Users in at least seven countries are now receiving an email about the increase. YouTube started a massive campaign against ad blockers, preventing those...
LibreTube and self-hosted Piped server is working really well for me. I only wish SmartTubeNext (or another Chromecast GTV client) would use Piped as well.
FOSS/FLOSS is all about empowering users and allowing them to do whatever they want, whereas proprietary software tries to take power away from the user. It's kinda sad that many people don't understand this.
Yeah that's fair enough. Are there any free as in freedom solutions that allow you to sync progress through videos on multiple devices? If I'm watching some long video over multiple days it's really convenient to easily switch it between all my devices, and have it automatically continue where I left off
Web solutions allow you to have an account and can keep track of those things. There are Android apps like Clipious that connect to the web instsnces so it keeps in sync with what you watch on your browser.
also on Desktop, using SMplayer (admits YT and most other streaming platforms, pasting the URL in > Open > URL
In the browser ypu can also watch YT without ads and without YT detecting the adblocker, using this script
(Firefox use the Tampermonkey or Greasymonkey extensiรณn, in Vivaldy download the script to a folder and drag it to the extensions page in developer mode)- It put tje Video in a iFrame, with this the YouTube Adblock detector run below this layer without detecting anything.
I know, I used the VLC before as mediaplayer, it's very good, but the SMplayer is better, I think, Do the same, but with an cleaner UI and way easier to handle.Even eith plug-ins, eg to search direct ly YT videos, among others. It is is the graphic interface of the MPlayer and the mpv engine.
Might not be as privacy-friendly as other options though
That's why I didn't put it on the list. Also, sideloading on iOS is just a terrible experience. You either need to connect your phone to a computer every 7 days, otherwise your sideloaded apps will become unusable, or you can pay Apple $100/year for a developer subscription, so you can use your already overpriced device the way you want to. The best option is to avoid the problem entirely and get an Android phone, preferably a Google Pixel, and then install GrapheneOS on it and sideload F-Droid and LibreTube. This gives you actual freedom, as well as the highest levels of privacy and security you can get on a smartphone.
Just wanted to mention it in case others wanted the same experience as the official app. Sideloadly and AltStore both auto-renew over WiFi, so other than the slightly involved setup itโs just like any other app. I agree with you though, GrapheneOS/Android or the other options your listed are far better in terms of privacy and security