6 ms·

Bypass Paywalls Clean for Chrome/Firefox

20 points by bpc945 6y ago

bpc945 6y ago
Refactored Bypass Paywalls Clean extension (no google analytics)/add-on with lots of new sites (200+ sites + all (custom domains of) Medium), bug-fixes, option to add custom sites and update-notification. https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-chrome-clean https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-chrome-cl... https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-firefox-clean https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-firefox-c...
- mikequinlan 6y ago
  Is there any information on why the project was moved off of Github?
  - bpc945 6y ago
    No freedom of speech on GitHub ...
joyfulmantis 6y ago
This is a fork of iamadev's extension on github https://github.com/iamadamdev/bypass-paywalls-chrome https://github.com/iamadamdev/bypass-paywalls-chrome . Is there a specific reason why that's not mentioned and what is different/better about this fork then the original?
- Nicksil 6y ago
  >Bypass Paywalls Clean for Chrome Lot of updates/bug-fixes and custom sites (and no Google Analytics tracking) Seems this fork removes the bit that tracks the user.
  - bpc945 6y ago
    Custom sites is not flexible (block cookies and googlebot-fix).
- bpc945 6y ago
  iamadamdev has got no clue: 10 of his last commits are all copied from magnolia1234. Some maintenance is done by other committers, but no real paywall fixes.
teknologist 6y ago
I find that using an easy toggle switch for JS on a per-site basis can do the job pretty well. Some sites like the WSJ won’t even render out content from the server so it’s not possible to bypass its paywall on the client side.
- wrboyce 6y ago
  Most news sites (WSJ appears to be one based on the single article I just checked) will serve full article content to archive.is / web.archive.org.
dmortin 6y ago
If solutions like this get traction then sites simply won't render anything client side before the paywall. Developing sophisticated blocking tools only makes this distopian future arriving sooner.
- Reason077 6y ago
  And if y'all hadn't started using ad blockers then there would be less paywalls in the first place!
- 627467 6y ago
  I think a future where bit are only sent/received on all parts terms is a fair one, not dystopian in my mind. It's just that we don't have the right technology to enable such granular decision making at micro-level. Today businesses argue they are forced to serve multiple megabytes of extra stuff no one REALLY cares (all those trackers, etc) because anyone can just go to their site and pull "their proprietary bits". I think this is pretty dystopian already.
scarface74 6y ago
I’ve got a crazy method of bypassing paywalls - pay for content. I would much rather have a simple transaction where I give companies money and they give me stuff than deal with obtrusive ads - especially on mobile. But I also realize journalists have to eat to.
- 627467 6y ago
  It's not that simple. Individual journalists (who need to eat) don't decide on the business model of the publication they work for. Yes, they are interdependent but just because I want to make sure that writers of my consumed media get paid doesn't mean I have to agree with how the publication model of monitization. How many paywalls from the around the world would I have to pay for cover the links published in hn/reddit etc? Why not charge a microtransaction per article or even article section read? Why not use non-tracking ads?
  - scarface74 6y ago
    The employees decided to work for the company knowing the business model in advance. Yes, they are interdependent but just because I want to make sure that writers of my consumed media get paid doesn't mean I have to agree with how the publication model of monitization. If I don’t agree with how a company does business, I don’t buy their products. I don’t go into their store and shoplift. How many paywalls from the around the world would I have to pay for cover the links published in hn/reddit etc? There are a lot of physical products in the world I see people talk about that I can’t have for free either. Why not charge a microtransaction per article or even article section read? Why not use non-tracking ads? That’s not their business model. Just like I delete any app that doesn’t have the option to disable ads, I can choose not to use a product.
    - dmortin 6y ago
      > If I don’t agree with how a company does business, I don’t buy their products. I don’t go into their store and shoplift. Yeah, it's strange people think shoplifting is a moral way to protest. It's not. Boycotting is.
Reason077 6y ago
What the web really needs is "bypass cookie consent popups"!
- dmortin 6y ago
  Or just forget them. Most users click on accept all anyway, because they want to get to the content, not dealing with cookies.
  - Reason077 6y ago
    I'm OK with "accept all". I can use a private browsing session if I don't want to be tracked. I just don't want to see the damn popups all the time!
- butz 6y ago
  In uBlock you can enable "EasyList Cookie" from "Annoyances" section to hide cookie banners. Sometimes Firefox "Reader mode" helps too. Although correct solution is for browser to remember user choice and apply to all websites automatically.
bilal4hmed 6y ago
what's funny is I hear people say they use an adblock so it'll teach people to not use advertising as a source of revenue. When those sites have other means then those same people want to bypass paying. People don't want to pay for stuff and want to have everything too. I fear we will end up in a situation where just few sources of income , content etc will remain ...A monoculture of sorts
- AnonC 6y ago
  It’s not funny when you understand people. Many people would never pay for something if they can avoid or bypass that. Some people would pay for something if it were cheap enough. Some people would pay for something if the payment method is convenient. Some people would pay for something only if it’s both cheap and convenient. We’ve seen with the arrival of dozens of streaming services that people are tired again of paying say $10 here, $10 there and soon it just becomes substantial. Nobody has cracked the mass market with micro-payments so far (Blendle tried and failed). So it’s up to the publishers to figure out what works for them and ignore those who will never pay (or stop wasting a lot of time and money on fighting them).
  - bilal4hmed 6y ago
    fair enough, people like free stuff and dont like to pay in general. At the end of the day people like getting paid for the work they are doing and people consuming the data, make weak arguments that there are too many services to pay for or its too difficult to pay and prefer stealing.
wayneftw 6y ago
My simple method for avoiding paywalls: I go read about the subject somewhere else. I’m inundated with news. If there were no news, I’d probably be even happier.

20 points by bpc945 6y ago

Refactored Bypass Paywalls Clean extension (no google analytics)/add-on with lots of new sites (200+ sites + all (custom domains of) Medium), bug-fixes, option to add custom sites and update-notification. https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-chrome-clean https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-chrome-cl... https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-firefox-clean https://bitbucket.org/magnolia1234/bypass-paywalls-firefox-c...

mikequinlan 6y ago
Is there any information on why the project was moved off of Github?
- bpc945 6y ago
  No freedom of speech on GitHub ...

joyfulmantis 6y ago

This is a fork of iamadev's extension on github https://github.com/iamadamdev/bypass-paywalls-chrome https://github.com/iamadamdev/bypass-paywalls-chrome . Is there a specific reason why that's not mentioned and what is different/better about this fork then the original?

Nicksil 6y ago
>Bypass Paywalls Clean for Chrome Lot of updates/bug-fixes and custom sites (and no Google Analytics tracking) Seems this fork removes the bit that tracks the user.
- bpc945 6y ago
  Custom sites is not flexible (block cookies and googlebot-fix).
bpc945 6y ago
iamadamdev has got no clue: 10 of his last commits are all copied from magnolia1234. Some maintenance is done by other committers, but no real paywall fixes.

teknologist 6y ago

I find that using an easy toggle switch for JS on a per-site basis can do the job pretty well. Some sites like the WSJ won’t even render out content from the server so it’s not possible to bypass its paywall on the client side.

wrboyce 6y ago
Most news sites (WSJ appears to be one based on the single article I just checked) will serve full article content to archive.is / web.archive.org.

dmortin 6y ago

If solutions like this get traction then sites simply won't render anything client side before the paywall. Developing sophisticated blocking tools only makes this distopian future arriving sooner.

Reason077 6y ago
And if y'all hadn't started using ad blockers then there would be less paywalls in the first place!
627467 6y ago
I think a future where bit are only sent/received on all parts terms is a fair one, not dystopian in my mind. It's just that we don't have the right technology to enable such granular decision making at micro-level. Today businesses argue they are forced to serve multiple megabytes of extra stuff no one REALLY cares (all those trackers, etc) because anyone can just go to their site and pull "their proprietary bits". I think this is pretty dystopian already.

scarface74 6y ago

I’ve got a crazy method of bypassing paywalls - pay for content. I would much rather have a simple transaction where I give companies money and they give me stuff than deal with obtrusive ads - especially on mobile. But I also realize journalists have to eat to.

627467 6y ago
It's not that simple. Individual journalists (who need to eat) don't decide on the business model of the publication they work for. Yes, they are interdependent but just because I want to make sure that writers of my consumed media get paid doesn't mean I have to agree with how the publication model of monitization. How many paywalls from the around the world would I have to pay for cover the links published in hn/reddit etc? Why not charge a microtransaction per article or even article section read? Why not use non-tracking ads?
- scarface74 6y ago
  The employees decided to work for the company knowing the business model in advance. Yes, they are interdependent but just because I want to make sure that writers of my consumed media get paid doesn't mean I have to agree with how the publication model of monitization. If I don’t agree with how a company does business, I don’t buy their products. I don’t go into their store and shoplift. How many paywalls from the around the world would I have to pay for cover the links published in hn/reddit etc? There are a lot of physical products in the world I see people talk about that I can’t have for free either. Why not charge a microtransaction per article or even article section read? Why not use non-tracking ads? That’s not their business model. Just like I delete any app that doesn’t have the option to disable ads, I can choose not to use a product.
  - dmortin 6y ago
    > If I don’t agree with how a company does business, I don’t buy their products. I don’t go into their store and shoplift. Yeah, it's strange people think shoplifting is a moral way to protest. It's not. Boycotting is.

Reason077 6y ago

What the web really needs is "bypass cookie consent popups"!

dmortin 6y ago
Or just forget them. Most users click on accept all anyway, because they want to get to the content, not dealing with cookies.
- Reason077 6y ago
  I'm OK with "accept all". I can use a private browsing session if I don't want to be tracked. I just don't want to see the damn popups all the time!
butz 6y ago
In uBlock you can enable "EasyList Cookie" from "Annoyances" section to hide cookie banners. Sometimes Firefox "Reader mode" helps too. Although correct solution is for browser to remember user choice and apply to all websites automatically.

bilal4hmed 6y ago

what's funny is I hear people say they use an adblock so it'll teach people to not use advertising as a source of revenue. When those sites have other means then those same people want to bypass paying. People don't want to pay for stuff and want to have everything too. I fear we will end up in a situation where just few sources of income , content etc will remain ...A monoculture of sorts

AnonC 6y ago
It’s not funny when you understand people. Many people would never pay for something if they can avoid or bypass that. Some people would pay for something if it were cheap enough. Some people would pay for something if the payment method is convenient. Some people would pay for something only if it’s both cheap and convenient. We’ve seen with the arrival of dozens of streaming services that people are tired again of paying say $10 here, $10 there and soon it just becomes substantial. Nobody has cracked the mass market with micro-payments so far (Blendle tried and failed). So it’s up to the publishers to figure out what works for them and ignore those who will never pay (or stop wasting a lot of time and money on fighting them).
- bilal4hmed 6y ago
  fair enough, people like free stuff and dont like to pay in general. At the end of the day people like getting paid for the work they are doing and people consuming the data, make weak arguments that there are too many services to pay for or its too difficult to pay and prefer stealing.

wayneftw 6y ago

My simple method for avoiding paywalls: I go read about the subject somewhere else. I’m inundated with news. If there were no news, I’d probably be even happier.