4 browsers that will continue to support uBlock Origin and other ad blockers with Manifest V2

fne8w2ah@lemmy.world to Technology@lemmy.world – 506 points –
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Brave is based on Chromium, so where Chrome goes, Brave is likely to follow.

Routers and VPNs are only able to filter URLs. They have no way of manipulating the browser session, which is the other half of uBlock's functionality and why it will always be superior to PiHoles or ad-blocking DNS.

Google, for example, smuggles ads through their "good" domains on YouTube that deliver video content; at that point, it's an endless game of whack-a-mole in the dark to have a list that filters the correct URL without obliterating the ability to watch videos.

URL filtering is better than nothing, but it's not really a comparable solution.

Brave is based on Chromium, so where Chrome goes, Brave is likely to follow.

To follow what? Brave's adblocker is not an extension and it is not affected by MV3. And it has most of uBO's features. More than I have ever used on uBO anyway.

True, uBO doesn't have a shitty cryptobro component unfortunately. Also I hate that it's not bankrolled by a conservative sociopath

Yawn... Any technical point?

Right the only thing that matters is technology. That's why I think Facebook has the right to facilitate genocides any time they want! /s

where Chrome goes, Brave is likely to follow.

What is that supposed to mean? You realize Chromium-based browsers and Chrome are not the same thing? Brave is made by a completely different company making independent development decisions.

Google, for example, smuggles ads through their "good" domains on YouTube that deliver video content; at that point, it's an endless game of

I don't know anything about that. I just know that I don't use the browser to watch YT videos because it's an absolute nightmare. I use FreeTube, GrayJay, LibreTube, etc.

I also know I don't have any problems with ads.

Brave is not completely independent of chrome. It’s completely and entirely dependent on it. Brave developers don’t and probably can’t develope a modern web browser. All they do is adapt chromium to have a few extra features.

There is only three major web browsers. Firefox, safari and chrome. Everything else is just a few addons, preconfigured settings and UI changes. Even chrome was largely safari until Google forked their web engine.

Brave is not completely independent of chrome

That's not what I said. I said it's completely independent of Google.

All they do is adapt chromium to have a few extra features.

If you used it for 5 minutes you'd know that's not true. Quit making shit up.

None of this has anything to do with the topic at hand (ad blocking) which Brave has built into the browser and functions the same as uBo. If it didn't work, you might as well use Chrome so they have every incentive to ensure that it does and no incentive to stop it. Even if they did, you could switch later just like you could today.

I'm not trying to convince anyone to use Brave, it has plenty of drawbacks and concerns without pulling random ones out of your ass.

Are you not really in the tech industry? Because he's right. And he's sticking to facts.

There are no facts here.

Bro... This whole thread is you sounding like a fool. Read and lean what's being said. You are wrong.

This person was claiming in another thread the other day that Apple was "selling small phones by the billions" despite the iPhone Mini and iPhone SE being by far the worst performers of Apple's portfolio.

  1. WTF does that have to do with this conversation?

  2. If you had actually read that thread, you would know that I wasn't talking about either of those phones.

Did you come here purely just to be a dickhead?

What am I supposed to be reading, exactly? No one has supplied any evidence whatsoever to back up any of this non-sense.

You don't know what you're talking about "bro".

Both Brave and Chrome are built on the open-source Chromium browser engine

That's from the Brave website: https://brave.com/compare/chrome-vs-brave/

Yes there are plenty of changes, but it's built on it, and shaped by it, and Chromium is heavily influenced by Google. If chromium doesn't support v2 manifests it is unlikely that Brave will. In this particular case it may be that Brave's ad blocking and privacy features are equivalent to uBO, but it's still underpinned by an engine that Google has strong influence over, so it can't completely shake their influence.

That's from the Brave website

Nobody doesn't know that it's built on Chromium. The problem is you're grossly overestimating the influence that Google has or wants. If Google wanted to control it, they would just not create Chromium in the first place, and force you to just use Chrome.

Do you have any evidence at all that Brave is controlled by Google in any way that is against their will? Anything that prevents them from doing whatever they want? Any evidence at all? Do you really think they wouldn't say anything if they were?

GrapheneOS, LineageOS, eOS, CopperheadOS and CalyxOS all work identically but no one points at those and says they're "controlled" by Google.

Look, I'm not attacking them over this, as you rightly said, it has plenty of other drawbacks and concerns, I'm just emphasising that Google do have a large degree of influence over them. For instance, Chromium is dropping manifest v2 support, so Brave pretty much has to do the same. They've said that, as Chromium has a switch to keep it enabled until June (iirc) they've enabled that, but after Chromium drops manifest v2 the most they can do is try to support a subset of it as best they can. The Brave devs may not want to drop support, but Google have decreed it will be dropped, so they end up dropping it and having to put in extra work to keep even a subset working for some period of time.

If Brave gets even a moderate market share, Google will continue to mess them around like this as they really don't like people not seeing their adverts.

Ultimately it's software, so the Brave devs can do pretty much whatever they want, limited by the available time and money. Google's influence extends to making that either easier or harder, it much the same way as they influence the Android ecosystem.

For instance, Chromium is dropping manifest v2 support, so Brave pretty much has to do the same

I don't know why we're going round and round in circles here. We've already been over this. It's not a problem.

Here's the point since you clearly missed it:

If Brave gets even a moderate market share, Google will continue to mess them around like this as they really don't like people not seeing their adverts.

Ultimately it's software, so the Brave devs can do pretty much whatever they want, limited by the available time and money. Google's influence extends to making that either easier or harder, it much the same way as they influence the Android ecosystem.

Brave may not be particularly affected by this change, but that's besides the point. If Brave starts becoming a viable threat to Google, Google can easily start making changes to Chromium that target Brave and breaks the changes they make, just like they targeted uBlock Origin and broke it with manifest v3. Brave might be able to work around these changes, but it costs time and developer labor (i.e. money) that would have been spent elsewhere, and if Google makes things hard enough on Brave they could be forced to abandon the project.

I didn't miss anything. I've already addressed all of this.

You literally haven't, except maybe by sticking your fingers in you ears and going "NUH UH"

but go on king