouTube will find a way to strike a better balance in the future to keep both users and creators satisfied.

[Axxemann]

I just wish I could ReVanced Brave in Windows. 😛

[lesleytaylor]

I entirely understand why you find YouTube's anti-adblocking strategy frustrating. When a platform you use takes actions that seem to annoy consumers, it can be quite unpleasant. As a workaround to block advertisements and improve their viewing experience, many consumers have turned to YouTube ReVanced. It's sad that we frequently feel entangled in these conflicts between content producers, advertising, and users. In the future, YouTube should be able to strike a better balance to satisfy both viewers and artists.

[elstaci]

Right after this thread started I noticed that Youtube would interrupt my video with like 2-3 minute long commercials that I couldn't skip or fast forward. Very annoying. First time this had occurred while watching YouTube videos.

So i downloaded and installed Ad-Blocker for YouTube and that solved all my annoying commercials from running while still able to watch YouTube videos without commercials.

[Axxemann]

Yeah, I still run SponsorBlock. But for all the other annoying ads that Youtube bombards you with I had to resort to using Brave's native ad blocking. It catches MOST of them, but not as many as ABP did.

[Racq]

Not really. I deleted my channel years ago due to the excessive Ad placement and the community is toxic more times than not. I've tried a few of the 3rd party clients and they work great until they get sued into discontinuing development.

I've turned to other platforms and only use YouTube when absolutely necessary. Staying away from it as much as possible is the best solution for me personally.

[carolynlivesay]

In other words, banning advertising stops the business from receiving AD Revenues and making money. You can see why businesses are becoming more stringent when it comes to Ad Blocking software.

You do realize, however, that those who create ad blocking software are also becoming more inventive in how they thwart anti-ad blocking software. Think of it as the Arms race. When a new kind of weapon is developed, someone else develops a countermeasure, and the enemy responds accordingly.

For me, I use the Firefox add-on Malwarebyte. Frequently, Malwarebyte's extension would indicate that I need to disable my ad blocker software in my browser, which would prevent me from watching videos or accessing websites.

[mengelag]

Check out Cleantube. Ad free version of YouTube 

[andrewperez]

Thanks For Shear This Blog!! 

[JLP]

Still don't get any ads and blockages here by using Firefox browser with uBlock Origin plugin and on GNU/Linux operating system. But yeah Google has become quite evil in the past few months, well all GAFAM/BigTech corporations are turning into nasty spyware and ad corporations lately. It is very sad and quite concerning. Just search for Cory Doctorow and  Enshi-tt-ification for a very good explanation of what and why it is going on and also some suggestions on what to do to take back our rights to privacy and the web without mental pollution (ads/propaganda). I try to yeah use as much opensource software and switch to non-profit and free platforms like Peertube for independent videos or Invidious (an alternatuve privacy respecting user interface to Youtube)