How I block all online ads

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

HN Title Handling

  • Some comments note HN’s auto-removal of “How/Why” from titles as an old anti-clickbait measure.
  • Others argue this often degrades clarity (e.g., “How I block all online ads” vs “I block all online ads”) and see calling it out as a way to get moderators to revert it.

Browsers and Core Extensions

  • Common “baseline” setup: Firefox + uBlock Origin; many say this almost eliminates ads and trackers.
  • Others prefer Brave (often for speed and built-in blocking) but dislike its Chromium base or its crypto features.
  • A few report Firefox instability or slowness vs Chromium; others say Firefox is rock-solid for them.
  • Edge is mentioned as still accepting Manifest V2 extensions, so uBlock Origin works there.
  • Several recommend additional extensions: SponsorBlock (skip in‑video sponsors), DeArrow (de-clickbait titles/thumbnails), Consent-O-Matic (auto-reject cookie banners), and user-agent switchers/Chrome Mask to bypass “Chrome-only” sites.

DNS / Network-Level Blocking

  • Many use Pi-hole, AdGuard Home, NextDNS, ControlD, Mullvad DNS, etc. to block ads and trackers across entire networks and devices (including TVs and mobile apps).
  • Debate over self-hosted (Pi-hole/AdGuard on router/VPS) vs managed (NextDNS/ControlD): tradeoffs in cost, customization, reliability, and effort.
  • DNS blocking is praised for simplicity but noted as weaker against “native”/first-party ads (e.g., some streaming services, Twitch, YouTube, in-app SDKs) and occasionally breaking services or links.

YouTube, Streaming, and TV Apps

  • Heavy focus on YouTube:
    • Strategies: uBlock Origin + SponsorBlock (browser), MPV + yt-dlp + SponsorBlock, FreeTube, NewPipe, Invidious, ReVanced, SmartTube, iSponsorBlockTV, Apple TV/Home Assistant setups.
    • Many still pay for YouTube Premium and then also use blockers or ReVanced for UX fixes, background play, and hiding Shorts.
    • Others refuse to pay on principle (paywalling background play, UI churn, AI features) and rely purely on blocking/downloading.
  • Twitch and other platforms: AdGuard Extra, Twire, SmartTube, DNS-level blocking, or simply abandoning services when ads become too intrusive.

“Click All Ads” / AdNauseam Idea

  • Some argue blocking is insufficient and advocate “poisoning” ad profiles by auto-clicking ads (AdNauseam or similar concepts) to waste budgets and undermine tracking.
  • Others say such clicks are trivial to detect as fraud and mostly filtered, calling the approach snake oil.
  • There is discussion of Google’s early ban on AdNauseam and whether that implies it was impactful.
  • Technical concerns: need for safe isolation (VMs, background profiles) and protection from possible exploits.

Ethics, Economics, and “Supporting Creators”

  • Strong sentiment that the ad-supported web has become predatory, especially for non-technical users.
  • Some users simply close or boycott ad-heavy sites rather than block, accepting lost content.
  • Others explicitly support creators via Patreon/memberships while blocking ads everywhere.
  • Debate over whether ad-funded content should simply disappear if it can’t survive without tracking-heavy ads.
  • YouTube creators’ mid-roll and integrated sponsor segments are viewed as unavoidable; SponsorBlock and similar tools are considered essential by many.

Usability, Breakage, and Effort

  • Reports of certain sites/apps breaking under aggressive blocking (Shopify apps, Netflix with Pi-hole, some finance/banking apps with VPN-based blockers).
  • Some see complex multi-layer setups (VPN + DNS + extensions + hosts) as overkill; others find them easy once “amortized” over time.
  • Host-file-only setups are mentioned as very low-maintenance; rebuttals note they miss many trackers and UI annoyances.
  • One commenter asks about tools to block AI-generated content akin to ad blockers; no clear solution emerges in the thread.