Besides it's usefulness as an adblocker, I like how it allows you to disable javascript for a site with just 2 clicks. Closing a newsletter popup works for a visit, but no javascript works forever.
Wait that's a thing???
Neat thanks.
There are also (somewhat hidden) "hard modes" where the only indicator that you're in a different mode is that the badge number next to the uBlock icon changes color.
You can have it block all third party scripts by default for every website, or even go all out and basically use it like noscript. Pretty much breaks every individual website though but you can choose individually what to let through and save it based on domain (I believe) so you really only need to do it once.
Which would then require you to allow it for each site.
I use NoScript for that purpose though. I've not delved into uBlocks configuration, but NoScript makes it pretty easy to only allow javascript from certain sources on the page (can easily select which third party sites to allow).
(ABP is worse, Adguard "intelligently shows ads", Ghostery is spyware)
... I had an IT tech from our old MSP tell me her knowledge/recommendation of ABP is what got her the job.
I knew her boss, and doubt that was the reason (probably more because she was cheap entry level labor), but that some people have that take in a professional setting shocked me. I don't think your ad-blocker recommendation will ever be what lands you a job, but I do think it's possible for it to be the reason you don't get a job.
I dont find the actual article but in the past they sent every site you visit to their servers. Which is simply stupid.
Same goes for FlagFox, Internet Archive addon, TOS;DR and other addons.
Thank you for this. Good to know.
Got a source about Adguard? I use it on my phone, and I don't get any ads.
Literally the linked website
I only use ublock origin
Agree, it's literally all I need for my browser in terms of add-ons. NoScript is nice to have but not essential.
I would add KeePassSC add-on as well..
extension design and strong content filters make AdBlock for Firefox a solid choice for people who don’t necessarily despise all ads
Do these people exist and if so, have they been checked for brainworms?
The rest is also stupid, ublock origin can and does block trackers, and can be made to block more stuff if you want. It's strictly better in every way than the competition, which lets through more stuff, and/or sells your info. The article would be very short though if they just said that.
Either the article's author has an editor who made the change, or the author knows what side his bread's buttered on.
I'm not opposed to allowing ads, but until there are enforceable limits it's too risky. If a service that serves a malware ad or a scam ad risks its entire system being blocked across all sites, then maybe we could get somewhere.
We'd need something like ad server whitelists and fast-acting disqualifications. No ad server anonymity or rapid name changes, no adding backdoors for your friends. If your break the guidelines, you loose the ability to do business anywhere for at least a day.
You should only use Unlock Origin in my opinion... But I'm open to other propositions
I also would vote for uBlock Origins. This is by far the best solution on the market. It blocks more than just ads and trackers. uBlock blocks also malware sites, popups, miners and other annoyances. Or you can also use it as an URL shortener tool to get rid of the tracking parameters in the URLs.
Something I've also been looking at more closely for a few days now is Arkenfox to hardening my Firefox more effective. Does anyone here has some experiences with Arkenfox?
arkenfox is unmaintained. I recommend he betterfox fork instead
Arkenfox is definitely not unmaintained.
Arkenfox is not unmaintained but rolls a bit slower than Betterfox. But I will try Betterfox as well.
Adaway on rooted Android is pretty amazing and blocks a lot of ads in apps.
SmartTubeNext for ad free YouTube on TV. And S0undTV for ad free twitch on TV.
Revanced Manager for ad free YouTube and more on Android phones.
I see all the Ublock Origin love, I also want to bring up Privacy badger (while not an adblocker I use it and would love for people to confirm it's relevancy to me).
Should be part of the basic user extension kit afaik
IIRC if you're running uBlock Origin there's no need for Privacy Badger.
What does it do
As well as origin the EFF has some great browser plugins and tools that have held up for over a decade
https://www.eff.org/pages/tools
NoScript can be a pain to manage occasionally but even on pemit-all-by-default mode you can block some of the more ubiquitous insidious trackers like Google and Facebook without impacting your functionality at all.
uBlock Origin + default Firefox tracker blocker on 'Strict'
uMatrix + uBlock Origin
Edit: For YouTube there is also SponsorBlock, but I don't use YouTube directly anymore. It's part of FreeTube, so you could add SponsorBlock to the list too if you want. More Edit: yt-dlp also supports SponsorBlock for downloaded videos.
Umatrix was awesome but is unfortunately not maintained anymore since July 21, 2021. Ublock origin is a perfect replacement though and can be deeply configured behind its simpler appearance. Coupled with the LibRedirect add-on in the Librewolf browser and I can navigate ad and tracking free.
Dang, I was not aware uMatrix was not maintained anymore. But it does still its job and has its own usefulness. I like the interface and how everything is layed out easily, where I can allow or deny specific domains or categories back and forth. It shows in a table which domain requests what category (and how many). So this is to me invaluable and a good companion alongside uBlock Origin. I can also just allow only images for a certain domain in example, not just its entirety. Its easy to see and work from this table to me. Like in this screenshot:
I noticed that it was not maintained when some pop-ups showed up while they used to be blocked.
I also first missed that level of granularity from umatrix. You can replicate it with the element picker mode in Ublock but I realized that I could live with the "basic" Ublock advanced settings.
I can't replicate this with ublock element picker, because not every element can be picked like in matrix. Also I can see what domain each element is that I am about to block, and even just block or allow specific elements per domain. umatrix also does not save all changed rules until I click the save button. Its easy to revert and try stuff.
With the element picker in ublock its not like that. In example I use zapper to block stuff (btw it can only block, not allow stuff). And now when I want to make that setup permanent, I have to reload site and start doing the same again with the permanent block element functionality.
But on the other side, for some webpages ublocks visual blocker is much better. In my experience, both tools are good and cannot replicate the other. I even think umatrix should be installed by default everywhere ublock origin is installed too, but someone trustworthy needs to maintain it.
Using Ublock picker (not zapper) you can block/allow elements per domain and save/revert your choices. But overall, like I already said, I agree with you that umatrix offered a more granular and easy approach. It would be nice to see that implemented in Ublock.
I nonetheless understand why it's not the case since it would benefit only few users and may scared most of the others.
Hopefully umatrix will work for you for a long time. For me it was not and that's how I discovered Ublock and adapt to its "limitations". On a daily basis it helps me browse the internet like umatrix did. It's just sad that umatrix was not forked.
umatrix was forked. The fork is called nuTensor. I only use nuTensor.
Linux: firefox/waterfox + uBlock + UnboundVPN on OpnSense Router (via wireguard if not at home) + YouTube premium (1$ a month payed via india)
iOS: safari + 1Blocker(lifetime) + UnboundVPN on OpnSense Router (via wireguard if not at home) + YT premium (1$/month)
On Safari for iOS and macOS, I prefer Wipr instead of 1Blocker.
It’s lighter, easier to use, cheaper, scores more on d3ward’s ad-block test (but that may fluctuate).
E: added specific browser.
Got 2 not blocked with my iPhone over mobile network 😇 1blocker is mostly fallback, if I have to turn VPN off for something. I bought it long ago, and since I have already paid, I‘ll use it 😁
Pardon me if I sounded dismissive. 1Blocker is good, and so is AdGuard.
I remember those being one of the first ones to do the job well, back when Apple launched content blockers. Wipr came much later, and I only recently switched to it (around late 2022).
😁✌🏻
on MacOS: orion + uBlock + etc.
If you have 1Blocker on iOS, you have 1blocker on macOS already paid 😉
huh? why would I have anything that runs that garbage os? no ios.
and no paid software either.
Lol, macOS is as garbage as iOS
yeah, fuck Linux.
My typical recommendation would be:
Normie: uBlock Origin
Techie: uBlock Origin + uMatrix
Security Critical/Paranoia/Just Hate Yourself: uBlock Origin + uMatrix + NoScript
I use the last option at work, and the middle option at home, and the first option for my wife's computer.
For me, a lot of it isn't about ads, it's more about the security risk of cross site scripting. Typically, if I'm visiting a site, I probably trust it, but I have no trust for people they sell ads to. I don't mind sites I trust having a few non-intrusive ads, but of course that's not the reason I use blockers; if a site has so many ads it is unusable, I just don't ever visit it again (plenty of 'don't show articles from ' flags in my google news feed for this very reason. I'll never know if you redeem yourself, because I will just never visit your site again.).
If XSS is your concern, check out Firefox's Container Tabs. They allow you to set up tab groups that restrict access to cookies to only tabs in that group, so you can just, eg, set up a group for your bank and restrict it to just your bank's site. Your session cookie etc are then not available to any other tab groups.
I pair that with the Temporary Containers extension, so any random tab I open is in its own container. Everything is always separate.
i still miss the original noscript from the xul days :(
DNS blocking with DNS over TLS (DoT) with OpenBSD unwind + disabling javascript
userscripts where javascript is required and the site is cancer (youtube, twitch, other corpomedia)
disable/compile without DNS over HTTPS (DoH)
I'm not sending my DNS requests to cloudflare, and I want my DNS to be system-wide
always disable DNS prefetch
works in any browser (system-wide actually), not just in Firefox/Chromium
pfBlockerNG at the network edge and ublockorigin on devices.
A contrarian take, but nextdns. It may not block youtube ads, but eeeh it works really well for most cases.
I've been using AdBlock Plus for at least ten years. Never had an issue
Nah, they tried to sell their own "non-intrusive" ads after blocking the sites' ads.
I don't really trust these adblockers... Has anyone tried using Greasemonkey or any of the equivalent script environments for adblocking? I know it's posdible, but I could not find any good scripts available? Has anyone found any good scripts on github (or other places) for this?
Why would you trust Greasemonkey and some random script over uBlockOrigin?
Also it might be possible to do it partly but performance would inevitably be worse and I'm not sure every functionality would be implementable.
Firemonkey is open-source, random scripts can easily be inspected. I know performance probably will suck, but I know the code being run don't monitor me. Can you say the same for uBlock?
Content blockers like uBlock use filter lists which list every single element that needs to be blocked across the entire web. I currently have nearly 700000 of these filters active. That is very far outside the scope of a simple script. Basically all ad blocking userscripts are site-specific and they still usually block significantly less than uBlock would on the same site. Also, userscripts are not safer than extensions.
Firemonkey is open-source, random scripts can easily be inspected. I know performance probably will suck, but I know the code being run don't monitor me. Can you say the same for uBlock?
Ublock is also open source. So you also can see what it’s doing. So yes, you can say the same thing about ublock
uBlock Origin
Besides it's usefulness as an adblocker, I like how it allows you to disable javascript for a site with just 2 clicks. Closing a newsletter popup works for a visit, but no javascript works forever.
Wait that's a thing???
Neat thanks.
There are also (somewhat hidden) "hard modes" where the only indicator that you're in a different mode is that the badge number next to the uBlock icon changes color.
You can have it block all third party scripts by default for every website, or even go all out and basically use it like noscript. Pretty much breaks every individual website though but you can choose individually what to let through and save it based on domain (I believe) so you really only need to do it once.
There is also a setting under Default Behavior to disable javascript: https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/wiki/Per-site-switches#no-scripting
Which would then require you to allow it for each site.
I use NoScript for that purpose though. I've not delved into uBlocks configuration, but NoScript makes it pretty easy to only allow javascript from certain sources on the page (can easily select which third party sites to allow).
Noscript addon
definitely is, the gold standard, so far.
Add sponsorblock and you're set for life
In short: all are Crap, use UBlockOrigin
(ABP is worse, Adguard "intelligently shows ads", Ghostery is spyware)
... I had an IT tech from our old MSP tell me her knowledge/recommendation of ABP is what got her the job.
I knew her boss, and doubt that was the reason (probably more because she was cheap entry level labor), but that some people have that take in a professional setting shocked me. I don't think your ad-blocker recommendation will ever be what lands you a job, but I do think it's possible for it to be the reason you don't get a job.
Didnt get the last part
Gotta source about ghostery?!
I dont find the actual article but in the past they sent every site you visit to their servers. Which is simply stupid.
Same goes for FlagFox, Internet Archive addon, TOS;DR and other addons.
Thank you for this. Good to know.
Got a source about Adguard? I use it on my phone, and I don't get any ads.
Literally the linked website
I only use ublock origin
Agree, it's literally all I need for my browser in terms of add-ons. NoScript is nice to have but not essential.
I would add KeePassSC add-on as well..
Do these people exist and if so, have they been checked for brainworms?
The rest is also stupid, ublock origin can and does block trackers, and can be made to block more stuff if you want. It's strictly better in every way than the competition, which lets through more stuff, and/or sells your info. The article would be very short though if they just said that.
Either the article's author has an editor who made the change, or the author knows what side his bread's buttered on.
I'm not opposed to allowing ads, but until there are enforceable limits it's too risky. If a service that serves a malware ad or a scam ad risks its entire system being blocked across all sites, then maybe we could get somewhere.
We'd need something like ad server whitelists and fast-acting disqualifications. No ad server anonymity or rapid name changes, no adding backdoors for your friends. If your break the guidelines, you loose the ability to do business anywhere for at least a day.
You should only use Unlock Origin in my opinion... But I'm open to other propositions
I also would vote for uBlock Origins. This is by far the best solution on the market. It blocks more than just ads and trackers. uBlock blocks also malware sites, popups, miners and other annoyances. Or you can also use it as an URL shortener tool to get rid of the tracking parameters in the URLs.
Something I've also been looking at more closely for a few days now is Arkenfox to hardening my Firefox more effective. Does anyone here has some experiences with Arkenfox?
arkenfox is unmaintained. I recommend he betterfox fork instead
Arkenfox is definitely not unmaintained.
Arkenfox is not unmaintained but rolls a bit slower than Betterfox. But I will try Betterfox as well.
ublock Origin + pihole.
For my pihole I use these lists: https://github.com/sefinek24/Sefinek-Blocklist-Collection
I like Adguardhome better.
Adaway on rooted Android is pretty amazing and blocks a lot of ads in apps.
SmartTubeNext for ad free YouTube on TV. And S0undTV for ad free twitch on TV.
Revanced Manager for ad free YouTube and more on Android phones.
I see all the Ublock Origin love, I also want to bring up Privacy badger (while not an adblocker I use it and would love for people to confirm it's relevancy to me).
Should be part of the basic user extension kit afaik
IIRC if you're running uBlock Origin there's no need for Privacy Badger.
What does it do
As well as origin the EFF has some great browser plugins and tools that have held up for over a decade https://www.eff.org/pages/tools
uBlock Origin + NoScript + Toggle referrer (+ SponsorBlock for YT).
NoScript can be a pain to manage occasionally but even on pemit-all-by-default mode you can block some of the more ubiquitous insidious trackers like Google and Facebook without impacting your functionality at all.
uBlock Origin + default Firefox tracker blocker on 'Strict'
uMatrix + uBlock Origin
Edit: For YouTube there is also SponsorBlock, but I don't use YouTube directly anymore. It's part of FreeTube, so you could add SponsorBlock to the list too if you want. More Edit: yt-dlp also supports SponsorBlock for downloaded videos.
Umatrix was awesome but is unfortunately not maintained anymore since July 21, 2021. Ublock origin is a perfect replacement though and can be deeply configured behind its simpler appearance. Coupled with the LibRedirect add-on in the Librewolf browser and I can navigate ad and tracking free.
Dang, I was not aware uMatrix was not maintained anymore. But it does still its job and has its own usefulness. I like the interface and how everything is layed out easily, where I can allow or deny specific domains or categories back and forth. It shows in a table which domain requests what category (and how many). So this is to me invaluable and a good companion alongside uBlock Origin. I can also just allow only images for a certain domain in example, not just its entirety. Its easy to see and work from this table to me. Like in this screenshot:
I noticed that it was not maintained when some pop-ups showed up while they used to be blocked. I also first missed that level of granularity from umatrix. You can replicate it with the element picker mode in Ublock but I realized that I could live with the "basic" Ublock advanced settings.
I can't replicate this with ublock element picker, because not every element can be picked like in matrix. Also I can see what domain each element is that I am about to block, and even just block or allow specific elements per domain. umatrix also does not save all changed rules until I click the save button. Its easy to revert and try stuff.
With the element picker in ublock its not like that. In example I use zapper to block stuff (btw it can only block, not allow stuff). And now when I want to make that setup permanent, I have to reload site and start doing the same again with the permanent block element functionality.
But on the other side, for some webpages ublocks visual blocker is much better. In my experience, both tools are good and cannot replicate the other. I even think umatrix should be installed by default everywhere ublock origin is installed too, but someone trustworthy needs to maintain it.
Using Ublock picker (not zapper) you can block/allow elements per domain and save/revert your choices. But overall, like I already said, I agree with you that umatrix offered a more granular and easy approach. It would be nice to see that implemented in Ublock. I nonetheless understand why it's not the case since it would benefit only few users and may scared most of the others.
Hopefully umatrix will work for you for a long time. For me it was not and that's how I discovered Ublock and adapt to its "limitations". On a daily basis it helps me browse the internet like umatrix did. It's just sad that umatrix was not forked.
umatrix was forked. The fork is called nuTensor. I only use nuTensor.
nuTensor releases
Disclosure: Not associated with nuTensor, just a gullible user
Last commit: 2023-07-25
Thanks for sharing!
Ublock origin + web annoyance ultralist
https://adnauseam.io
Linux: firefox/waterfox + uBlock + UnboundVPN on OpnSense Router (via wireguard if not at home) + YouTube premium (1$ a month payed via india)
iOS: safari + 1Blocker(lifetime) + UnboundVPN on OpnSense Router (via wireguard if not at home) + YT premium (1$/month)
On Safari for iOS and macOS, I prefer Wipr instead of 1Blocker.
It’s lighter, easier to use, cheaper, scores more on d3ward’s ad-block test (but that may fluctuate).
E: added specific browser.
Got 2 not blocked with my iPhone over mobile network 😇 1blocker is mostly fallback, if I have to turn VPN off for something. I bought it long ago, and since I have already paid, I‘ll use it 😁
Pardon me if I sounded dismissive. 1Blocker is good, and so is AdGuard.
I remember those being one of the first ones to do the job well, back when Apple launched content blockers. Wipr came much later, and I only recently switched to it (around late 2022).
😁✌🏻
on MacOS: orion + uBlock + etc.
If you have 1Blocker on iOS, you have 1blocker on macOS already paid 😉
huh? why would I have anything that runs that garbage os? no ios.
and no paid software either.
Lol, macOS is as garbage as iOS
yeah, fuck Linux.
My typical recommendation would be:
Normie: uBlock Origin
Techie: uBlock Origin + uMatrix
Security Critical/Paranoia/Just Hate Yourself: uBlock Origin + uMatrix + NoScript
I use the last option at work, and the middle option at home, and the first option for my wife's computer.
For me, a lot of it isn't about ads, it's more about the security risk of cross site scripting. Typically, if I'm visiting a site, I probably trust it, but I have no trust for people they sell ads to. I don't mind sites I trust having a few non-intrusive ads, but of course that's not the reason I use blockers; if a site has so many ads it is unusable, I just don't ever visit it again (plenty of 'don't show articles from ' flags in my google news feed for this very reason. I'll never know if you redeem yourself, because I will just never visit your site again.).
If XSS is your concern, check out Firefox's Container Tabs. They allow you to set up tab groups that restrict access to cookies to only tabs in that group, so you can just, eg, set up a group for your bank and restrict it to just your bank's site. Your session cookie etc are then not available to any other tab groups.
I pair that with the Temporary Containers extension, so any random tab I open is in its own container. Everything is always separate.
i still miss the original noscript from the xul days :(
DNS blocking with DNS over TLS (DoT) with OpenBSD unwind + disabling javascript
always disable DNS prefetch
works in any browser (system-wide actually), not just in Firefox/Chromium
pfBlockerNG at the network edge and ublockorigin on devices.
A contrarian take, but nextdns. It may not block youtube ads, but eeeh it works really well for most cases.
I've been using AdBlock Plus for at least ten years. Never had an issue
Nah, they tried to sell their own "non-intrusive" ads after blocking the sites' ads.
I don't really trust these adblockers... Has anyone tried using Greasemonkey or any of the equivalent script environments for adblocking? I know it's posdible, but I could not find any good scripts available? Has anyone found any good scripts on github (or other places) for this?
Why would you trust Greasemonkey and some random script over uBlockOrigin?
Also it might be possible to do it partly but performance would inevitably be worse and I'm not sure every functionality would be implementable.
Firemonkey is open-source, random scripts can easily be inspected. I know performance probably will suck, but I know the code being run don't monitor me. Can you say the same for uBlock?
uBlock is licensed under the GPL-3, I can absolutely say the same
Content blockers like uBlock use filter lists which list every single element that needs to be blocked across the entire web. I currently have nearly 700000 of these filters active. That is very far outside the scope of a simple script. Basically all ad blocking userscripts are site-specific and they still usually block significantly less than uBlock would on the same site. Also, userscripts are not safer than extensions.
Firemonkey is open-source, random scripts can easily be inspected. I know performance probably will suck, but I know the code being run don't monitor me. Can you say the same for uBlock?
Ublock is also open source. So you also can see what it’s doing. So yes, you can say the same thing about ublock
Yes? https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock
uBlock Origin also does a lot more than just block request, I'm not sure features like cname uncloacking would be feasible as an userscript.
Why do you trust Greasemonkey and some random script? That's far less safe than just installing uBlock Origin.