The ad-free internet has already been here for a long time if you are willing to spend 10 minutes install ublock origin. Paying is actually worse on all aspects, even if you ignore the cost, because it shows the fact that you have some amount of disposable income and are willing to pay for things, which greatly increases the value of advertising to you specifically.
Welcome to the ad-free internet
211–220 of 334 posts
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#212Earlier quoted context omitted.
> your peripheral vision gets distracted by irrelevant stimuli (for some reason I automatically have to look when it seems like something is “happening” all of a sudden, an urge I have to repress) If you figure out how to do this, please let everyone know. I don't think it's possible. I think humans have it baked in to them to pay attention to, for lack of a better word, information. I used to have a long commute dri…
I observe this in myself. It's virtually impossible for me to be in a restaurant/bar that has a TV up on the wall, and really be present with my friends/family. I catch myself being drawn into TV content that I'm entirely uninterested in, drifting off, and I hate it.
Yeah your brain might be tuned in to that artifact that is projecting input which is unlike the expected environment and which is constantly changing. Oh news-cut to an explosion. Ugh.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#213https://www.datatilsynet.no/en/news/aktuelle-nyheter-2023/th... > the Norwegian Data Protection Authority strongly doubts that Meta's proposed ‘consent’ mechanism, often dubbed ‘pay or okay’, complies with the GDPR. The EDPB’s decision is therefore important to avoid Meta's infringement continuing while the company is exploring its options. https://www.theregister.com/2023/11/28/metas_eu_privacy_fee_... > noyb (None…
Is it illegal to charge money for a service in europe, or is it only illegal if you also offer an ad-supported free version?
It is illegal to offer an ad supported version that has no way to turn off personalized ads.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#214Earlier quoted context omitted.
The solution, at least for me, is finding things/places, both on and off the computer, where you can avoid having your attention stolen and just focus on something you like. I think the ad-saturated parts of the world are one of those things that you don’t really need, you just get trapped by them if you open yourself up to being swayed by them. Nobody is in my kitchen trying to sell me shit when I’m cooking, nobody…
And the V/R entrepreneurs are just drooling at the prospect of turning these last refuge places into ad-saturated environments too.
Until now they couldn't track your eye movement to determine if you might be susceptible to their manipulation.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#215Doesn't this end up spiralling, though? As we've seen with Netflix, nothing stops the service from adding ads to a subscription feed. Sooner or later the pressure to grow revenues is going to force Meta to do ads on their subscription accounts (especially since they can charge a premium on those ads). Then they introduce "premium" subscription accounts with no ads, then those get ads, then there's the "excelsior" sub…
Not showing the user ads is also only half the problem. As the article said, those who pay not to view them are the more valuable advertising targets. There's nothing about those plans, as far as I've seen, that says they're not still tracking usage patterns, viewing habits, etc... and selling that info on to others who don't have a paid ad-free option.
As far as I understand, the paid plans only opt you out of the ads but not the rest of the growth hacking bullshit that all commercial social media platforms do to some degree.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#216The second you've paid for an ad-free version of software, you've proven that you're in the top 0.1% of people worth showing ads to. Very few companies can resist the temptation to exploit their best users. See all streaming services as an example.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#217I treasure my attention and so I've spent some time to opt out of ads. 5 years ago I couldn't tell what DNS was, now I've got an OPNsense router at home running ZenArmor/Unbound and I can can link to it from my phone over wireguard.
Using ublock I've made a point to prune the pages I visit, so classes like "header" "breadcrumbs" "recommended" "sponsor" &c. are hidden. I self-host my media collection so I avoid spotify et al.
It all leads to a deeply pleasant digital life for me and my family; I saw fewer ads/distractions in 2023 than any year before. I know most people won't go through all the steps I did, but I'm surprised there isn't a pricey service rich folks can buy to get this sort of experience out of the box.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#218Earlier quoted context omitted.
Question. Would you be okay with being shown an add if in turns your plane ticket price is noticeably cheaper?
The challenge is that there won't be any transparency with this sort of thing. Prices for flights are so variable that you'll probably never know if it is cheaper due to the advertisement, or because of other variables. My main issue with advertising driven models is that the company will respond to the needs of who pays them, advertisers, and not who actually uses the service. Want to juice profits? Just sell more a…
Airlines have already come up with a way to make sure you understand what you're saving on. They'd sell you a ticket for some base price, and then extort you for extras upon online check-in. Seat choice, extra legroom, meals, etc.
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#219That's funny, because I'm a PAID subscriber to The Economist, and on opening the page, there is a big ad banner on the top and other on the right, filling more than half the space. (I don't bother using adblockers,though). Newspapers have always shown ads even for paying consumers. As the very article ends with: "Users who pay to block ads in some areas are still likely to find them popping up in new ones."
As a non paying ublock origin user, I don't see any ads. The ad-free internet has already been here for a long time if you are willing to spend 10 minutes install ublock origin. Paying is actually worse, because it shows the fact that you have some amount of disposable income and are willing to pay for things, which greatly increases the value of advertising to you specifically.
I have never really used an ad blocker for any kind of time. I've tried on multiple occasions but then just range uninstall it whenever some random site breaks because of it and I don't realise it's because of it. Last time it was some online shop...
Regardless of the morality / philosophical questions, the modern web feels to janky and unstable for me to trust the house of cards staying standing if you throw some Adblock in there.
(But maybe I just didn't tweak the blocker enough...)
Re: Welcome to the ad-free internet
#220There’s this local newspaper. While I’m on a logged in account (EDIT: paid) the ads seem to take up at least 25% screen real estate at all times. The best ones are the ones that graciously show up while scrolling, dynamically—it’s like wathing TV (again)! My favorite place though is the gym. Which costs a lot when you just go there to use frickin’ weights and cardio equipment. LCD screens with ads running (for local…
>so that your peripheral vision gets distracted by irrelevant stimuli
As this becomes increasingly more common place, I'm left wondering if there is a risk of a reduced quality of life for those with neurological issues (ADHD for example), in the worst case their exclusion from society.