Adblock

This is why I turned on AdBlock after years of avoiding it: DNS lookups were excruciatingly slow. The DNS problem turned out to be a configuration error on my part, but still the performance difference is remarkable. Besides the additional DNS lookup, most ads load loads of Flash and badly written javascript, slowing down rendering of the page. Then there is the fact that ads get loaded asynchronously, causing content to jump around while the page is loading. And I haven't even mentioned the seizure-inducing animated gifs.

I don't mind unobtrusive ads, but the web is infested with bad ads. When ads start being served from the same domain as the original content, without Flash or javascript, so that the page load isn't affected, then I'll turn off AdBlock again. Until then, I maintain a whitelist. It currently has 4 entries.