Ad blocker.

Magnarc · Guru

Ad blocker.

Whenarewethere · Guru

I use Kiwi browser. A few years ago it stopped working, but has been fine since. Does have issues reading the odd website, but in general it is great.

These days I mostly use Brave browser from when Kiwi started playing up. Brave has worked really well. It gives you a list of all the total number of blockages, absolutely mind numbing the number of ads. A few things I changed in the setting, like background image, I simply want a monochrome background.

Both browsers are worthwhile. But tend to use Brave a bit more.

Bicyclecamper · Guru

I don't have an ad blocker that I know of on my personal computer, but I don't get nor have I ever got ad's from any of my computers for the last 15 years.

Magnarc · Guru

Ric you are either very lucky mate or, you have some secret on your machine!!!

Are We Lost · Guru

Magnarc wrote:
Opera browser has introduced an integrated adblocker that works very well. Goodbye add ons that can take up a lot of space. I had been a Mozilla fan for years but I kept on having my bookmarks disappear, and getting them back was becoming a pain in the you know where, hence the change so, if you are like me, and find ads a distraction, Opera is the answer.

I have been on Firefox for years and never had bookmarks disappear. I like to avoid bleeding edge, so am on the ESR (Extended Support Release) version. ESR is designed for businesses who favour stability over being the first to get the latest features .... but still get all the security updates. They also have a British English version rather than the default US version. My adblocker is Adblocker Ultimate.

Firefox only has about 3.5% market share in Australia but it is the only one in the top 99% that is independent of Google, Apple and Microsoft. Opera, Brave and even Kiwi still use the Chromuin engine in their browsers. So for me, anything that avoids earning a cent for those major tech companies is a bonus. As a step further I use Duck Duck Go as the default search engine. Those tech companies still get a bit, but cut substantially.

I find Firefox is well supported with add-ons and in addition allows very significant customisations while being fairly simple to establish. The Duck Duck Go search may be marginally less effective than Google, but whenever I do a Google search I realise how invasive it is with paid results and advertisements at the top of the results.

Ineedabiggerboat · Guru

+1 for Firefox

Are We Lost · Guru

Just an update on my previous post. Choosing Firefox and Duck Duck Go are my preferences for usability. The fact that Google et al make less money from the data they gather about my online activities is a bonus.

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Magnarc wrote:
Ric you are either very lucky mate or, you have some secret on your machine!!!

Well, it definitely is not my old "new" gov. comp, it never got ad's but we were not on the public network as well, yeah, I don't know why, but I have a friend that can look for me soon and I will find out why. Even though I did that gov. job on comp's since the year dot, their is a big difference between non public network comp's and the public versions, it is like I am relearning this domestic computer network all over again.

dorian · Guru

Perhaps there is a good reason that the TOR project chose Firefox.

https://support.torproject.org/tor-browser/getting-started/about-tor-browser/

Tor Browser is based on Mozilla Firefox ESR (Extended Support Release) but has been heavily modified for use with the Tor network. These modifications include additional patches and features that enhance privacy and security, making Tor Browser fundamentally different from Firefox or any other browser.

As for Duck Duck Go, its search results are inferior to Google's, at least for my purposes. I will use Duck Duck Go for general searches, but I will use Google for specific search types.

Of course, all of this is moot if your own government is spying on you and hacking into your machine, and/or colluding with your ISP.

-- Edited by dorian on Monday 18th of May 2026 05:55:22 AM

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Your last paragraph, you are so right about Dorian, but this shouldn't be a surprise to any Aussie out there.

dorian · Guru

I have personal experience of corruption in the police force, both locally and abroad. In fact, one of my former employers was a crooked cop. I know this because he told me. Moreover, he was at the top of the tree, and his crime was a capital offence in most countries.

Bicyclecamper · Guru

Yes, understand that Dorian, my role for the last 2 years, has been looking at just that matter - "Corruption", it wasn't my/our unit's role to look into this issue ever, it just got too much, hence we all quit recently, never to return!, No More "Perceived Threats Unit" that has been here since 1946, I don't know who is going to do it in the future, it is very probable, that we wont be replaced.

-- Edited by Bicyclecamper on Monday 18th of May 2026 09:43:42 AM