About Linux bandwidth usage

alexpaton · 10-10-2018, 06:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ondoho

these seem to be dns servers that apply ad-blocking for you.

that's not on the OS level, but outside your machine entirely.
i don't see why one needs to resort to third party (and no offense, but slightly fishy looking) "solutions".

blocking through hosts also loses access to some sites completely, but i'm using a handy script to check if a domain is blocked, and unblock it if necessary.

blocking through /etc/hosts is NOT a software solution, it's just a list of domains that your computer looks through before even consulting the DNS server.
it's what computers were using (and still do) before DNS was invented.
that's what makes it so elegant.

still, various helper scripts to assist people with that (regular updates, level of protection etc.) do exist.
i use gaenserich's hostsblock.

I must admit that this isn't an area I have looked into, in depth. I reckon that about 50% (and rising) of the sites I use regularly, block access if you block their ads, these days. There are relatively few of those that have ads that are particularly intrusive or bandwidth intensive.

hydrurga · 10-10-2018, 07:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexpaton

I must admit that this isn't an area I have looked into, in depth. I reckon that about 50% (and rising) of the sites I use regularly, block access if you block their ads, these days. There are relatively few of those that have ads that are particularly intrusive or bandwidth intensive.

I don't know which sites you peruse but my figure is closer to 0% and I surf quite a lot with uBlock Origin and NoScript in tow.

ondoho · 10-11-2018, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alexpaton

I reckon that about 50% (and rising) of the sites I use regularly, block access if you block their ads, these days.

wow, that's a lot.
i also use noscript and requestpolicy in addition to passive ad blocking via /etc/hosts, and for me it's also closer to 0%.

alexpaton · 10-11-2018, 05:31 AM

There are an increasing number of news sites, particularly from newspapers, who are blocking access to full articles, if you have any kind of ad-blocking switched on, at least here in the UK. It's not sites in general, that are the problem; it's more about sites that I use regularly. I don't include search engines in that percentage, as they are just a means to an end. I think that some of the E.U. insane changes in laws that are affecting their ability to operate, without the ability to monetize their sites in some way. As someone who is responsible for compliance with regulations at the company I work for, I come across a lot, and I can understand why it is happening.