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Electrochemistry [Medium: Success] - Hey, at least there's still half a bottle of tequila and brandy left. Let's party and forget this shitshow!

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"I'll talk to him guys!!"

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So You've Finally Switched to Firefox: a Brief Guide to a Some Very Useful Add-Ons.

This post is inspired by two things, the first being the announcement by Google that the long delayed Manifest V3 which will kill robust adblocking will finally roll out in June 2024, and the second, a post written by @sexhaver in response to a question as to what adblockers and extensions they use. It's a very good post with some A+ information, worth checking out.

I love Firefox, I love the degree of customization it offers me as a user. I love how it just works. I love the built in security features like DNS over HTTPS, and I love just how many excellent add-ons are available. It is a better browser than Chrome in every respect, and of the many Chromium based browsers out there, only Vivaldi comes close.

There are probably many people out there who are considering switching over to Firefox but are maybe putting it off because they've got Chrome set up the way they like it with the extensions they want, and doing all that again for Firefox seems like a chore. The Firefox Add-on directory is less expansive than the Chrome Web Store (which in recent years has become overrun with garbage extensions that range from useless to active malware), but there is still a lot of stuff to sift through. That's where this short guide comes in.

I'm presently running 33 add-ons for Firefox and have a number of others installed but disabled. I've used many others. These are my picks, the ones that I consider essential, useful, or in some cases just fun.

Adblocking/Privacy/Security:

uBlock Origin: The single best adblocker available. If you're a power user there are custom lists and scripts you can find to augment it.

Privacy Badger: Not strictly necessary if you're also running uBlock, but it does catch a few trackers uBlock doesn't and replaces potentially useful trackers like comment boxes with click-to-activate placeholders.

Decentraleyes: A supplementary tool meant to run alongside uBlock, prevents certain sites from breaking when tracker requests are denied by serving local bundled files as replacement.

NoScript: The nuclear option for blocking trackers, ads, and even individual elements. Operates from a "trust no one" standpoint, you will need to manually enable elements yourself. Not recommended for casual users, but a fantastic tool for the power user.

Webmail Ad Blocker: The first of many webmail related add-ons from Jason Saward I will be recommending. Removes all advertising from webmail services like Gmail or Yahoo Mail.

Popup Blocker (Strict): Strictly blocks ALL pop up/new tab/new window requests from all website by default unless you manually allow it.

SponsorBlock: Not a fan of listening to your favourite YouTuber read advertisements for shitty products like Raycons or BetterHelp? This skips them automatically.

AdNauseam: I don't use this one but some people prefer it. Rather than straight up blocking ads and trackers, it obfuscates data by injecting noise into the tracker surveillance infrastructure. It clicks EVERY ad, making your data profile incomprehensible.

User-Agent Switcher: Allows you to spoof websites attempting to gather information by altering your browser profile. Want to browse mobile sites on desktop? This allows you to do it.

Bitwarden: Bitwarden has been my choice of password manager since LastPass sold out and made their free tier useless. If you're not using a password manager, why not? All of my passwords look like this: $NHhaduC*q3VhuhD&scICLKjvM4rZK5^c7ID%q5HVJ3@gny I don't know a single one of them and I use a passphrase as a master password supplemented by two-factor-authentication. Everything is filled in automatically. It is the only way to live.

Proton Pass: An open source free password manager from the creators of Proton Mail. I've been considering moving over to it from Bitwarden myself.

Webmail/Google Drive:

Checker Plus for Gmail: Provides desktop notifications for Gmail accounts, supports managing multiple accounts, allows you to check your mail, read, mark as read or delete e-mails at a glance in a pop-up window. An absolutely fabulous add-on from Jason Saward.

Checker Plus for Google Drive: Does for your Google Drive what Checker Plus for Gmail does for your Gmail.

Checker Plus for Google Calendar: The same as the above two only this time for your Google Calendar.

Firefox Relay: An add-on that allows you to generate aliases that forward to your real e-mail address.

Accessibility:

Dark Reader: Gives every page on the internet a customizable Dark Mode for easier reading and eye protection.

Read Aloud: A text to speech add-on that reads pages with the press of a button.

Zoom Page WE: Provides the ability to zoom in on pages in multiple ways: text zoom, full page zoom, auto-fit etc.

Mobile Dyslexic: Not one I use, but I know people who swear by it. Replaces all fonts with a dyslexia friendly type face.

Utility:

ClearURLs: Automatically removes tracking data from URLs.

History Cleaner: Automatically deletes browser history older than a set number of days.

Feedbro RSS Feed Reader: A full standalone reader in your browser, take control of your feed and start using RSS feeds again.

Video Download Helper: A great tool for downloading video files from websites.

Snap Link Plus: Fan of Wikipedia binge holes? Snap Link allows the user to drag select multiple hyperlinks and open all of them in new tabs.

Copy PlainText: Copy any text without formatting.

EPUBReader: Read .epub files from within a browser window.

Tab Stash: A no mess, no fuss way to organize groups of tabs as bookmarks. I use it as a temporary bookmark tool, saving sessions or groups of tabs into "to read" folders.

Tampermonkey/Violentmonkey: Managers for installing and running custom user scripts. Find user scripts on OpenUserJS or Greasy Fork, there's an entire galaxy out there of ingenious and weird custom user scripts out there, go discover it.

Browsing & Searching:

Speed Dial 2: A new tab add-on that gives you easy access to your favourite sites.

Unpaywall: Whenever you come across a scholarly article behind a paywall, this add-on will search through all the free databases for an accessible and non-paywalled version of the text.

Web Archives: Come across a dead page? This add-on gives you a quick way to search for cached versions of the page on the Wayback Machine, Google Cache, Archive.is and others.

Bypass Paywalls: Automatically bypasses the paywalls of major websites like those for the New York Times, New Yorker, the Financial Times, Wired, etc.

Simple Translate: Simple one-click translation of web pages powered by Google Translate.

Search by Image: Reverse search any image via several different search engines: Google Image, TinEye, Yandex, Bing, etc.

Website Specific:

PocketTube: Do you subscribe to too many YouTube channels? Would you like a way to organize them? This is your answer.

Enhancer for Youtube: Provides a suite of options that make using YouTube more pleasant: volume boost, theatre mode, forced quality settings, playback speed and mouse wheel volume control.

Augmented Steam: Improves the experience of using Steam in a browser, see price histories of games, take notes on your wishlist, make wish listed games and new DLC for games you own appear more visible, etc.

Return YouTube Dislikes: Does exactly what it says on the package.

BlueBlocker: Hate seeing the absolute dimmest individuals on the planet have their replies catapulted to the top of the feed because they're desperate to suck off daddy Elon sloppy style? This is for you, it automatically blocks all Blue Checks on Twitter. I've used it to block a cumulative 34,000 Blue Checks.

Batchcamp: Allows for batch downloading on Bandcamp.

XKit Rewritten: If you're on Tumblr and you're not using whichever version of XKit is currently available, I honestly don't know what to say to you. This newest version isn't as fully featured as the old XKit of the golden age, but it's been rewritten from the ground up for speed and utility.

Social Fixer for Facebook: I once accidentally visited Facebook without this add-on enabled and was immediately greeted by the worst mind annihilating content slop I had ever had the misfortune to come across. Videos titled "he wanted her to get lip fillers and she said no so he had bees sting her lips" and AI photos of broccoli Jesus with 6000 comments all saying "wow". Once I turned it on it was just stuff my dad had posted and updates from the Radio War Nerd group.

BetterTTV: Makes Twitch slightly more bearable.

Well I think that's everything. You don't have to install everything here, or even half of it, but there you go, it's a start.

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Kent State University

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Made the worst brownies ever created just now

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Anyway that’s why you wear wool and a life jacket babeeeyyyy

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The Beast that Bothers

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I've slowly been chipping away at drawing scenes from that imaginary Muppet retelling of the Princess Bride, figured it was about time to share what I've drawn on Tumblr!

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i have a few resources i look to consistently but i'm gonna plug anatomy for sculptors as One Of The Most Useful. great if you're a 3D artist, INVALUABLE if you're a 2D artist. gives you turnarounds of specific limbs/fiddly body parts like ears. great especially if you're referencing a photo and start looking at an individual part like 'wait, what the hell is going on in there'

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Valentine date

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I love them 😭

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you ever naturally drift away from an old friend as part of the growing and maturing phase and come to peace with it bc you realize, you're doing fine without them? and it's fine just to watch their life passively and to like the periodic Instagram post without commenting bc it's not like they reached out either?

and eight months go by and it's okay you haven't spoken to them bc you're in a new place, making new friends, and honestly, you're content with where you're at? when all of a sudden a good friend calls you up to tell you this person you used to be friends with is talking shit about you? and you ask, what did they say?

they said you're clingy, they said you ruined their Christmas party that one year, they said they didn't know why they had to invite you anyways because you live two hours away, and you're already married, so they can't set you up with any of their friends, which is why they invited Abby, who lives in the same town as you. they said, speaking of marriage, the only reason you got married so young was because you were seeking validation. they said it wasn't their responsibility to make sure you have friends. they said the only reason they weren't at your bachelorette party all those years ago is because you didn't make it clear what it was. they said, and just because they were a bridesmaid at your wedding doesn't mean you have to be a bridesmaid at theirs. they said they were relieved you moved away because you made them feel guilty

guilty about what?

like how they bailed on that party you were planning so they could attend something more fun and didn't seem to care? or how they teased you about being a bitch at your wedding, until they went and got married themselves and realized it's a stressful day and not everyone is perfect all the time? and how they asked to stay at your place for a day and you thought "what a great chance to catch up!", but it was just so they could attend a wedding in the same town and they didn't even hang out with you or thank you for letting them stay there for free? or maybe they saw how well you got along with their friends, the ones they didn't want to introduce you to, though they knew you were desperate for friends? maybe it scared them, when their friends welcomed you, and treated you like you'd always been there, and invited you to every get together, because then they would have to face that you aren't who they want you to be?

or maybe they feel guilty that any problem they had with you was mentioned behind your back so you never knew they had a problem until it was too late? for never giving you the chance to fix anything? for lying to you for years about how they felt about you, pretending to like you, pretending they enjoyed your company, pretending to be a friend?

or maybe, it was the christmas party (the one they didn't want to invite you to), on the quiet end of the table, when they asked, "there's no problems between us, right?"

and you hesitate, bc you remember the bachelorette party, you remember when they bailed on you, you remember what they said about you after your wedding.

and they see you hesitate.

and they ask, what is it?

and you know the timing is bad, but they're your friend, they'll hear you out, these problems can be worked through. you already tried to convince yourself they were no big deal, you thought, god, why am I still hung up on these things? I should be over them, what they did wasn't even that big of a deal. your good friend, the one you vented to, she told you to talk to them. nothing will be solved if you don't talk to them. fuck, you don't know whether it's a big deal or not.

but you tell them anyway. you mention that your feelings were hurt when they did these things, choosing your words carefully. you tell them, "I know you don't mean it, but these things come across as a lack of empathy, a lack of understanding".

what a scary thing to tell someone. how will they react? oh no, are they mad at you? jesus, this is why you keep these things to yourself.

but they're nodding their head, they're listening, and you're crying, but quietly, to avoid attention. you go on, "I want us to be able to discuss these things with each other. I hope if you have any problems with me, you feel comfortable enough to tell me"

and they say, "I can't think of anything"

...

so the christmas party continues. you think you came to understanding. they're laughing, you're smiling, and their friends pretended they didn't see you cry. what a great night, you think as you make your way home. you feel like you're connecting with them again.

then a few months go by. you get caught up with the show you're in and you can't make time to see them, but they come see your performance with their friends. and it feels a little awkward, but you reason that's just bc it's been several months since you saw them last. everyone is still kind to you, a few even sent you silly messages during intermission. a little awkwardness is normal when it's been so long.

you're still in costume, it's late, and they have a two hour drive ahead of them, so you thank them for coming, wish them a safe drive back, excuse yourself, and go on with your night.

and then, god, it's already summer, you've been so busy. you had to buy a new car, you've spent so much time looking for a new job, but with no success. you spent time out of state at your sister's wedding, then birthday celebrations, five year anniversary... when was the last time you two talked? the show? huh.

a month later and you get a job offer. in another state. only 8 hours away, that's not bad. but you have to leave fast, which is fine, you were ready for this.

so you call them up, and your other good friend, let's get brunch you say. you'll drive down to them. they both agree.

and then it's Sunday, and she's here, but they are not. running late? doing church stuff, they say. right, you don't get it, but it's important to them, so you try to ignore your annoyance. she's upset though. she always gets upset in your stead. you say it's okay. you know you being annoyed is just something you need to work on.

brunch is nice. you all chat, catch up, share memories. and you know that things are different now and your friendship has changed, and will change again with this move, but look. they're here. they came to say goodbye.

and then you're gone.

and 8 months passed.

and neither of you reached out.

...

and you think, maybe the two of you aren't that different after all?

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Tears of the Kingdom: Wiggle to Detach (colorized)

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One of my favourite post formats is when someone with a similar URL to op torments them like they are failed clones of each other and it completely changes the tone of the original post.

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So uh….some dude apparently recreated Adobe Photoshop feature-for-feature, for FREE, and it runs in your browser.

Anyway, fuck Adobe, and enjoy!