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> randomly show notification ads for unrelated software... at 3am waking me up on a work night. Sort of unrelated, but this reminded me of a time way back when

> randomly show notification ads for unrelated software... at 3am waking me up on a work night. Sort of unrelated, but this reminded me of a time way back when. Back when AOL Instant Messenger was still widely used. I was awoken by a buzzing sound. I had 5.1 surround sound speakers at the time on my PC and this buzzing was going all over my room. Being 2-4AM on a school night, I'm tiredly trying to figure out what in the world is making this noise. Took me a bit, but I powered up my CRT monitor to find a "swat the fly with this flyswatter and win!" advertisement inside of AIM. It was from that point on that I made a conscious effort to eradicate all advertisements from any applications I use.

pavel_lishin 11y ago
I remember that. I think that was the same day I switched to Trillian and never looked back.
freehunter 11y ago
I did the same thing for a similar reason. For years now I've refused to use any ad-supported software that I didn't absolutely have to use. I pay money for whatever I use, but unfortunately sometimes the companies I pay still put ads into their product. I was a subscriber to the NYT online for far longer than I should have been, paying $15/mo to still see ads on their site and app. I paid for Hulu Plus for one month and canceled when I realized even when you pay you still see ads. "We only have good/relevant ads!" I don't care. I might trust you, but I still don't want to see your ads. Let me pay you to get rid of them. If you don't do that, I'll use an ad blocker. "But that's stealing content!" No it's not. You gave it to me whether I saw the ad or not. In the US, where I live, dollars are legal tender for any debt public or private. If I owe you a debt, either accept cash or block me. If I go to a free concert sponsored by Bud Light, you can't force me to drink your beer.

pavel_lishin 11y ago

I remember that. I think that was the same day I switched to Trillian and never looked back.

freehunter 11y ago

I did the same thing for a similar reason. For years now I've refused to use any ad-supported software that I didn't absolutely have to use. I pay money for whatever I use, but unfortunately sometimes the companies I pay still put ads into their product. I was a subscriber to the NYT online for far longer than I should have been, paying $15/mo to still see ads on their site and app. I paid for Hulu Plus for one month and canceled when I realized even when you pay you still see ads. "We only have good/relevant ads!" I don't care. I might trust you, but I still don't want to see your ads. Let me pay you to get rid of them. If you don't do that, I'll use an ad blocker. "But that's stealing content!" No it's not. You gave it to me whether I saw the ad or not. In the US, where I live, dollars are legal tender for any debt public or private. If I owe you a debt, either accept cash or block me. If I go to a free concert sponsored by Bud Light, you can't force me to drink your beer.