Mammoth Jones
Member
I haven't received a virus from an ad either but that doesn't mean ad networks don't have an issue w/ them propagating across their networks. Give me a break.
The Verge: The internet is dying a slow death because of ad blockers
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I haven't received a virus from an ad either but that doesn't mean ad networks don't have an issue w/ them propagating across their networks. Give me a break.
We do though because the horrible ads existed before blockers.
do you not remember popups? or flash ads? or the million other ways ads have become increasing disgusting?
content blockers are a solution to a problem.
I'm sure it's been said a hundred times already in the thread, but I wouldn't be using adblock if ads weren't such a complete nuisance so much of the time. Even if 99% of ads are fine, I absolutely have zero tolerance for audio ads, video ads I can't find when I have several tabs open, ads with viruses, and pop-ups that don't go away. The state of internet ads still sucks, so I don't wanna see them.
And there are sites that block their content when they detect Adblock. I'm fine with that, I'll turn adblock off for that site. And if the site has obnoxious or intrusive ads, I'll turn it back on and never visit the site again.
And there are sites that block their content when they detect Adblock. I'm fine with that, I'll turn adblock off for that site. And if the site has obnoxious or intrusive ads, I'll turn it back on and never visit the site again.
BomberMouse
Member
I guess a lot of people are missing the point in here. Apple is basically allowing ad-blocking on the web but there's no way to ad-block apps.
Apple has been trying to kill the web for a long time, starting by not letting you install other (real) browsers on iOS, refusing to update the browser to some of the newer HTML5 features and now this. They don't want you to use the web, they want you to use apps for everything.
Apple has been trying to kill the web for a long time, starting by not letting you install other (real) browsers on iOS, refusing to update the browser to some of the newer HTML5 features and now this. They don't want you to use the web, they want you to use apps for everything.
App Store redirects almost single-handedly killed mobile browsing for me. With how often web pages lag, freeze, and crash on me these days, I'd honestly switch from iPhone if they didn't introduce a fix for this while another OS did.
How Microsoft gets pegged for monopolistic practices for bundling IE but Apple doesn't for not only the same exact practice but also forcing you to keep Safari the default is beyond me.
RumblingRosco
Member
Does AdBlock block YouTube video ads? Because that's the main way that YouTube content creators make money... Seems a little rough to cut off their only revenue source by blocking ads.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
Can you think of an alternate explanation for these actions that would reach a different conclusion than "Apple has been trying to kill the web"? If so, how would we adjudicate between the two interpretations?
Not Spaceghost
Spaceghost
If you have ads that aren't mem hogs, intrusive, flat out offensive looking, or potentially a security risk I will not ad block you.
Unfortunately many people seem to think the opposite.
Also, I seriously doubt more than 5% of all internet users are running adblock. I am literally the only person in my immediate family who runs adblock and probably one of 4 people in my whole family that runs adblock.
It does and it wouldn't be a problem if you could buffer the video while watching the ad but that's not the case so for people with low internet speeds it becomes a legitimate hassle to deal with video ads.
Unfortunately many people seem to think the opposite.
Also, I seriously doubt more than 5% of all internet users are running adblock. I am literally the only person in my immediate family who runs adblock and probably one of 4 people in my whole family that runs adblock.
It does and it wouldn't be a problem if you could buffer the video while watching the ad but that's not the case so for people with low internet speeds it becomes a legitimate hassle to deal with video ads.
Should have stayed with simple banner ads. I refuse to buy anything I see from an annoying popup or auto playing music/video ad (praise be to the Chrome mute tab option) ad I can't click away. Most news sites, especially local stations, are awful to browse even on newer, more powerful machines.
What percentage of people use ad-ons? I would venture a guess that the numbers are similar.
EDIT: Cannot vouch for the accuracy, but this article seems to indicate that the numbers are quite high.
Yes, it does.
I've always been sympathetic to the argument that ad blocking is akin to piracy, and in many ways the analogy does work... But then it also doesn't in some crucial ways. Ads are running arbitrary code that kills your battery life, saps your data allowances and makes mobile browsing a chore. On top of that they are usually building a creepy profile of you to sell to others. That's a different equation than "I want this sandwich, but your price is too high so I'll steal the sandwich."
I do agree the best option is not to visit those sites in the first place, though. I definitely avoid the Verge for that reason, although even an accidental click is enough to put you in danger so it's not as easy as, to use the earlier example, just not going into that sandwich shop.
And Apple isn't killing ad trackers for iAds money, because iAds is peanuts. They're doing it because a tracker-free mobile web is a better web and thus a better product and thus a better iPad people will love instead of complaining that it's "too slow" because the Verge thought you wanted 5MB of JavaScript.
I do agree the best option is not to visit those sites in the first place, though. I definitely avoid the Verge for that reason, although even an accidental click is enough to put you in danger so it's not as easy as, to use the earlier example, just not going into that sandwich shop.
And Apple isn't killing ad trackers for iAds money, because iAds is peanuts. They're doing it because a tracker-free mobile web is a better web and thus a better product and thus a better iPad people will love instead of complaining that it's "too slow" because the Verge thought you wanted 5MB of JavaScript.
Not Spaceghost
Spaceghost
It looks like this study counts all addons so that probably includes the random yahoo tool bars that you get stuck with when installing random freeware.
EatinOlives
Member
Oh so now intrusive ads are secretly the fault of people who are enabling ad-block. You're really hell-bent on blaming ad-blocking consumers for everything. Yes, you're on a high horse precisely because of this. In addition to calling ad-blockers crybabies/pirates, you're also attributing all the ills of web advertising to ad-blockers. That's what's a pretty terrible attitude.
I'll reiterate again: neither websites nor ad companies are entitled to ruin the web browsing experience of users just to make a quick buck. No sense in stamping your feet and shouting at the people using ad-blocking. If ad companies are truly making ads worse because of all the ad-blockers, you should direct your ire at the people who are choosing to make the ads worse, not the people who will continue to block the worse ads and still end up getting a better user experience than you.
Yes. My god, yes. Just those 3 things.
No Viruses/Malware
No autoplay audio
No ads that blow up and COVER half or the entire page
I'd basically have no need for any sort of ad-block.
You wanna really have your mind blown, try out loading one of their pages while using Ghostery.
NullPointer
Member
Asking marketers to restrain themselves is like asking scientists not to be curious. Its against the very essence of their being.
The only option is leverage, which is exactly what adblockers provide. Without that leverage ads would be even worse, for no other reason besides the fact that they could.
alittlelove
Neo Member
The Verge is complaining about the completely wrong thing if their goal is better monetization - the larger problem in the industry right now is definitely mobile and lack of tracking on the iOS than any desktop add-on.
LyleLanley
Banned
I don't think the piracy comparison is an entirely fair one. When you purchase a movie or game or whatever the transaction is, usually, fairly straight forward. I will pay the content producer x amount of dollars and in return I will receive said content. The relationship with online ads isn't as simple, I have no idea if I'm going to be tracked or if I'm going to have to listen to a video/audio ad that automatically plays.
If someone used Ghostery to stop companies from tracking you yet still kept the ads on the site would that still be considered stealing in the way that some people consider using an ad blocker?
CrunchyFrog
Member
10000x this.
Liu Kang Baking A Pie
Member
I mean, all browsers have BUILT IN pop up blocking, third party JavaScript blocking, and click to Flash now. All browsers. Are browsers ruining the web?
So if you don't care about sites getting ad revenue is there any reason to not use Ad-Block? Because that seems like the only problem people have with Ad-Block.
And if your source of revenue relies on whether people give a fuck or not on the internet I don't think that's a very good business model.
And if your source of revenue relies on whether people give a fuck or not on the internet I don't think that's a very good business model.
Astral/H3X
Member
I use adblock for 2 reasons:
1: Potential of getting a virus from one.
2: Fucking Youtube playing a fucking 2 minute fucking ad before I can watch my 45 second fucking video. EVERY. FUCKING. TIME.
You can tell which of the two is a bigger motivator.
1: Potential of getting a virus from one.
2: Fucking Youtube playing a fucking 2 minute fucking ad before I can watch my 45 second fucking video. EVERY. FUCKING. TIME.
You can tell which of the two is a bigger motivator.
outunderthestars
Banned
This right here. If you run a website I will generally not use an ad blocker, but the first time an ad takes over my screen, plays audio, or makes the page slow to load I will block every ad on your site that I can.
PeskyToaster
Member
I haven't got redirects on GAF while browsing on an iPad/Android phone. Other sites I get them all the time making the site unbearable, but not GAF.
Takeover and invasive pop up ads and scripts immediately make me leave a site and never return, which is actually more harmful than viewers missing the odd banner. If the ads were less invasive (they crash browsers at a STUPENDOUS rate), then people might not be so inclined to block.
vagabondarts
Member
It's not the people's fault, it's the ad companies.
That's not how it works. The ad doesn't get shown to you but it still gets triggered by the system. It still counts as a viewing of the ad (this depends on which blocker you use)
Chezzymann
Member
Then stop playing ads that are super invasive. I'm fine with ads on the side of the screen but pop up ads that take up the entire screen and auto play videos are not cool. If you're going to do that I don't care about the consequences of using adblock, its either that or I stop visiting your site. Of course with sites like neogaf I won't use adblock. They do a good job at making sure shit ads don't appear on the site and respond to complaints when they do.
It happens on GAF on occasion. I haven't seen one for a while, though.
GAF ads are not intrusive so I let them through. I do worry about getting a virus, but the chances are low enough that I'm willing to risk it.
The problematic aspect of the virus argument is that sometimes people use it as an excuse for ad blocking, even though they'd probably block ads regardless. I'm not saying that it's not that you can't get a virus through ads, I'm just saying that there are probably segments of ad block users that would just block ads regardless, and use the virus as a wholesome excuse to hide behind.
Either way, I'm not condemning or applauding people for choosing what they want to use.
Exactly.
Disabling an adblocker even for a single refresh is insane on many sites. A whole page gets covered in an ad suddenly, you close that shit only to get a popup that takes half of the screen, you close that and rush to close an autoplay video that just loaded. And everywhere you look there's banners and blinking shit and malware-filled "system update" shit.
And all that to "pay" for an article or news piece that usually is of such a quality that nobody would even consider printing it in an actual newspaper. But it's the internet, anything goes!
Saiyan-Rox
Member
Exactly this.
Also seeing stuff i've looked at on amazon on an ad on another website freaks me the hell out still.
the reason Ad blockers are used is because of how annoying and sometimes disgusting they are
Even a minimalist advertising strategy like NeoGAF's can't be 100% perfect. The mobile ads, for example, are entirely Google ads, but Google's platform occasionally lets through ads that cause redirects to the app store and so forth despite being against the ToS, and Google has higher standards than every other ad platform out there. If "less than perfect" is sufficient justification for adblocking, every website monetized by ads is fucked.
I think (hope) that most people who actually block ads because they're malicious software are reasonable enough to make informed decisions and weigh these risks.
That being said, I'd be down for like a $5-10 membership fee for gaf a la SA.
They're fucked, because even perfect won't cut it. The amount of people that will whitelist a site for altruistic reasons is absolutely miniscule. And at the point that you've blocked things how do you even tell who's doing ads right and who isn't? Do people really believe some will whitelist everything until such a time that they get annoyed? Yeah, no. They'll block everything, even the sites doing it well, and a tiny portion of people might perhaps whitelist a few of the sites they like... maybe.
Mr. Giggles
Member
Hmmm I would have said the loss of net neutrality is what would kill the internet...
But what do I know, I'm just some guy
But what do I know, I'm just some guy
entremet
Member
Freeza Under The Shower
Member
it's fun to call it 'media piracy' when you can just put it behind a paywall and the problem goes away. As does your outlet, probably.
Maybe the problem is that 99% of the internet isn't worth anyone's time 'for real' and therefore without value in a monetary sense? nooooooooooo, that couldn't possibly be it.
Also, you can just put a kind of 'no script ads guarantee' on your site and enforce it so that people will whitelist your site. Like a good old newspaper. If you're not willing to do that, you're just being a dumbass who doesn't know the difference between getting paid for providing something people want and expecting to get paid right off the bat. If you depend on ad money, you're an entrepreneur, not an employee, and that includes all the risks that come with it.
Seriously, how can a professional not get this?
Maybe the problem is that 99% of the internet isn't worth anyone's time 'for real' and therefore without value in a monetary sense? nooooooooooo, that couldn't possibly be it.
Also, you can just put a kind of 'no script ads guarantee' on your site and enforce it so that people will whitelist your site. Like a good old newspaper. If you're not willing to do that, you're just being a dumbass who doesn't know the difference between getting paid for providing something people want and expecting to get paid right off the bat. If you depend on ad money, you're an entrepreneur, not an employee, and that includes all the risks that come with it.
Seriously, how can a professional not get this?
This right here.
I can't just trust any website I go to on a whim. My regular sites get my money,/whitelist even when they mess up sometimes (like MMOChampion did once, they were quick to admitting it and fixing it too). Gaf sometimes get those annoying mobile ads. But I'm not a moron so i can see that usually isn't the case.
Just to add to this, Google also has very strict polices for publishers as well, yet people will still find work around a or get banned and use lower quality networks that have less restrictions.
There is no one solution that benifits both sides, some compromise will need to be made.
Agreed, the pop ups are so annoying, there's no point not to use adblock because something will pop up all over the screen eventually.
Supposedly advertising revenue is this super important thing and yet they can't guarantee that ads are safe enough to brose, because several people have gotten viruses from them.
Also, if they want to compare adblockers to piracy, we need to compare their data mining to being peeping toms. Companies are secretly looking in on the habits of users and selling the data unbeknownst to many. I don't recall ever getting a notice from websites telling me that my browsing habits may be tracked and the information sold.
Also, if they want to compare adblockers to piracy, we need to compare their data mining to being peeping toms. Companies are secretly looking in on the habits of users and selling the data unbeknownst to many. I don't recall ever getting a notice from websites telling me that my browsing habits may be tracked and the information sold.
Astral/H3X
Member
An occasional annoyance is one thing, and honestly I don't mind and EVEN LOOK AT the ads displayed on GAF. They are relevant to recent amazon searches, don't play audio, don't block out the rest of the page, and generally don't go out of their way to annoy me or piss me off.
But when I go to Youtube, I try and load up a 45 second clip from Smash, and suddenly I have to watch this long, drawn out, 1:30 to 2:00 video that I can't skip about some stupid SUV. Like, fuck if I care about this SUV! The only thing this SUV is doing is completely blocking my ability to watch a video shorter than the ad itself!
15 second reminder that Destiny exists? Sure, okay, I'm watching a video about games. But that's kind of stretching it. Just go back to the passive slide up ad that obscures only a small part of the video, give it a five second timer, and be done with it. Maybe I'll actually look at them instead of being annoyed by the fact that it exists.
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