496
submitted 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) by bermuda@beehaw.org to c/technology@beehaw.org

So I've been using youtube ad blockers since pretty much when ad blocker extensions were first available. Lately though I've been getting hit more and more with these messages that YT was sending out every 5 or so videos telling me that adblockers aren't allowed. No problem, just gotta wait 5 seconds to x it out and then close my video. The straw that broke the camel's back though was when instead of a close-able pop-up, they just posted it in front of a video and wouldn't let me watch anything until I disabled my adblocker.

So I disabled it and... wow. It's just so, so, trash. 2 ads before a video plus midrolls and every video ever. I tried listening to a playlist of songs and was getting a midroll ad every single time. Imagine trying to just listen to music for 3 minutes and getting interrupted by a commercial for a chevy silverado! Half the ads were for youtube premium and they specifically mentioned that it would get rid of all the ads. It just felt so damn predatory. I couldn't enjoy anything that wasn't already demonetized.

And you know I'm fine with ads I guess. I could live with an ad before every video, but the fact that I was getting upwards of 5 ads in a 10 minute video was just plain absurd. I also hate that youtube got rid of the yellow markers to show you when an ad was coming up, so now it's just out of nowhere and always interrupts a key part of the video.

E: I've been on Firefox for over a year.

(page 2) 50 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[-] HipsterTenZero@dormi.zone 6 points 1 year ago

The best part is that it gets worse

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Amends1782@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 year ago

Use Invidious while it still exists as a project I'm a fan of the yewtu.be instance. Pretty reliable. The Piped project is good as well. Don't even use the YouTube domain at all, hate giving them analytics and site usage info nevermind ads

[-] OttoVonGoon@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago

For people using smart TVs, consider hooking up an old laptop or desktop to your TV. You can use a wireless mouse/keyboard (or other input peripheral) and you've got a living room setup that allows you to use ad-blockers and your own browser and video player (I recommend PotPlayer), among other advantages.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Safeguard@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago

I would actually pay for Youtube Premium Family, where it not for the fact that it does not work with gsuite accounts (which I have for my family).

We have spotify for the family, and I would cancel that and switch to youtube and music premium of google. For three dollars more we get ad-less youtube as well as music.

Sorry google, gotta pay attention to these things.

YouTube has turned against its users, and user-inertia is the only thing keeping it relevant. Detach yourself from it, read books, go outside, use Firefox (Not chomium or brave), get yourself a nice pirate hat. Maybe consider hosting a peertube or creating content for it. Try to take this negative and make it a positive I'd suggest.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] AceFuzzLord@lemm.ee 4 points 1 year ago

I haven't had to deal with video ads for years simply because I don't use the website and use patched APKs to block ads. I'm thinking it was/is the right choice due to gøøgl€'s ongoing war against ad blocking in general. Don't know a solution to the browser problem outside of using alternative frontends like libretube or invidious or whatever if you don't mind not logging in.

[-] locuester@lemmy.zip 3 points 1 year ago

Another option is paying a couple bucks and not having to worry about it. Might even make you feel good knowing you’re supporting the platform.

I don’t fault you for tinkering and finding ways around it - that’s fun. But in the end, you’re leeching off a service you enjoy.

[-] sederx@programming.dev 5 points 1 year ago

yeah google really needs more money, poor guys

load more comments (10 replies)
[-] FlashMobOfOne@beehaw.org 4 points 1 year ago

Brave Browser gets around YT's ads.

[-] pseudo@jlai.lu 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Not long ago, I was watching 5 skipable ads after 10 minutes of video on Viki. It was a time when they were distributing Korean and Chinese Drama at a pace no independent subtitle team would keep up. The shows were culturally interesting, they were a community spirit you could feel even when not participating in subtitling. The video player was good with nice features like learning mode and timestamped comment. It was an acceptable tradeoff. Today's Viki and YouTube quality is barely sufficient for not favoring pirated website which have in the mean time greatly improved their user experience.

[-] emma@beehaw.org 3 points 1 year ago

Use Piped as a front end for y--t---. It's open source & non-tracking, but views still count. The creator is active on the fedi too.

Individual servers sometimes go off line or lose quality when they're rate limited. Just try a different server when that happens. If the one you're using at the time shows ads and there are too many, check preferences to turn them off.

(My addiction is Thai. Also watch some c- and k- too.)

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] victron@programming.dev 3 points 1 year ago

Serious question. Can a pihole stop this? I've been thinking about building one for my house.

[-] limerod@reddthat.com 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Pinhole works at the network level. You need browser extensions like ublock-origin to filter this on the client side.

Edit: You also have apps like adguard, which work like Pihole, and do cosmetic filtering like ublock-origin.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] Pratai@lemmy.ca 3 points 1 year ago

YouTube- is a terrible experience.

load more comments
view more: ‹ prev next ›
this post was submitted on 09 Oct 2023
496 points (100.0% liked)

Technology

37702 readers
349 users here now

A nice place to discuss rumors, happenings, innovations, and challenges in the technology sphere. We also welcome discussions on the intersections of technology and society. If it’s technological news or discussion of technology, it probably belongs here.

Remember the overriding ethos on Beehaw: Be(e) Nice. Each user you encounter here is a person, and should be treated with kindness (even if they’re wrong, or use a Linux distro you don’t like). Personal attacks will not be tolerated.

Subcommunities on Beehaw:


This community's icon was made by Aaron Schneider, under the CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0 license.

founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS