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Just a few days ago I visited a site that was begging me to turn off my adblock. I naively tried it and... the site became literally unusable. Things like the d

Just a few days ago I visited a site that was begging me to turn off my adblock. I naively tried it and... the site became literally unusable. Things like the download button were hijacked to a random ad site. The text of the site was replaced by an ad that wanted me to fill in a survey. It makes me wonder how people without an adblocker can even browse the web.

derefr 7y ago
I would like a thing separate from an adblocker, that doesn't block ads per se, but instead disables most of the APIs that the tab can use to interact with the browser, e.g. opening new windows, modifying history, disabling right-click, navigating to a different domain from a whole-page click handler, etc. Javascript could still run, but it'd pretty much be limited to just modifying the loaded document's DOM. Better yet, make it so that, when I "turn off" my adblocker, it's turning on this restricted-browser-API sandbox instead. Then, if the page still doesn't work, I could turn on a "compatibility mode" that would load the page with full API permissions.
- a9h74j 7y ago
  Does this point of view have or need a name? Something which conveys both the mental model and the possibility? At first thought it might be something like "sandbox javascript to the DOM". Relatedly, I don't know if there is a common name for the part of a tabbed browser which implements policy and defaults above the level of individual tabs. In some sense it is a kind of shell and sandboxer (?). Do we need a more shell-agnostic approach??
- leshenka 7y ago
  > disabling right-click You forgot "messing with clipboard to add `See more at {URL}`" when you ctrl+C stuff. Listen, if a webpage deserves attention, I'll make attribution manually, but if you try to force it via clipboard, I'll make sure to remove it, again, manually
- hawski 7y ago
  I would add some CSS limitations as well. All sticky headers scroll out of the way as soon as you scroll down. No obnoxious full screen stickies, especially those appearing after a timeout or detecting that my mouse goes up. Proper contrast, font size and line width. So basically extended reader mode.
  - roryokane 7y ago
    To implement this, you would have to prevent JavaScript from reading how far down you’ve scrolled or which element your mouse is hovering over, or else JavaScript could repeatedly insert absolutely-positioned elements over the part of the page you’re looking at.
bcrosby95 7y ago
Yeah. I only started using an ad blocker about 3 years ago, despite knowing blockers existed for much longer. Before then I was able to tolerate ads. But the situation with them have gotten worse over time.
- kevin_thibedeau 7y ago
  I tried running without an adblocker at work a few years ago. That lasted about six months until the day I got redirected to a porn site by some innocuous looking page.
- toastal 7y ago
  You mean you weren't tormented by the swat-the-audible-buzzing-fly Flash ads in the days of MySpace and the like? That was the absolute catalyst for me.

derefr 7y ago

I would like a thing separate from an adblocker, that doesn't block ads per se, but instead disables most of the APIs that the tab can use to interact with the browser, e.g. opening new windows, modifying history, disabling right-click, navigating to a different domain from a whole-page click handler, etc. Javascript could still run, but it'd pretty much be limited to just modifying the loaded document's DOM. Better yet, make it so that, when I "turn off" my adblocker, it's turning on this restricted-browser-API sandbox instead. Then, if the page still doesn't work, I could turn on a "compatibility mode" that would load the page with full API permissions.

a9h74j 7y ago
Does this point of view have or need a name? Something which conveys both the mental model and the possibility? At first thought it might be something like "sandbox javascript to the DOM". Relatedly, I don't know if there is a common name for the part of a tabbed browser which implements policy and defaults above the level of individual tabs. In some sense it is a kind of shell and sandboxer (?). Do we need a more shell-agnostic approach??
leshenka 7y ago
> disabling right-click You forgot "messing with clipboard to add `See more at {URL}`" when you ctrl+C stuff. Listen, if a webpage deserves attention, I'll make attribution manually, but if you try to force it via clipboard, I'll make sure to remove it, again, manually
hawski 7y ago
I would add some CSS limitations as well. All sticky headers scroll out of the way as soon as you scroll down. No obnoxious full screen stickies, especially those appearing after a timeout or detecting that my mouse goes up. Proper contrast, font size and line width. So basically extended reader mode.
- roryokane 7y ago
  To implement this, you would have to prevent JavaScript from reading how far down you’ve scrolled or which element your mouse is hovering over, or else JavaScript could repeatedly insert absolutely-positioned elements over the part of the page you’re looking at.

bcrosby95 7y ago

Yeah. I only started using an ad blocker about 3 years ago, despite knowing blockers existed for much longer. Before then I was able to tolerate ads. But the situation with them have gotten worse over time.

kevin_thibedeau 7y ago
I tried running without an adblocker at work a few years ago. That lasted about six months until the day I got redirected to a porn site by some innocuous looking page.
toastal 7y ago
You mean you weren't tormented by the swat-the-audible-buzzing-fly Flash ads in the days of MySpace and the like? That was the absolute catalyst for me.