16 ms·

> We detected unusual activity from your device or network. > Reasons may include: > Rapid taps or clicks > JavaScript disabled or not working > Automated (

> We detected unusual activity from your device or network. > Reasons may include: > Rapid taps or clicks > JavaScript disabled or not working > Automated (bot) activity on your network (IP X.X.X.X) > Use of developer or inspection tools I mean, I guess. I'm using Firefox, I have an adblocker, and I have tampermonkey installed? And turning off Javascript isn't a bad idea, either.

m132 9d ago
And then you realize that, ironically, LLMs and archive.today, both actual bots, can scrape the site just fine. The latter also serving you the content with no paywalls, ads, JavaScript, permalinks that 404 after a year, and all the other anti-features. It's almost as if news websites looked at the pains one has to go through to legally play a video game in 2026 and all unanimously went "I want this!".
- gamblor956 9d ago
  And then a few years later when the site shuts down because nobody was willing to pay for the content that it would still be around if you and others had just ponied up the cost of one morning latte each month.
  - m132 9d ago
    Well, sorry! Make the payment process and the website at least half as frictionless and private, and I'll be happy to pay!
  - pavel_lishin 9d ago
    I mean, I don't even have the option to pay - I can't access the site at all. And there is nothing anyone can say to talk me out of adblockers - ad networks are a delivery system for malware and fraud.
  - alyeska2 8d ago
    The linked site shows me two subscription options, $289/year or $29 every 4 weeks. Expensive latte. The economics of online new seem challenging. Bloomberg is $399/year. Wall Street Journal is $715/year. NY Times is $390/year. Washington Post $140/year. That's a couple thousand dollars a year, just to have a handful of mainstream news sites. Add in local or regional sites, or content focused on hobbies, niche interests, etc and a person is looking at a huge chunk of their income (keep in mind median individual income in USA is $40k) going to reading the news.
    - sphinxterai 8d ago
      The economist can shut down and it will be a vast improvement to the world. Far left rag.
      - zzleeper 8d ago
        Far left? Most economists consider it center-right, and it has been like that for more than 100 years.
everdrive 9d ago
You got further than I did: >Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker
tim333 9d ago
I got that, then updated 'Bypass Paywalls Clean'. Now if I click the HN link I get that but if I reload I get the article. Also https://archive.ph/I82C0 https://archive.ph/I82C0 works

m132 9d ago

And then you realize that, ironically, LLMs and archive.today, both actual bots, can scrape the site just fine. The latter also serving you the content with no paywalls, ads, JavaScript, permalinks that 404 after a year, and all the other anti-features. It's almost as if news websites looked at the pains one has to go through to legally play a video game in 2026 and all unanimously went "I want this!".

gamblor956 9d ago
And then a few years later when the site shuts down because nobody was willing to pay for the content that it would still be around if you and others had just ponied up the cost of one morning latte each month.
- m132 9d ago
  Well, sorry! Make the payment process and the website at least half as frictionless and private, and I'll be happy to pay!
- pavel_lishin 9d ago
  I mean, I don't even have the option to pay - I can't access the site at all. And there is nothing anyone can say to talk me out of adblockers - ad networks are a delivery system for malware and fraud.
- alyeska2 8d ago
  The linked site shows me two subscription options, $289/year or $29 every 4 weeks. Expensive latte. The economics of online new seem challenging. Bloomberg is $399/year. Wall Street Journal is $715/year. NY Times is $390/year. Washington Post $140/year. That's a couple thousand dollars a year, just to have a handful of mainstream news sites. Add in local or regional sites, or content focused on hobbies, niche interests, etc and a person is looking at a huge chunk of their income (keep in mind median individual income in USA is $40k) going to reading the news.
  - sphinxterai 8d ago
    The economist can shut down and it will be a vast improvement to the world. Far left rag.
    - zzleeper 8d ago
      Far left? Most economists consider it center-right, and it has been like that for more than 100 years.

everdrive 9d ago

You got further than I did: >Please enable JS and disable any ad blocker

tim333 9d ago

I got that, then updated 'Bypass Paywalls Clean'. Now if I click the HN link I get that but if I reload I get the article. Also https://archive.ph/I82C0 https://archive.ph/I82C0 works