# Adblock Plus, screw you! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [September 14, 2016, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920 "2016-09-14T10:26:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/21 "2016-09-14T22:09:14Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_Rat](#): > > What all else is it blocking? I see no ads, are there scripts running that are not displayed as ads? By default, uBlock Origin has more filter lists selected. ABP only comes with EasyList. uBlock Origin has some that block trackers and stuff. (I’d tell you which ones, but I’ve added a few and don’t remember which ones were the default.) BTW, I never saw a problem with Facebook on uBlock Origin. They had an adblock thing in place. That said, I have run into problems with the big porn sites–but they tend to get fixed pretty quickly. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/22 "2016-09-14T22:10:26Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > If you use Firefox, a little while ago [**Duckster** recommended a single setting change](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18393167&postcount=38) that would do basically the same thing as Adblock. It may not work with all versions (I know it doesn’t work with really old versions of Firefox because the relevant parameter doesn’t even exist) but I made this change and turned off Adblock and it seems to work. I’m not sure where he got the idea, but Tracking Protection does not block ads. It’s automatically turned on when you are using Private Browsing, and I’m sure you’ve still seen ads there. It does what it says–it blocks trackers. But ads don’t depend on trackers. They just use them if they can. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/23 "2016-09-14T22:16:37Z")
It does block more ads than I would have expected–I guess they weren’t designed with a fallback. But it doesn’t block most of them. Still no reason not to turn it on. But you can do so from the main options, in the Privacy Tab. Just choose “Do Not Track” settings. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/24 "2016-09-14T22:29:25Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I’m not sure where he got the idea, but Tracking Protection does not block ads. It’s automatically turned on when you are using Private Browsing, and I’m sure you’ve still seen ads there. > > It does what it says–it blocks trackers. But ads don’t depend on trackers. They just use them if they can. All I can tell you is that with this parameter set, I haven’t seen a single ad on this site, and Adblock Plus is definitely disabled (though still installed). Also, some sites detect what they think is the presence of an ad blocker. The function of this parameter might possibly depend on the specific version of Firefox. I just know what I see (or in this case, don’t see). ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2016, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/25 "2016-09-14T23:25:22Z")
> [@ultimate11](#): > > If that’s the case, then Adblock (not plus) will also be affected. Yesterday I told my colleague to switch to [uBlock Origin](https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock), a pure ad-blocking, privacy protecting, all in one filtering extension (the author calls it a general blocker) that is in active development and will (hopefully) never bow to marketers and agencies for money. As the author said it: > > I’ve been using it since Adblock started accepting ads, and my colleague thanked me for suggesting the extension (eons ago I also told another colleague about the extension, he’s still using it). Also got rid of Ghostery because of the blocker, improving performance. > > Regarding the news article, I find it more disgusting, but unimpressed. Once they (both ABP and AB) caved into advertisers that will redirect you from content, intrude your privacy and forget to prevent ads from infecting your computers with malware, they’re pretty much a step away from ruining the planet with their ads. > > Ahem, sorry about that, got off track for a bit. If you didn’t read most of my post, here’s a New York edition for you: > > Fuck ABP, get uBlock Origin, say bye to ads, done. ☹ So many great years with AdBlock, c’est la vie, ublock it is. Thanks ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/26 "2016-09-15T00:22:41Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > All I can tell you is that with this parameter set, I haven’t seen a single ad on this site, and Adblock Plus is definitely disabled (though still installed). Also, some sites detect what they think is the presence of an ad blocker. The function of this parameter might possibly depend on the specific version of Firefox. I just know what I see (or in this case, don’t see). Then you just don’t go to all that many sites. I trivially found ads on sites like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/27 "2016-09-15T10:34:30Z")
Thanks for the heads up! I installed uBlock Origin and ditched ABP. I think I’m seeing instant improved performance! I got a screen of “Please select the reason(s) why you uninstalled Adblock Plus:” so I answered: [ul] [li]I don’t like the Acceptable Ads program.[/li][li] Adblock Plus didn’t block all ads.\*[/li][li] I found better ad blocking software.[/li][/ul] \*I had already noticed to my displeasure that something called “Taboola” had finagled a deal with ABP so that Taboola ads were granted an exemption and you got them in your face willy-nilly. Already disgruntled, I had been meaning to find something better. This is the ticket. Again thanks! ---
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/28 "2016-09-15T18:39:31Z")
I just installed uBlock Origin, not because I was particularly dissatisfied with ABP as I had already disabled its ‘acceptable ads’, but more out of curiosity. I can happily report that some sites which had detected I was using an ad-blocker, and popped up some whiney appeal to my conscience to disable it for their site at least, no longer do so. Is this because they are tuned to only detect ABP or because uBlock Origin is also blocking the whiney message? I don’t know and don’t care but for the time being uBlock Origin is my blocker of choice. ---
**Author:** ![Azeotrope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/0ea827/32.png) [@Azeotrope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azeotrope)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/29 "2016-09-15T19:37:17Z")
Just joining the chorus of people thanking you for mentioning uBlock Origin. On my dinosaur of a work PC, page load times are a fraction of what they were with ABP. ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2016, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/30 "2016-09-15T20:20:52Z")
Hmmm. Vedy, vedy, interestink. A person posting on a site we trust got quite a few of us to switch to a new product. Without pop-ups or flash and without pissing us off. I’m sure we all did the due diligence, still. If only marketers could learn. ---
**Author:** ![ultimate11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/49beb7/32.png) [@ultimate11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultimate11)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2016, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/31 "2016-09-18T14:34:49Z")
> [@G0sp3l](#): > > Hmmm. Vedy, vedy, interestink. > > A person posting on a site we trust got quite a few of us to switch to a new product. Without pop-ups or flash and without pissing us off. I’m sure we all did the due diligence, still. > > If only marketers could learn. I vouched for the extension cause I was wronged by both ABP and AdBlock. Whatever it takes to save the planet, I suppose.🆒 ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2016, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/32 "2016-09-18T16:10:07Z")
> [@Ruken](#): > > Is there a mobile-friendly (Android in my case) alternative to adblock? I only recently installed their browser on my phone. On Android, use Firefox with uBlock Origin add-on. And on any device with low memory/performance, if you use uBlock, make sure that under “3rd Party Filters” you check “Ignore generic cosmetic filters” ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/33 "2016-09-18T16:41:07Z")
> [@wolfpup](#): > > If you use Firefox, a little while ago [**Duckster** recommended a single setting change](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=18393167&postcount=38) that would do basically the same thing as Adblock. It may not work with all versions (I know it doesn’t work with really old versions of Firefox because the relevant parameter doesn’t even exist) but I made this change and turned off Adblock and it seems to work. I just tried this, then logged into Facebook. The large ads that have recently been showing up in my feed (even with Adblock Plus) that are supposedly based on things my friends have “liked” or something are now GONE! Now to check out uBlock… ---
**Author:** ![BigAppleBucky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigapplebucky/32/178_2.png) [@BigAppleBucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigAppleBucky)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2016, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/34 "2016-09-18T23:20:01Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_Rat](#): > > Just installed uBlock on a couple of computers that were running ABP - and it does indeed block more items. One of my favorite sites became unreadable due to ads getting through ABP. I installed UBlock Origin (gotta get the origin, not just UBlock) and that site is once again usable. Frankly I don’t mind an ad, or two, [afterall we are not Communists](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7C_JHwJm1U), but they too often become way too intrusive. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/35 "2016-09-19T10:15:23Z")
I’m sure I will get some hate for this, but on the regular sites I go to I’ve never found ads to be that intrusive. Really if you use an adblocker you’re a leech. If you don’t want to see ads then pay for a no ads subscription on websites that have one (eg the straight dope). Why do you think a large part of the internet should provide you with content or services for free? What happens to many many good websites when 80 percent of people or more run adblockers? ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 10:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/36 "2016-09-19T10:40:46Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > I’m sure I will get some hate for this, but on the regular sites I go to I’ve never found ads to be that intrusive. Really if you use an adblocker you’re a leech. If you don’t want to see ads then pay for a no ads subscription on websites that have one (eg the straight dope). > > Why do you think a large part of the internet should provide you with content or services for free? What happens to many many good websites when 80 percent of people or more run adblockers? The ads on most sites aren’t as obnoxious and intrusive as the ones on the Dope. And they’re bad enough to potentially drive away new subscribers. If I didn’t run an adblocker here, I wouldn’t be a guest here, much less a paid member. If that makes me a leech, so be it. Nobody has to put up with ads that try to download shit on to your device that you don’t authoritize. ---
**Author:** ![coremelt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4491bb/32.png) [@coremelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/coremelt)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/37 "2016-09-19T11:12:51Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > If I didn’t run an adblocker here, I wouldn’t be a guest here, much less a paid member. You’ve been here since 2006 and made 14,000 posts. Obviously you enjoy the straightdope. IMO anyone who runs an adblocker to visit this site should either pay and become a member, complain to the admin about the intrusive ads or stop visiting the website. The straightdope gets over 2 million visits a month, that’s a significant hosting cost, and they have no obligation to provide it to you for free (actually it’s worse than that, if you visit using an adblocker you are costing them money by using their bandwidth). ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/38 "2016-09-19T11:48:53Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > You’ve been here since 2006 and made 14,000 posts. Obviously you enjoy the straightdope. IMO anyone who runs an adblocker to visit this site should either pay and become a member, complain to the admin about the intrusive ads or stop visiting the website. Actually, **cochrane** ’s 14,000 posts are one of the reasons _I’m_ willing to pay to be a member. So, there’s that. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/39 "2016-09-19T11:57:57Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > The straightdope gets over 2 million visits a month, that’s a significant hosting cost, and they have no obligation to provide it to you for free (actually it’s worse than that, if you visit using an adblocker you are costing them money by using their bandwidth). You’re right. They have no obligation to provide it for free. But they’re doing it anyways. It’s possible to block users who block ads (or at least make it very hard for them). The lack of obligation goes both ways. They don’t have to provide it for free, and I also don’t have to download content (on **my** bandwidth and computer) that I don’t wish to view. If a content provider wants to bundle it all together so I have to take it or leave it, so be it. But if they make it an à la carte model, I will choose what I want and leave the rest. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2016, 12:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920/40 "2016-09-19T12:26:45Z")
> [@coremelt](#): > > You’ve been here since 2006 and made 14,000 posts. Obviously you enjoy the straightdope. IMO anyone who runs an adblocker to visit this site should either pay and become a member, complain to the admin about the intrusive ads or stop visiting the website. The straightdope gets over 2 million visits a month, that’s a significant hosting cost, and they have no obligation to provide it to you for free (actually it’s worse than that, if you visit using an adblocker you are costing them money by using their bandwidth). I wouldn’t enjoy it without an adblocker. You’re right, they have no obligation to provide their content for free, but as long as they do, I don’t have to pay them. Fortunately, I’m free to disregard your opinion, as well. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/adblock-plus-screw-you/765920.md?page=3)