This is a perspective I'd like to hear more often. Too often I hear all these supposed ideal solutions without mentioning the pitfalls of having to support a non-technical family.
Pi hole is a good example. Do all websites (and other services) still work perfectly but without ads, or am I going to have to endure sighing and eyerolling everytime someone asks me why their site isn't loading (again)?
The main annoying thing about piHole with a non-technical family has been that it blocks google shopping.
You know, when you search for a thing you want to buy and google shopping shows a list of common stores on top of the search results like a bunch of little cards? Yep. Clicking one there causes a failure because that link is a google ad link. Same thing if you tab into "Shopping". All links are broken.
Otherwise, it's been 4 years and no other complaints at all.
GP here and yes I've experienced that too— I run a pihole-style blocklist on my OpenWRT router and never got a good workflow together for adding exemptions to it.
On a phone it's not a huge deal as you can just momentarily switch to data, click through, and then switch back. But it's more annoying on a computer where you have to figure out where that link was going to go and then get there by an organic path.
> Do all websites (and other services) still work perfectly
Like 99%? I've rarely seen problems running it for years
> but without ads,
No. It is only a DNS blocker. Most browsers these days will bypass that anyways. But it is definitely helpful for lots of other things on your network. You can also point the browser there to get the same benefits but still won't replace an adblocker.
> His diplomatic successes include organizing the coalition against Napoleon in 1812–1814, normalizing relations with post-Napoleonic France, settling the old border dispute between Canada and the United States, and ending the First Opium War with China in 1842, whereby Hong Kong was obtained.
I would love to have such a simple car, here in the uk.
Something tells me though, that if such a company got successful, it wouldn't be long before the features started creeping back in, to justify an increase in price.
It reminds me of Cory docotorow's comment of something like 'there are 5 social media sites and everything is just copied from one another'
HN isn't immune either, given that karma provides 'rights to punish views and accounts' (downvoting). And it makes a great strategy to make a whole lot of socks with 520 karma, and selectively kill comments and stories you don't want.
I’m sure sock puppets and voting rings play a role, but “this link was interesting to a bunch of people on sites with some overlap in interests and demographics” seems a simpler and better explanation.
I'm hearing this sentiment a lot, and I agree. I hope Argos are forward thinking and aware enough to capitalise on this opportunity to improve their services further.
>The anticipation was palpable, with at least six other tourists wandering the cold brick hall, there to hear the final hours of this loud and, after a time, torturous sound.
Just reading that line alone brightened up my morning. You can admire something and still find it a bit silly.
Supposing this project gets off the ground, maybe even somehow surpasses linkedin, some investor will come along, flash a big pile of cash at the owner and bam, through various monetization strategies to make back that money, you end up back at linkedin.
Linkedin isn't the way it is because they didn't know how to make good UI.
2advanced was the epitome of flash design. I don't think I was ever really paying much attention to the content, but it was fun to interact with the UI.
Pi hole is a good example. Do all websites (and other services) still work perfectly but without ads, or am I going to have to endure sighing and eyerolling everytime someone asks me why their site isn't loading (again)?