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Smartest thing I've done this month: Disable the YouTube app

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perishthethought@lemm.ee
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I’m using a stock Samsung Galaxy 8 phone right now (with Android 10) and I disabled the YouTube app. I was basically sick of its s***. Since then, I never sign in to the app/site, and so may aspects of using the site are much better now.

  • Everything is faster, since they don’t know me / aren’t tracking as much.
  • I always open YT in Firefox Focus, which doesn’t ever keep cookies or history each time I close it, so there’s no history for YT to mine each time I visit again.
  • I’m pretty sure I see fewer ads since I don’t have a deep history for YT to mine / target.
  • More random suggestions from YT means I am mostly broken out of the bubble caused by their tracking. I find new, interesting music, for instance, now, from the suggestions.
  • Hitting “back” in the browser means I go back wherever I was before, not to the YT home page (like the app used to do to me)

I still visit the site often, and appreciate all the good music and channels I watch, but now it’s overall a much more positive experience, more like YT was a few years ago versus the horrible mess it’s become recently.

I’d still appreciate any other tips anyone has for making YT visits even more enjoyable.

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Pons_Aelius@kbin.social
8 points

I’m pretty sure I see fewer ads since I don’t have a deep history for YT to mine / target.

I used normal FF with ublock. I never see ads at all. Can you add extensions to Firefox Focus?

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perishthethought@lemm.eeOP
3 points

Do you have a uBlock setting recommendation for me?

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Pons_Aelius@kbin.social
5 points

I have made no changes to the default settings and it works fine for me.,

If anyone else has tweaks they use, please reply to @perishthethought.

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perishthethought@lemm.eeOP
2 points

Thanks - I just checked, I’m using FF on my desktop, and my android browser, both have uBlock enabled and I still see ads sometimes on youtube.com. I would be interested in changing hat for sure.

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Sinnerman@kbin.social
3 points

normal FF with ublock

This is the way (assuming you mean Ublock Origin, which I understand is superior to just-plain Ublock.) I also use SponsorBlock.

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Pons_Aelius@kbin.social
1 point

I do mean Ublock Origin, just a bit lazy in typing.

I have sponsor block on the pc and do need to add it to mobile. (that lazyness kicking in again as it has only been a few weeks that you could add it)

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EddieTee77@lemmy.world
1 point

Is sponserblock on the standard Firefox or is it on the nightly builds still?

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Sinnerman@kbin.social
1 point

You can get the sponsorblock exension on standard android firefox now, if that’s what you’re asking.

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perishthethought@lemm.eeOP
2 points

Unfortunately, no. And AFAIK, we can’t have multiple profiles on the full Firefox web browser. (I would need 2 profiles since for some sites, I still want to keep cookies/history around longer, at least I think that makes sense)

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AlmightySnoo 🐢🇮🇱🇺🇦@lemmy.world
2 points

Can you add extensions to Firefox Focus?

Just tried it, you can’t.

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Pons_Aelius@kbin.social
2 points
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Thanks for checking.

Then I would suggest that if the OP wants to view youtube on mobile they go with normal FF and ublock.

It sounds like Firefox Focus just has a few privacy extensions rolled in but still allows adds.

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