12/07/22 – A Tribute

Spacetrawler, audio version For the blind or visually impaired, December 7, 2022.

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The problem I outlined (below) has been solved!

Through advice and coding help, I am now using the “StopTheMadness” app on my phone, which can block all videos for Safari (so I use social media through the browser, rather than individual apps, which is okay), and on my Mac I used the same extension “StopThe Madness” and added this to the custom Javascript code:

const meta = document.createElement(“meta”);
meta.httpEquiv = “Content-Security-Policy”;
meta.content = “media-src ‘none'”;
document.head.prepend(meta);

Thank you all for the great ideas!

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Hey. Some of you are computer folk. If you have a moment: is there any way to make a browser not play ANY videos?

I’ll install any code that can break video playing. Disabling “auto-play” isn’t enough. I want to use social media (FB, IG etc) for personal and professional use, but I get sucked into videos. If it can play, I will play it. I can’t even have these social media apps on my iphone or I get sucked in. I am such a self-disciplined person, I don’t understand the uncontrollable compulsion, but it real and it is making me sick and miserable. I am willing to give up my browser (any browser, although I use Safari these days) playing ANY video.

Anyone? Any thoughts?

(someone just recommended the “Stop,TheMadness” app, excited to try it in the morning!)

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I think the Symbiont would appreciate that.

23 Comments

      1. Hans

        @CB:
        You may use the Brave (Chrome based) browser and uBlock Origin extension. The Brave browser allows several extended adjustments including your video issue.

        However, one should first deselect the crypto advertisements of Brave to enjoy silence in privacy.

  1. someone

    Blue Meanie is finally unseated, but will that be enough to get him down for the count? Probably not! Tesfay chose a survivable height for this stunt because he, too, is unseated by it, so…

      1. TB

        The part that really stinks is that so many of the videos are specifically engineered to suck you in based on the opening image, and many of them are complete nothingburgers.

        Their best move is to show an innocent 30 seconds of film and ask, “can you see it?” There is, of course, nothing unusual there to see, but thousands of people will play it over and over again trying to figure out what they’re missing.

  2. Mic

    I can’t help but get real “Tina-driving-in-the-almost-empty-car-park-and-hitting-the-only-ither-car-there” vibes from the last couple of panels.

    Also I think I used up the hyphen supply. Sorry everyone!

  3. totematika

    Re Videos:

    Reader Mode/Reader View should do the trick.
    Most browsers have it, although their implementation vary a lot, so you might want to try out a few

    AdBlockPlus can also help (you can block video tags using the ##video selector), other than hiding ads.

  4. Pete Rogan

    Keeping the helmet on and the blast shield down. We’ve not seen all the spatter fly just yet.

    Christopher, careful with publicizing antivideo code. There is tremendous demand for it, but against that is arrayed an even-more-tremendous advertising industry doing all it can to put videos in front of web users. If they find you’re the reason their revenue is down you will get something stronger than a cease-and-desist letter telling you to take it down.

    I don’t deal in images, only text. I don’t need video at all but ads intrude constantly, typically with videos. I have the innate ability to tune them out without batting an eye, but I found that my text-only box struggled to read my mail choked with videos. I had to design a new box whose video card I could update to keep pace with the inflush of ads. Originally I planned three card updates; in twelve years (I build to last!) I’ve gone through five. My present video card is better than my existing computer, but that too is by design. Because this arms race is only going to continue, and get more intrusive.

    I hate to be a downer but I’ve known for decades that the web is not just a communications medium but a marketplace, a battleground, an interrogation cell and a weapon. The more we know about the people using it, and for what, the better prepared we shall be for the incursions coming from it into your face. Beware. (My favorite Winston Churchill quote)

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