Google engineers want to make ad-blocking (near) impossible

seasonone@opidea.xyz to Technology@lemmy.world – 2112 points –
Google engineers want to make ad-blocking (near) impossible
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Anyone still using Google products is a fuckin idiot, IMO

I'm sorry but this sentiment is so utterly detached from the technical capabilities and general engagement of the average layman that it bears a response.

Tech savvy people have this awful habit of calling anyone not in our specific field an idiot when they don't do things our preferred way, and it's not a good look. Those people aren't the weird ones, we are. And if you're the sort of person who thinks you've elevated yourself above the commoners because you don't use Google's stuff ... yeah, that and 5 bucks will get you a latte. There are oceans of professional expertise you're not privvy to, and unless you really think you're doing better than everyone at everything, a little humility, temperance, and grace for others is warranted.

I have to agree with this.

I’m basically “the idiot”. Decently tech savvy, but non-IT. Very capable of learning what I need to know, but I haven’t really had the time or mental capacity to learn how to do a lot of the things I need to to get away from corporate overlords.

I’m working on it, and have been for a while, but in the meantime I do use several google services, because that’s what I’ve been using for many many years and change is really hard. Especially when you have to initiate the change yourself, and especially when you know if you switch to a stop-gap solution you’ll loose all impetus to actually keep making the change (which I will).

The biggest challenge is learning what is worth it to self-host, what hard/software to use for the configuration I want, what’s compatible with devices I own (windows, Linux, iOS and android), etc. I’ve been running Plex for like 10 years now (windows then Linux), but it’s a very basic setup on a host pc I don’t use for much else. Beyond that, I need to learn almost everything from the bottom up, and that’s a lot to learn -just- to avoid an existing company and their existing products that I’ve been using for years. Unlike my Plex content, I would actually care if I lost my other self-host data, so not something to fuck around half-ass with.

I can’t blame people for not wanting to/knowing how to do it. I like learning this shit (because of the end result, not because I have interest in it, sorry not sorry) and I still don’t actually want to do it.

OK, then let's check my idiocy.

  • Web-browser? I'm using Firefox since the beginning of this year.

  • Email? I've an account on ProtonMail for serious stuff, and Gmail for garbage, less serious stuff and spam collector.

  • Cloud storage? Well, unless anyone can gift me a Raspberry Pi, a hub and an ELI5 Nextcloud manual for dummies, I have to keep using Google Drive.

  • Videos? That depends. I'm watching videos on Youtube, but I'm uploading my own content on Peertube.

  • Phone? I need another ELI5 custom rom manual for dummies, and it has to be specific for my device. Otherwise, I'll keep using Android, but with most minimum usage of Google apps.

I think that's all.

Can't fix everything, but Google drive is easily replaced by proton drive. Google notes/keep or any kind of note taking is easily replaced (and improved) by Obsidian, and on android you can install f-droid as an alternative store.

Downside is that these thinks cost money. But everything has a cost, and at least here the cost is clear, and upfront.

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