What do you think about ad blockers?

I’m referring to browser plugins and PiHole and other such systems where you programmatically block ads.  At present, these systems work by URL or domain matching.  When your page loads, either the code for an ad is blocked or some domain such as ads.obnoxiousadvertiser.com is blocked, and in theory you see the page without ads.  DNS blocking systems like PiHole extend this to work in applications as well – e.g., you don’t see in-app ads on your mobile device.

Of course, many publishers don’t like this for obvious reasons, and so you get into an arms race of “we notice you’re blocking ads, please whitelist and reload,” etc.  Today we have ad-blockers, ad-blocker-blockers (“please whitelist to continue”), and I’m sure ad-blocker-blocker-blockers (code that attempts to fool the please-whitelist code) are on the way, and then they’ll be foiled by ad-blocker-blocker-blocker-blockers (that stops the code that is try to fool the please-whitelist code).  The next logical step would be ad-blocker-blocker-blocker-blocker-blockers.  I hope it gets to that point because I’d like to hear a TED talk with that terminology.

Some blockers are not “scorched earth” blockers but instead have “acceptable ads”.  So if an ad that is appropriate to the page appears where your eye would naturally expect an ad, you’re OK with that, but not crazy flashy stuff or obnoxious browser-trapping ads.

So what do you think about ad blockers?

Pros

• Ha ha, I get to look at the web without ads!
• Avoid a ton of obnoxious ads and problems (e.g., the “50 redirects to poison your history” ads)
• Less bandwidth consumed
• Can filter out things that upset you or you find inappropriate or just would rather not see
• In theory, improved privacy

Cons

• Web sites you like don’t get revenue.  If the entire world ran ad blockers, the web’s business model would not work.
• Some sites will be off-limits because they won’t let you in if you’re blocking ads.  Some people have a “blocking browser” and a “nonblocking browser” to make switching easy.
• The arms race.  Turning on an ad blocker also turns on interstitial “please whitelist us” popups on tons of web sites.
• In theory, if ads are targeted, you’ll see lots of things you might actually be interested in.  In practice, well…

Now we’d like to get your feedback.  What do YOU think?  Let us know in the poll and comments!

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raindog308

Dread Lord of LowEnd Content at LowEndBox

I'm raindog308, techno polymath and long-time LowEndTalk community Administrator. My technical interests include all things Unix, perl, python, golang, shell scripting, vintage operating systems such as MVS, and relational database systems such as Oracle, PostgreSQL, and MySQL.

I also enjoy using LEBs! I have an empire of little guys for VPNs, larger guys for apps, and big guys for databases and storage. When I'm not in front a screen I'm into German Shepherd dogs, quality knives, target shooting, theology, tabletop roleplaying games, and forest hiking.

I enjoy writing technical articles here on LowEndBox to help people get more out of their systems. You can find me on LowEndTalk @raindog308

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