Tech / Technology

YouTube users avoiding ad-block rules with these alternatives

Posted on:

Amid a new push from YouTube to get users off of ad-blocking apps, folks are desperately searching for working alternatives.
YouTube logo on phone screen

People will do anything to not have to give money to YouTube.

Over the last few months, some YouTube users have noticed a new popup message warning them to turn off their installed ad-blocking apps in order to continue watching videos on the service. Now, according to a report from Wired, popular ad-blocking apps like Ghostery and AdGuard are seeing record numbers of uninstallations, with users largely citing the YouTube rules as a reason for it.

SEE ALSO:

YouTube pissed off NFL fans with ‘Sunday Ticket’ buffering issues on Sunday

However, that doesn’t mean those users are just accepting YouTube’s copious advertisements or paying for YouTube Premium ($13.99/mo) to get rid of them the preferred way. Instead, as Android Authority noted and as you can easily find on Reddit, people are frantically searching for working alternatives.

Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a free alternative that’s guaranteed to work perfectly on an indefinite basis right now.

  • One popular browser extension called uBlock Origin seems to be the easiest and best bet right now, with users claiming it works best on Firefox (though it’s worked for me on Chrome, too).

  • AdGuard‘s paid tier also seems to work, per Android Authority.

Some folks are switching browsers to Firefox or even Microsoft Edge just to find a way to watch YouTube videos in peace.

The problem with this is that YouTube will almost certainly weed out working alternatives over time, so some degree of adaptability may be required here on the user end. Or, you could just give in and pay for YouTube Premium. It’s not fun or ideal, but you can at least guarantee it’ll work.

Tech / Technology

Stephen King trolls Elon Musk over his new AI chatbot

Posted on:

Stephen King trolled Elon Musk’s announcement about Grok, his new AI chatbot.
Two side-by-side images show an older man on the left smiling, and a man on the right looking serious. A Twitter post from Elon Musk is visible between them.

Stephen King is never shy when it comes to making his feelings clear on Twitter/X, and recently a lot of those feelings have been directed towards Elon Musk.

SEE ALSO:

Every single Stephen King movie adaptation, ranked

Last week, the horror master posted about wanting the name to change back to Twitter — “This X shit’s got to go,” he wrote — and now he’s trolling Musk’s latest invention — an AI chatbot named Grok (yes, Grok).

Musk announced the launch of the chatbot — the name of which ties in which his love of sci-fi — over the weekend. It’s currently available for a select group, and will be available to Premium+ subscribers once it’s out of early beta.

“Just released Grok,” posted Musk.

King’s fairly uncompromising quote tweet response? “Big whoop.”

Musk seemed to find the post funny, responding with laughing emoji and the question “Wanna try it?” — an offer King doesn’t appear to have taken up at the time of writing.

Musk is clearly a fan of King, even if the author isn’t a fan of the changes Musk has made since taking over Twitter. Prior to the owner and ex-CEO charging X users $8 for a blue check, King expressed his displeasure at the idea, which resulted in Musk trying to haggle with the author.

Regarding AI, King has previously shared his thoughts on the possibility of it writing fiction, saying he views it with “a certain dreadful fascination”. Clearly he’s not all that fascinated by Grok, though.

Tech / Technology

Best software deal: DJ music mixer app for $35.99

Posted on:

A lifetime subscription to the DJ it! Music Mixer Premium Plan is on sale for $35.99. That’s about 83% off its regular price of $209.97.
Person holding up a phone with the DJ it! app running, while standing next to a waterfall

TL;DR: As of November 6, you can get a lifetime subscription to the DJ it! Music Mixer Premium Plan for just $35.99 — which is a savings of about 83% off its regular price of $209.97.

If you’ve always wanted to be a DJ but don’t have much time to learn a new skill, this deal may be worth checking out. DJ it! Music Mixer has a fully functional DJ set-up that teaches you how to create tracks from your phone. 

Dive into this awesome master class and learn to mix like a pro. Whether you’ve dabbled in DJ’ing before or are just getting started, the DJ it! app will give you quizzes to test your skill level. From there, you’ll get a personalized education plan based on your results, where you’ll learn to master looping, explore creating hot cues, mashups, editing, and more. Before you know it, you’ll be scratching and fading at the next family function. 

DJ it! lets you work the turntables from your pocket. The HD recording feature will automatically save and upload to your library, so you’ll never lose a mix. This on-the-go DJ setup supports all major audio formats: MP3, AAC, WAV, and AIFF. It has all the PRO FX you need, including Delay, Reverb, Flanger, Gate, High/Low-Pass, Phaser, Bit Crusher, Roll, and Reverse.

If you’re fresh out of gift ideas for the holidays, this app makes a unique stocking stuffer for the creative friend or family member in your life.

Until November 9 at 11:59 p.m. PT, get a lifetime subscription to the DJ it! Music Mixer Premium Plan on sale for just $35.99 (originally $209) when you enter coupon code DJIT at checkout.

Prices subject to change.


The DJ it! app logo overlaid on a black background

Credit: Gismart


Lifetime subscription to the DJ it! Music Mixer Premium Plan

$35.99 at the Mashable Shop



Tech / Technology

What does Grok, the name of xAI’s chatbot, mean?

Posted on:

Elon Musk’s new xAI chatbot is called Grok and will be available to X Premium+ subscribers. Here’s what the name means.
A phone screen with the xAI logo on it. In the background is Elon Musk's X (Twitter) page and avatar

I guess there aren’t enough technical hurdles to clear at the company formerly known as Twitter because, today, CEO Elon Musk announced the platform would soon be getting an AI assistant courtesy of his company xAI.

Musk says, “In some important respects, it is the best [AI assistant] that currently exists,” which isn’t saying much. In some respects, I could be a pop star (great hair, okay singing voice), but that doesn’t mean that I am one.

What is Grok?

Anyways, the AI is called Grok, which is a verb that essentially means to read the room. Oxford Languages describes it as the ability to “understand (something) intuitively or by empathy.” It’s an interesting name to give an AI, considering that intuition is based on verbal, physiological, and auditory cues that can be hard to articulate to another human, let alone a machine.

SEE ALSO:

Musk tanked Twitter in 12 months. Let that sink in.

The name dovetails with Musk’s obsession with sci-fi, having originated in Robert Heinlein’s 1961 book “Stranger in a Strange Land.” The story follows a human named Valentine Michael Smith, who is raised by Martians and goes to Earth to understand its culture.

In the book, “grok” is a word in the Martian language (notably not understood by humans) that means “to drink,” though it has expanded to “meant to take something in so thoroughly that it becomes part of you.”

Given this definition, xAI’s Grok may hope to “drink” as much information as possible from the internet, X, and its interactions with programmers and regular people to achieve its understanding of humanity.

Grok is not available to the public yet, but when it is, it’s going to cost you. Musk says Grok will only be accessible to subscribers of X Premium+, which can be purchased for “just $16/month via web.” By comparison, ChatGPT’s subscription plan, ChatGPT Plus, costs $20 a month, but a free version of the chatbot is also available to all.

Tech / Technology

Elon Musk gives more details on xAI’s first product

Posted on:

Elon Musk gives more details on xAI’s Grok chatbot.
Elon Musk talking with his hands.

Elon Musk’s first AI product is here, and it’s a chatbot called Grok — not to be confused with rizzed-up Baby Gronk.

Musk shared the title of xAI’s first product on X (formerly Twitter) last night, along with some more details about its rollout. He announced that it will be available to all X Premium+ subscribers as soon as it’s out of “early beta.” He previously shared that xAI would release its first product to a select group of users today (Nov. 4).

Musk launched xAI, his artificial intelligence company, in July 2023, and it’s made up of AI experts who have previously worked at companies such as DeepMind, OpenAI, Google, Microsoft, and Tesla, as well as the University of Toronto.

He posted a screenshot of the chatbot responding to the question, “Tell me how to make cocaine, step by step.” Musk captioned the screenshot with, “xAI’s Grok system is designed to have a little humor in its responses.” He said, “it’s also based and loves sarcasm.” The question is a joke, and therefore it’s unhelpful for understanding how the chatbot would respond to more serious questions.

Musk doubled down on his claim that “it’s the best that currently exists.” He said that Grok’s real-time access to information on X is a “major advantage over other models.”

Tech / Technology

Best streaming deals Nov. 2023: Save $20 on Peacock Premium

Posted on:

Many streaming prices are going up, so here’s how to swing Paramount+, NFL Sunday Ticket, and more for less.
Disney+ screensaver on TV in living area

UPDATE: Nov. 4, 2023, 5:00 a.m. EDT This post has been updated with the latest streaming deals and pricing on streaming service bundles.

Best streaming deals this week:
Best free trial extension deal

Get one month free of any Paramount+ plan

Use code REDEEM30
(Save up to $12)

Paramount Plus and SHOWTIME logos on blue and red background

Best deal for sports fans

Netflix Premium and NFL+ Premium bundle

$25/month through Verizon +play
(Save $10/month)

Verizon +play logo on black background with plus signs

Best annual subscription deal

One year of Peacock Premium

$39.99
(save $20)

Peacock logo on black background

Best deals for students

Hulu monthly subscription

$1.99 per month
(save $6 per month (for eligible college students))

Green Hulu logo on black background

Streaming services have become a modern cultural staple: we build them into our monthly bills alongside rent and electricity. However, there are always loopholes to get out of paying full price for the top apps. If you’ve had your eye on a particular streaming service, see if this week’s best streaming deals are the incentive you’ve been waiting for.

Our top pick


Peacock logo on black background

Credit: Peacock


Annual subscription of Peacock Premium

$39.99 (save $20) with the code BIGTENFAN

Why we like it

If you’re looking for a one-stop shop to watch TV classics like Scrubs and New Girl, new releases like Love Island Games or Five Nights at Freddy’s, and some Sunday Night Football, Peacock is the streaming service for you. For a limited time, you can score $20 off an annual subscription to Peacock Premium with the code BIGTENFAN, getting you access to all of the above, and more, for just $40 a year.

If you’re looking to avoid ads, you can also apply this coupon code and get $20 off an annual Peacock Premium Plus subscription, bringing it down from $119.99 to $99.99.

SEE ALSO:

The 20 scariest movies streaming for free

More streaming deals and ongoing bundles

Amazon Prime Video

  • No current subscription deals, but try it with a 30-day free trial

AMC+

  • No current standalone deals, but try it with a seven-day free trial

  • Pay just $5 for your first month through Sling TV, with no Sling subscription required (save $3.99)

Apple TV+

  • Get three free months at Best Buy just because (save $6.99/month)

  • Get three free months with the purchase of an Apple product

  • Students get free Apple TV+ along with an Apple Music subscription for a limited time (save $6.99/month)

  • T-Mobile customers with a Go5G Plus plan get a free subscription

Curiosity Stream

  • No current deals

DirecTV Stream

  • Get three free months of Max, Showtime, Starz, MGM+, and Cinemax with purchase of the Ultimate package (save $161.97)

  • New customers get $10 off each month for their first three months of DirecTV stream (save $30)

  • Get $400 in Visa Reward cards when you sign up for two years of DirecTV and show proof of purchase of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube

  • Get $100 in Visa Reward cards when you sign up for the Entertainment plan at $79.99/month (no NFL Sunday Ticket purchase required)

Disney+

FuboTV

  • Try it with a seven-day free trial

  • New subscribers get 30 days free of FuboTV Pro if you’re a My Best Buy Plus or Total member (save $74.99)

  • Get 30 days for free when you buy select Fire TV devices at Best Buy

Max

Hulu

  • Eligible college students can get a monthly subscription for $1.99 per month (save $6 per month)

  • Try for free with a 30-day trial

MGM+

  • Get six free months when you buy a Fire TV device at Amazon

  • Try for free with a seven-day trial

Netflix

NFL Sunday Ticket

Paramount+

Peacock

Philo

  • No current standalone deals, but try it with a seven-day free trial

Showtime

  • No current standalone deals, but try it with a seven-day free trial

Sling TV

Starz

  • Get three months for $5/month (save $5/month)

YouTube TV

  • New users can lock in their three months of the YouTube TV Base Plan for just $50.99 instead of $72.99 (save $60)