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Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

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Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#71

Post by hnlmorg »

dakom wrote: post #44
3np wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Remember the times before Spotify? Piracy was the only way to get a lot of music ; there simply weren’t any paid options. Nowadays the market for buying or streaming digital music has made paying for digital music viable. With a lot of YouTube content, the situation is very similar today; there isn’t a way to pay for content without simultaneously being exposed to ads and the associated tracking/profiling/stalking. M…

I remember buying cassettes and then CDs, either from a known distributor or litte hole-in-the-wall shops. When digital music was getting big, it was mostly experienced through DJs at parties. They got their records from distributors and there were ways of pressing small amounts of vinyl cheaply. Artists who didn't have a record deal had to hustle, selling their tunes directly from the trunk of their car or any means…

Electronic music wouldn't exist if it wasn't for ignoring copyright laws. The entire scene is built off the back of sampling and mix tapes.

Likewise MP3 players and similar portable music devices (like the iPod) were technically advocating breaking copyright laws in some countries. Like here in the UK where it was illegal to rip a CD you owned. That law was clearly idiotic but the only reason it changed was because everyone was already doing it.

I'm not trying to argue that piracy is good. However it's not as black and white as some make out.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#72

Post by xg15 »

Orphis wrote: post #6

So they are charging people to remove ads so that the content creator doesn't get any ad revenue from their views? So ethical.

I'd happily allow ads (to an extent) if the content creator were in control and would actually receive 100% of the revenue. But this is not what's happening: YouTube controls when to play ads and how many and only a small percentage of the revenue - if anything - goes to the creator.

This can have consequences bordering on the absurd, e.g. if someone uses a YouTube video in their presentation and is forced to interrupt the presentation to wait for the ad.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#73

Post by freyir »

wand3r wrote: post #18
rezonant wrote: post #13

Lovely... > The removal of in-video ads. You can pay YouTube for ad-free viewing... not doing so and stripping out the ads is dangerously close to "I just want this for free, so I'll steal it" > Prevent YouTube from tracking your play/pause/seek activities. A little bit of a tinfoil hat issue here, but it's fair if this sort of analytics bother you (it doesn't bother me). > Restore picture-in-picture functionality. P…

>> The removal of in-video ads. > You can pay YouTube for ad-free viewing... not doing so and stripping out the ads is dangerously close to "I just want this for free, so I'll steal it" I don’t understand this sentiment AT ALL. Google has built an entire business out of scraping and selling other peoples content. YouTube has become the defacto host of virtually ALL VIDEO. So yeah, I would watch a video without ads. T…

> Advertising is disgusting honestly

Again, they give you the options: subscription model or ad-based model.

This covers the cost of infrastructure, paying creators, and paying developers.

It doesn’t make sense that they or any other company will host and send you video for free at a financial loss to themselves because you’re watching it on “your computer.”

Then again, we live in a world where drugstore makeup needs to be kept behind lock and key, so this shouldn’t be surprising.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#74

Post by musicale »

TheTon wrote: post #4

I’m really enjoying this. It’s so much faster and basic stuff like rotation that was janky under the YouTube player now works smoothly. But I have to wonder how long it lasts before YouTube takes steps to break it.

> But I have to wonder how long it lasts before YouTube takes steps to break it

Usually VLC lasts a week or two.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#75

Post by musicale »

dmart wrote: post #12

Installed this and it's great. That said, it's embarrassing how many iOS extensions I have installed just to work around today's shitty websites. AdGuard to make the web usable, AMPlosion to avoid AMP nonsense, Open in Apollo to avoid mobile Reddit dark pattens, now this (which I installed because YouTube's new embed widget starts playing on touch-start instead of touch-release, so it triggers while scrolling...)

> it's embarrassing how many iOS extensions I have installed just to work around today's shitty websites

The user-hostile design of web sites in 2021 is appalling. Even simple text articles or blog posts have become horrible. I was just reading a blog post linked from HN which featured 3 different popups: two modals and a modeless sidebar popup that follows you as you scroll.

No, I don't want to subscribe to your email newsletter.

No, I don't want to sign up for a course or webinar or some service or whatever.

No, I don't want to know more about something other than what I'm trying to read on this page while you keep interrupting me and telling me I should be doing something else.

(And that was a site that lacked the typical annoying cookie popup – maybe it actually respected the "do not track" feature? That would be a first.)

Popups were despised by users to such an extent that web browsers built in an option to block them. The sensible response to such a clear user preference would have been to abandon popups, but instead web designers came up with a way to work around the popup blocking feature by using modal javascript panes and sliding overlays to obscure the page content.

Autoplaying video was similarly viewed as obnoxious and battery draining, so web browsers built in a feature to block it; web designers responded by doing their best to defeat that feature as well, and it seems to be an ongoing arms race.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#76

Post by artdigital »

dmart wrote: post #12

Installed this and it's great. That said, it's embarrassing how many iOS extensions I have installed just to work around today's shitty websites. AdGuard to make the web usable, AMPlosion to avoid AMP nonsense, Open in Apollo to avoid mobile Reddit dark pattens, now this (which I installed because YouTube's new embed widget starts playing on touch-start instead of touch-release, so it triggers while scrolling...)

Super Agent to automatically consent to cookie banners with whatever you set it up with (eg. functional cookies only)

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#77

Post by 2muchcoffeeman »

dncornholio wrote: post #68
2muchcoffeeman wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don’t necessarily think ad funded content is bad. But YouTube seems to do it the worst. 2 ads at the start, sometimes they can’t be skipped. Ads in between at weird places. Now there are 2 ads at the end too. Spotify is ok. Ads. Bunch of uninterrupted songs. Ads. Like radio. Many Anime streaming services are similar. Ads bookend the content. YouTube could have spent time curating good content and building a platfor…

You know the content creators themselves can decide where they want to have ads? Also Youtube has even skippable ads, Spotify doesn't, but somehow Spotify does it better? Your points are highly subjective dear sir.

I didn’t know the creators themselves are setting the ads.

Yes, I would take quality content with unskippable ads that bookend what I want to watch or listen to, vs what appears to be random sometimes. Or just companies sponsoring the creators. I suppose I’m used to the old TV and radio model.

YouTube as it stands just recommends garbage. And everything has garbage click bait titles. The fact that the quality is so poor doesn’t make me want to pay for anything.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#78

Post by Mordisquitos »

freyir wrote: post #73
wand3r wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>> The removal of in-video ads. > You can pay YouTube for ad-free viewing... not doing so and stripping out the ads is dangerously close to "I just want this for free, so I'll steal it" I don’t understand this sentiment AT ALL. Google has built an entire business out of scraping and selling other peoples content. YouTube has become the defacto host of virtually ALL VIDEO. So yeah, I would watch a video without ads. T…

> Advertising is disgusting honestly Again, they give you the options: subscription model or ad-based model. This covers the cost of infrastructure, paying creators, and paying developers. It doesn’t make sense that they or any other company will host and send you video for free at a financial loss to themselves because you’re watching it on “your computer.” Then again, we live in a world where drugstore makeup needs…

> Again, they give you the options: subscription model or ad-based model.

They offer those options, but the fact remains that there is a third option: ad-free no-subscription model.

As a user of the ad-free no-subscription model, I give them two options: internalise the costs of people taking the third option, or spend time and resources trying to make the third option technically impossible.

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#79

Post by jiriro »

kergonath wrote: post #65
meemo wrote: post #27

Bought it and it looks greater. However, I am wary due to the permissions where the extension "can read sensitive information." I understand that there's probably no way around this, but still.

Yeah, that’s unfortunate that we have to trust developers to that extent. OTOH, it is true that they could get a lot of information once we give them the right to inject some JavaScript in every webpage we load. Personally, I have enabled it only on YouTube so they should not be able to touch the rest.

How do you enable an extension (this one) ONLY on youtube?

Re: Vinegar: Safari extension that replaces YouTube embeds with HTML5 video tags

#80

Post by the8472 »

musicale wrote: post #75
dmart wrote: post #12

Installed this and it's great. That said, it's embarrassing how many iOS extensions I have installed just to work around today's shitty websites. AdGuard to make the web usable, AMPlosion to avoid AMP nonsense, Open in Apollo to avoid mobile Reddit dark pattens, now this (which I installed because YouTube's new embed widget starts playing on touch-start instead of touch-release, so it triggers while scrolling...)

> it's embarrassing how many iOS extensions I have installed just to work around today's shitty websites The user-hostile design of web sites in 2021 is appalling. Even simple text articles or blog posts have become horrible. I was just reading a blog post linked from HN which featured 3 different popups: two modals and a modeless sidebar popup that follows you as you scroll. No, I don't want to subscribe to your ema…

> Autoplaying video was similarly viewed as obnoxious and battery draining, so web browsers built in a feature to block it; web designers responded by doing their best to defeat that feature as well, and it seems to be an ongoing arms race.

Browser vendors have just given up and let mute videos autoplay because otherwise the websites would show even less efficient gif/apng/canvas animation/manual slideshows instead.

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