uBlock Origin becomes top addon on Firefox
I instantly install this extension whenever I work on a new machine as I could not imagine browsing the web without it.
For that reason I just went looking for a donate button to help fund the project and it turns out they don't even accept donations
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/wiki/Why-don't-you-accept-...
uBlock Origin, with CNAME uncloaking is the most powerful ad/tracker blocking tool. Browsing Internet without it is often time a scary experience.
It does block our [Wide Angle Analytics](https://wideangle.co/documentation/track-with-custom-domain) tracker about which we are open about.
And ... we are not against. Every user should have a right to self determination and control when browsing the Internet. Our tracker is not invasive. It does not spy on users across site. We do not facilitate user profiling and personalized Ads. So maybe we should be against? But we are not.
It is your browser. It is your device.
The most popular extension, and the 2nd most popular, just like the 6th, 7th, 9th and 10th most popular, are ad-blockers.
I guess it's only marketers that love targeted ads...
I really, truly, sincerely wish more developers put compatibility with adblockers at the top of their priority list. I have so many customer support issues to deal with because some of the SaaS platforms we use are not compatible with ad blocking software.
Usually, the first thing I tell people is to turn off their adblocker. This almost always fixed the issue. Yes, I absolutely hate asking our customers to do this.
If you want adblocking software to thrive -- then please make sure you test your software with adblocking software enabled. (Please!)
What kills me is even paid subscription sites like WSJ, Bloomberg, Seeking Alpha, show you ads even when you're a paying member.
Why is it a war on our attention?
I prefer Ad Nauseum (https://adnauseam.io/) because I don't want to just block the ads I want to ruin the profile ad companies have on me by having all the ads clicked as well.
For the past five years it seems like any time I saw an adblocker mentioned you'd see someone replying that uBlock was better, and then another reply clarifying that uBlock Origin is the one you want.
It's crazy that despite that it still took this long.
Really great on firefox for android too, along with YouTube background player.
I wonder how the post manifest v3 world will look like and how much it'll affect uBlock Origin on Chromium based browsers. Even now, several features, such as CNAME uncloaking, happen only on Firefox.
My biggest issue with web advertising is placing video ads on a text website.
Your eye is constantly flicking over to the flashing lights making the ability to focus impossible. Ad blockers are the only thing that makes most ad supported sites usable.
What do people use to block garbage domains from their Google results? Google results, especially for developer stuff, is so awful -- cluttered with junk sites ripping off content from blogs and Stack Overflow, etc.
I've been trying to figure out some rules for uBlock Origin, but haven't gotten there, yet.
Edit: Multiple fantastic options in the replies, below. Thanks, people!
The internet without an adblock is just a scary, misleading place that's trying to trick you into scams, echochambers, bad deals, bad advice, botnets and cryptolockers.
It doesn't JUST block ads, it also blocks malware and other garbage. IMO Its not safe to browse the modern web without it
The bottom line is that the web is completely unusable without some sort of ad blocker. That's a pathological condition which speaks ill of the long term viability of the internet. When ublock breaks as it inevitably will, so does the internet (in terms of usability, not in terms of sending packets around).
Great news! Adblock Plus has been compromised for quite some time. This means the pressure will definitely increase on uBlock Origin but I hope they stay strong.
Librewolf
I’m surprised LibreWolf doesn’t get more attention. [0]
It’s stock Firefox, with uBlock Origin preinstalled and a bunch of Firefox configs adjusted to more privacy oriented settings.
It ranks as the most private browser experience, even better than Brave. [1]
I have a dream that some day all browsers come with builtin uBlock.
I wish I could install it for everybody. Browsing the Web and watching Youtube is such a different experience with adblock.
How do ya'll feel about the idea that adblock can be morally equivalent to theft[1]? I see this argument pop up from time to time in relation to people who use alternative clients to services such as YouTube. But if you're using uBlock Origin, you are probably browsing many, many sites that rely at least partially on ad revenue, so it's a similar case.
I have a website bringing a lot of money using ads. I don't attempt to detect adblockers, or deter users from using them, and use them myself.
ublock origin is wonderful. If one day, everybody is using it and I can't make money from ads anymore, I'd say it would be a sad day for my wallet, but a great day for humanity.
Good. Blocking ads is essential for...
security reasons: to prevent malware from being installed via rogue ads;
for privacy reasons: to reduce being tracked by corporations;
and for mental health reasons: to reduce being bombarded with injunctions to buy things.
It would be nice if browser makers started bundling ad block by default.
I need to give uBlock another try. I use and love uMatrix, and was hoping someone would step up to maintain a fork of it, but six months later it is apparent that will not be the case (and is far outside my expertise).
For some reason uBlock never clicked with me. The various global blocking settings I tried either broke too many sites or let too many annoyances through, and I found the process for allowing/blocking third-party resources on a per-site basis was clunkier than other blockers like uMatrix or Privacy Badger.
I really respect what gorhill has done, and keep hearing great things about new privacy preserving techniques being adding to uBlock that go beyond what other blockers do, so I really want to like it. Given how so many people love it and don't have these complaints, I'm probably approaching it with the wrong mindset / usage model, that is causing me to fight against it rather than work with it, so I need to step back and try again with a blank mind.
uBlock Origin + NextDNS has been a pretty amazing combo for me.
If you want to really take it even further you can setup pfsense or any other edge router that supports IP blocking and then (at least on your home network) block the IP's of common DNS providers other than the one you want your devices to use. This stops apps and devices that have hardcoded IP's trying to do encrypted DNS (DoH or DoT) to bypass your preferred DNS choices. Its a bit of a game of whack-a-mole but I find they do not change all that often. Unfortunately of course this does not do anything for when you may be walking around using mobile data on a phone (at this point now only NextDNS would be in play - still better than nothing) but I suppose you could run a VPN back to your home network if you wanted to.
Disclaimer: Former ABP developer.
Mozilla worked surprisingly hard to make uBO number one - for years they've actively promoted it, marked it as recommended and similar things, added weird warnings for the unwashed masses of "unrecommended" extensions, made them harder or even impossible to install on some platforms. Generally incredibly shady practices I was shocked to see from Mozilla, who I thought had above average integrity - not in the last five years or so I guess. Not even Google pulls stuff like that from what I can tell.
That said, uBO is cool and I'm happy it's still growing.
Let's make it a native Firefox feature.
Nothing says "our entire industry[0] is a blight upon human society" like a thriving ecosystem of popular software existing for the sole purpose of shutting you the hell up.
[0] advertising and marketing industry
Dear Mozilla.org please add it as default in the browser if you care about privacy and the web in general, This is the first add-on that I install on all computers , mine or for friends
If major browsers were 100% user-centric they would've built ad-blocking into the browser. Maybe make it opt-in, but it should be there as a built-in feature.
How do people reach technical audiences on Google search when the said technical audience has Adblock installed? Do any founders or tech startups use Google Ads? I don't know any tech person that doesn't use uBlock Origin.
I've seen people recommending StackOverflow ads to reach exact people that might be interested in your product, but I've never ever seen ads on StackOverflow - thanks to uBlock Origin.
I saw a comment more or less like "Please add more ads and make the x button to close them smaller" today on a website. I was seeing no ads and I never did see one there. I was about to reply to use an adblocker, then wondered if that could make me banned and the reply deleted (they have a moderator approve every single comment).
Is there any reason not to enable all the blocklists and filters in uBlock Origin that aren't enabled by default?
And why aren't they enabled by default?
Finally, are there any other quick/easy things that can be done by users to improve uBlock's blocking... like maybe installing some other blocklists that aren't in uBlock Origin at all?
Recently, the uBlock Origin icon in my toolbar has just disappeared and doesn't appear in the overflow menu.
Anyone else see this?
It's simply the best there is. I had used various of the adblock** plugins until I came across uBlock Origin.
Whatever it is you want to block, Javascript, fonts, ads, etc, it's just works, with global defaults and per-page exceptions.
Are there any add blockers for iOS? I want to get a tablet for reading on the couch but I assume I would need an Android or Surface tablet in order to install Firefox with uNlock Origin.
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I still use a hosts file instead of pihole. The tool is called hblock. I'd use pihole if I can find a deal on a rapsberry pi.
just installed it today on my father's partner's laptop.
in my opinion ublock origin is by now an integral part of the internet infrastructure.
it's also the only piece of software which I consistently install on every platform I use (Linux, Windows, MacOS, Android, iOS).
Raymond deserves some sort of Nobel prize or something for this. The internet is not usable for me without it.
That makes perfect sense -- browsing the web on desktop without uBlock has become a nightmare.
Surprisingly the adtech is by far the profitable industry including costs to operate comparing to any other industry. Ads are the biggest pillar on which most of the faang stands. Sadly most people don't even want to make a few clicks to download a browser extension.
Why doesn't firefox build ublock origin directly into firefox
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As it should be
uMatrix seems even better, but no uMatrix for mobile. Reasons.
I am frequently annoyed by FF but then I use Chrome. What capitalism has done to the internet... Long live Mozilla.
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I think it's only a matter of time until adblock is legally banned.
The current situation, where the vast majority of the internet relies solely on ads and an increasing number of people use adblock year over year is unsustainable.
The system can support a certain number of free riders (people who consume the product but don't contribute back in ad eyeballs), but at a certain point the math will no longer work.
Eventually we as a society will reach a point with only two options:
1. Stop using ads to fund most of the internet
2. Ban adblock so our current ad funded internet can work.
Too bad modern Firefox doesn't actually have the support to run full featured uBlock Origin since they moved to the Chrome extensions model and threw away the entire Firefox add-on ecosystem. Actual Firefox forks like Sea Monkey and Palemoon still support the fully featured uBlock Origin.