#ublock origin

websites usually contain ads, most are very annoying and distracting, some even harmful, even on non-piracy sites. so an adblock is absolutely essential. here’s a guide!

Desktop/PC:

for Chromium-based browsers, like Google Chrome, Opera, or Edge: use ublock origin lite https://github.com/uBlockOrigin/uBOL-home . not the best though. you can also use Brave browser (has a built-in adblocker).

for Gecko-based browsers, like Firefox: use ublock origin https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock . offers better compatibility than Chromium-based.

Phone/Mobile devices:

for Android: use Firefox + ublock origin

for iOS: either use Brave, or use Safari and follow this guide https://youtu.be/yrXRC3COvVU?si=-bjYhlFoL0_bfQlQ

BONUS:

scan any software you download with an antivirus before you execute it, even if you download from official sources (since sometimes there are sites disguised to look like the official).

it’s also recommended to scan the file with virustotal https://www.virustotal.com/gui/home/upload (sometimes there are false positives, aka non-malware that flags as malware. use this scan guide for that https://clarasguide.valeena.workers.dev/Guides/vtguide/ ), and run it in Triage https://tria.ge/dashboard .

and no matter who tells you otherwise, having an antivirus (that has good reputation!! very important!!) other than the base one that comes with your OS (for example Microsoft Defender on Windows) is always a good idea. a lot of malware is designed with the knowledge that Microsoft Defender is already on a victim’s Windows pc, so they design it to be harder to detect by Microsoft Defender.

last piece of advice: when in doubt about something, always research (aka look it up). and make sure the info you’re getting is confirmed in multiple (trusted) sources !

For the past few years, I've used a side feature of my ad-blocker add-on to make one small tweak (left pic) to Art Fight's page design. I just think it looks nicer?

Artfight constantly uses thumbnails to link to attack or character pages (example below) but also attaches said thumbs to the top of the page. 80% the time it's a crop of the image, so you're just staring at the same face twice (thrice if it's a chara page). As for the other 20%: this is more subjective, but I think custom image thumbnails are also cooler when they're not visible on their own page-- like there's a sort of beauty to making a decoration exclusive to the "front door" that you can't see from the inside.

It was as simple as using uBlock origin (on Firefox; if you're not on Firefox I cannot help you). Just click the extension icon at the top-right of the browser, click the dropper tool, click the AI bullshit on the screen, then click the "create" button. This will create a new rule for the extension to block that bit of script every time. You might have to do it a few times to capture all the elements of a particular annoyance.

It doesn't always work on every piece of every site (and in the past it did not work on this site), but it's worth trying because a lot of the time, it will simply DELETE that annoying whatever-it-is and it will never show its impetuous face again.

Over the course of a few minutes, I got rid of:

The AI icon in the bottom-left which was randomly fucking TALKING to me without me interacting with it and setting off the fury that initiated this entire project.

The secondary AI link at the top of the page inviting me to open their helpful AI assistant.

The tertiary AI link that appears at random between grocery items just in case I forgot that they have a helpful AI assistant available to me.

The AI-generated "summaries" of every single item in its description (I truly cannot fathom what kind of thing needs to go wrong in your life for you to pitch "hey let's have the AI summarize the descriptions of all our vegetables" at a meeting, but I do know that whatever is wrong with the person who approved it is much worse).

The "generate your ideal shopping cart" prompt at the top of my cart.

After a bit of testing, they don't seem to be coming back. Could it be that I may be free at last of this horseshit while I'm trying to order some fucking groceries because my chronic fatigue makes it too difficult to get to the supermarket regularly?

Of course, I haven't placed an actual order yet, and it's entirely possible that blocking these elements of the page might cause problems with that, given how incompetent the people running this thing seem to be. But fingers crossed that I am free.