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Tag: AdBlock

Why don’t iOS Content Blockers Work on my iPhone 5?

18th September 2015 / / 1 Comment

I have an iPhone 6 as well as a really outdated iPad 3. I don’t use my iPad that much so I don’t mind that it is a little slower. It is just a big Twitter machine to me.

Whilst playing around with a few content blockers on my iPhone, I thought I would see how they work on my iPad. As it turns out, none of them would install. Each one simply said “this device is not supported.”

I did a little bit of digging around and it looks like content blocking has been limited to 64-bit devices (iPhone 5S and later) for performance reasons.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t install one, it just means it will be a lot harder! You’ll probably have to find an open source one on GitHub and then download xCode and compile and side load it yourself. I’ll have a look at this and post a tutorial if it is feasible.

And after all that effort, you could possibly slow down your browsing even more by overloading your device’s old 32-bit processor.

I guess this is Apple’s not so subtle hint to upgrade…

Looking For a Free Content (Ad) Blocker for iOS9?

17th September 2015 / / 2 Comments

I’ve been beta testing Blockr for a while and I’m very impressed. Unfortunately it is a paid app. (When my beta build expires, I will be buying it)

Blockr

If however you’d like a free content blocker for iOS, have a look at Freedom. It isn’t currently available in the US app store but it may be available in your location. It doesn’t rely on in-app purchases to grab a hold of your money. It really is free.

If you don’t mind handing over a few dollars, I can’t recommend Blockr enough!

Happy browsing (without being tracked and without adverts)

online-advert

The War on Online Advertising Has Started

2nd September 2015 / / 0 Comments

Between Apple allowing content blockers on iOS and Google blocking flash advertisements, the whole world of online advertising is set up to change.

Google has announced that they will be lowering the search ranking of sites with large popup adverts pushing you to install their app.

Google Preferred Adverts

I know those apps are really annoying and I’m happy that Google will be pushing sites to remove them.

Apple is understandably okay with blocking web adverts as they don’t supply, use or make money from them. Google however does. So why is Google blocking certain types of adverts and trying to discourage others?

Well I think the rise of content blockers is forcing online advertisers to adapt. If they make their adverts less intrusive and less annoying, you might be less lightly to install a content blocker. That will enable them to still provide (and make money from) adverts.

I think this could be a big win for consumers. And just remember, if all else fails, just install a decent content blocker and be on your way.

wiredmoney

Opinion: No Wired, I Won’t Turn Off AdBlock

9th June 2015 / / 3 Comments

I read a lot of tech news sites and blogs. One of those sites is Wired. I like their content. They aren’t my favourite site but I frequently visit them.

I run AdBlock Plus. I have it installed in Chrome and Safari, on my MacBook and my home server. I installed it on my girlfriend’s laptop too. I LOVE AdBlock Plus. No more fake download buttons, no more annoying banners, no more adverts designed to look like real content. For a free plugin, why wouldn’t you use it?

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