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4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:51 am
by Berryfleur
Channel 4 on demand tells me I need to disable my adblock software in order to watch their programmes - obviously I don't want to! Is there a way around this? Help! Thanks

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 1:06 pm
by nitrox
It requires a whitelist but that would force you to see ads before viewing the video. At the moment you are forced to view 3 long ads before viewing the video.

Fixed in fanboy adblock list. If you use easylist, you need to wait for easy team to fix it or add the following filter to your list.

Code: Select all

@@||realmedia.channel4.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads/channel4.newcu/$object-subrequest,~third-party
One way around is to watch the same video on 4 on demand's official youtube channel. As of posting, the video plays in youtube channel without any pre ads.

for example, http://www.channel4.com/programmes/rich ... n-hold/4od
this video requires you to watch 3 video ads before watching the show.
Although the same video can be watched on their official youtube channel without ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7fS3DAX4kU

they seem to upload all shows to https://www.youtube.com/4od but I have no idea about the delay before uploading to youtube.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 1:37 pm
by MonztA
Thanks nitrox! Fixed in EasyList too https://hg.adblockplus.org/easylist/rev/d86e78c1e515

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 2:56 pm
by Berryfleur
Wow, thanks so much for all the advice, will try both...

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 6:58 pm
by perspeculum
Tried updating the latest filters and even adding the filter manually but neither are blocking the ads for me :S

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 8:32 pm
by Guest
nitrox wrote:It requires a whitelist but that would force you to see ads before viewing the video. At the moment you are forced to view 3 long ads before viewing the video.

Fixed in fanboy adblock list. If you use easylist, you need to wait for easy team to fix it or add the following filter to your list.

Code: Select all

@@||realmedia.channel4.com/RealMedia/ads/adstream_sx.ads/channel4.newcu/$object-subrequest,~third-party
One way around is to watch the same video on 4 on demand's official youtube channel. As of posting, the video plays in youtube channel without any pre ads.

for example, http://www.channel4.com/programmes/rich ... n-hold/4od
this video requires you to watch 3 video ads before watching the show.
Although the same video can be watched on their official youtube channel without ad https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7fS3DAX4kU

they seem to upload all shows to https://www.youtube.com/4od but I have no idea about the delay before uploading to youtube.
It has been fixed in a way which allows advertising to sneak through?

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 10:13 pm
by MonztA
nitrox wrote:It requires a whitelist but that would force you to see ads before viewing the video. At the moment you are forced to view 3 long ads before viewing the video.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 10:41 pm
by Guest
I'm trying to clarify the policy of the list.

What you quoted was a description of the problem from a technical standpoint.

What was not clear was whether the list's policy would allow for whitelisting known advertisements in the name of compatability.

Does "fixed" mean the advertisements have been neutralized, and will no longer strike like a coiled rattlesnake at unsuspecting visitors who view the page, compatability be damned, or does "fixed" mean the advertisements have been given the greenlight to attack in the name of getting the video to play?

If advertisers can get their garbage whitelisted by breaking compatibility, then the lists need a policy change, otherwise we are creating an incentive for advertisers to become even more aggressive in their assaults.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:33 pm
by madorangepanda
Hello, this update is useless.

It allows an advert through. Not what I use adblock for.

I would much rather disable adblock manually each time I want to watch something on 4od, or as someone stated watch it on youtube instead.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:40 pm
by fanboy
Some ads need to be shown before the video plays, so if we completely block the ads the video breaks. Some sites don't play well with Adblock, something we have to deal with occasionally.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2012 11:57 pm
by madorangepanda
So whenever a site wishes to force ads upon us you let them? Does this not defeat the purpose of adblocking software?

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2012 1:04 am
by fanboy
madorangepanda wrote:So whenever a site wishes to force ads upon us you let them? Does this not defeat the purpose of adblocking software?
There is more to adblock than the occasional video ad getting through on some sites

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2012 6:28 am
by Guest
fanboy wrote:Some ads need to be shown before the video plays, so if we completely block the ads the video breaks. Some sites don't play well with Adblock, something we have to deal with occasionally.
The problem is policy, not technology.

It sounds like we need a way to flag a section of a ruleset as causing compatibility problems, then adding a simple checkbox into the ABP options to allow the use of rules which have reported troubles. No collateral damage is a policy decision. The acceptability of collateral damage should be up to the user.

There is more the ABP than removing the visual diarrhea from our screens. Stopping ads from loading also prevents requests from being fired off to hostile, privacy-invasive servers controlled by ad scumbags.

If a known advertisement is allowed to slip through the filters, simply because the designers caused an incompatibility, then more designers will be encouraged to find ways to break content in a way which causes you to whitelist their trash. The end result is a list which allows frequent assaults upon users. Many of us would rather have the site be broken but rendered safe than to contain a lurking advertisement waiting to strike. It can be argued that the back button is also an acceptable remedy to a site which chokes on the usage of an ad blocker.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Fri Feb 10, 2012 8:59 pm
by itchy trigger
I would Rather watch a blank loading screen than be bombarded with ads. Cover it with some jokes from Sickipedia.com

I have stopped watching 4OD until the ads had gone.

Re: 4 on demand blocking ad-block!

Posted: Fri Feb 17, 2012 3:06 am
by JackWeekes
I've discovered a work around to block ads on 4od (as the videos aren't posted to youtube straight away) I hope it helps, it uses privoxy and an automatic proxy switcher so your not running it all the time and slowing down your browsing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFgW5akmczI