Fair question, I don’t really watch that stuff. I’ve been watching channels like king k and Liam triforce etc. I also dabble in channels like Not Just Bikes. So nothing super political. I also follow a channel that dives into Math topics, etc.

Any iOS alternatives? The ad experience is not great.

I mostly watch folks like the Linux Experiment and Veronica Explains and Oh the Urbanity. I’ve had more luck on Nebula but I am trying to sort of “put up or shut up” by interacting with the platforms that I want to succeed. Ya know? So I just browse peer tube a lot and give random videos a shot.

YT, really Google, is just not a company I want to support. YT as a platform is not something I want to support by using. Also, data reasons.

Gizmodo still exists

It became downright personal for me. Its about accessibility.

My brain works a certain non typical way which is challenging to live with at best.

Sudden advertisements hits me like a physical punch in my face.

The ui focus on everything new rather then a nice subscription view with filters meant i who does not watch daily would frequently miss new uploads from the channels i do like.

I felt like i was in a toxic relationship being pushed to watch on their terms while openly hating that i protect myself from ad-sault by using blockers.

I realize i did not need things to be this way and am smart enough to build and alternative.

Now i have a yt-dlp script downloaded the latest uploads from chosen channels straight to jellyfin and also a selfhosted invidious with custom tweaks for everything i dont want to spend storage space on.

Basicly i take 100% of what i liked and never have to visit the website directly again.

They are waging war on invidious, it breaks on occasion. Yt-dlp though, stable as a rock.

There isn’t a ton of content, but Jetlag SLAPS

I hear you. I use an adblocker and don’t see ads at all. I cannot imagine using the internet without it. I also only use the home link on yt and freely use the not interested feature.

I followed the link of a video here on Lemmy just a few minutes ago and it opened in the browser.

Nothing shocking up to this point.

Then I get a prompt from the video saying "Ready to buy products advertised in the video? Log into the official app in order to."

Direct purchase through the YT app is a novelty for me.

Newpipe all the way.

I block content I’m not interested in and it goes away.

I agree with this idea, but unfortunately YT and other engagement social media sites don't want that to happen. For me, I'm almost never shown videos I hate, but when I say "not interested/don't show me this channel" it USUALLY works. Not at the time though. I've definitely gotten channels recommended to me that I already said I don't want to see.

This is especially true for my mom, who is frequently getting upset by the fact that YT keeps showing her Fox News and Asmongold clips in her recommendations. I think changing the VPN to Canada helped to reduce the Fox News recommendations, but the Asmongold clips can't be escaped.

Online monoculture died when the normies finally got online and brought real life cliques to the internet.

I recommend Tubular. Newpipe with Sponsorblock. Didn't realise how much of a game changer that would be until I tried it.

Just need to find a way to stop Eternity from opening Youtube links in the browser. Sure you can share it with the app but it would be a lot more convenient.

That’s so interesting re your mother. I wonder if her beliefs closely align to fox and asmongold (never heard of that one), but are different enough for her to not be interested in that content. Ie: ven diagram between the belief systems, except the differences are big enough for her to not to like fox content but for the algorithm the commonalities are good enough to keep suggesting the content.

I don't use iOS any more, but I found that a combination of Safari + adblocker + Vinegar was the golden setup. No ads, and you get to use the default iOS video player.

NJB is the shit.

I will never, never visit Fake London.

There's a lot to be said for stepping back from online debates and asking whether your voice is actually valuable, or whether you're just yelling into the void and getting yourself all pissy.

For me, I try to take the view that there's already enough negativity, so I try to be as positive as I can in my online interactions. If someone gets needlessly arsey with me, I'll try to sympathise with them. If they don't react well to that, I'll leave the thread. I'm not changing anyone's mind, not even yours.

I do the same with yt-dlp, though mine is still a little more manual. I have my subscriptions in FreeTube, which I use to select what I want to watch. Copy the link, run my script, then trundle to the lounge where I can watch them on my big TV.

There's a mindfulness to that process that's helpful to me. A conscious decision, as opposed to mindlessly absorbing content.

10 years ago? saw that shit begin when the news feed was first plagued by friends liking posts in a way that auto shared it with everyone. that was long before 2015.

Patrick H Willems, particularly his 'Star Wars Christmas Special', is the reason I signed up to Nebula. He's decidedly non-political.

No, she absolutely hates right-wing content and is definitely left. Asmongold is a grifter piece of shit human being who attracts alt-right viewers. It's not about her not being interested, she quite literally gets upset at the awful ideas and hate that those channels spread and doesn't want to see them. She never watches their videos on purpose, she's only ever clicked on them by accident, she always either clicks away immediately or dislikes the video, and never comments on them. She has repeatedly tried to block those channels. YT continues to show them.