
Any open source porn blocking setups? - codesmoothie
I&#x27;m fed up with watching porn, but I know very well I am addicted to it. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good porn blocking setup?<p>e.g. I access a porn site and my computer shuts down after showing an &quot;uplifting&quot; message.<p>Edit: I&#x27;m single and don&#x27;t intend on starting a romantic relationship at the moment.
======
theonemind
You started off by asking about technological solutions, but my first
observation is that this isn't a problem you can likely solve by those sorts
of means.

My second observation is: is it really a problem? Most of the supposed porn-
addicts I've known have not actually fit the definition of addiction,
"pleasurable but the continuation of which becomes compulsive and interferes
with ordinary responsibilities and concerns, such as work, ...". _Is_ it
_really_ an addiction? Are you late to work because you're watching porn? Do
you find you don't have time for anything else because you watch porn? I can
only figure that the US's puritanical roots cause people to so frequently
conflate daily porn use on the order of 15 to 30 minutes with "addiction",
when it clearly will not fit the bill for addiction.

~~~
codesmoothie
I do understand that using tech to ease my adddiction may not be very
effective. However, I do think it is worth a shot. After all, it is the nature
of the Web that has made porn use and/or addiction so prevalent.

My addiction does greatly affect my life and occasionally ruins my
productivity. Sometimes I would stay up until 2AM watching porn while
perfectly knowing I have to wake up early the next day. So yes, I would really
describe it as compulsive.

That said, I think an addiction could include a 15-20 minute use. I'm strongly
against porn (multitude of reasons), yet I watch it, which points to my being
compulsive. 15-20 minutes doesn't seem like a lot, but I still consider it
precious time that's wasted.

~~~
nercht12
You could go through the list of sites on the EasyList for adblock - which are
full of porn site ad block rules - and block those sites. You can change your
hosts file to redirect to localhost or perhaps to some website that reminds
you to quit viewing porn or offers you something else to think about.

------
meric
Get a long term relationship where you're not alone. A woman who would turn
off your computer and show you something "uplifting"[1] when you're tempted to
watch porn.

[1] Whatever it maybe for you. :-)

~~~
gggy
Not every lifestyle permits intimate relationships. And not everyone can just
snap their fingers and "get a long term relationship".

~~~
Arizhel
Exactly what kind of "lifestyle" doesn't permit an intimate relationship?
Being a Catholic priest? Being a hermit like Unabomber Ted Kazcinski?

If your lifestyle doesn't permit an intimate relationship, which is one of the
best things about being a human, then you need to find yourself a new
lifestyle.

~~~
bmer
You might be suffering from depression that is crippling enough that it would
be cruel to ask someone to be with you.

~~~
Arizhel
I guess when I hear the term "lifestyle", it seems to me like a way of life
that's voluntarily chosen, rather than imposed by medical problems. Also, this
was a response to a HN user asking about his particular situation, and no
mention was made of any serious medical or psychological problems (other than
a supposed "porn addiction") which would understandably make finding a long-
term relationship difficult.

I do agree with the GP that not everyone can just snap their fingers and "get
a long term relationship", but for someone who has no other obvious
impediments to one, and thinks they look at porn too much, my advice is to at
least _try_. It seems obvious to me that the excessive porn is an outlet for
frustration from not having a real relationship with a real human. There's
only one reasonable way of solving that IMO, and that's going out and finding
(or trying to find) such a relationship. Trying to turn yourself into Buddha
is not reasonable IMO; people are supposed to have intimate relationships.

------
NR_shill
I'm pretty involved in the open source software world in this space. I'd
recommend you'd look into these two projects below. Neither of them are a
"filter". In my experience though, filters are marginally useful anyways.

[https://netresponsibility.com](https://netresponsibility.com) \-- is
accountability software. It monitors the sites you visit and sends reports to
a friend of sites it thinks are "bad". This, in my opinion, is far better than
filtering software because it forces you to have a conversation with your
partner about what went down and why. It has gotten pretty stale and the
current released version is basically non-working because dependency updates
have broken a lot of things. A few devs are working on the next version (v4)
on and off trying to get it off the ground. It works well, just needs more
testing and more contributors. This runs on *nix and osx.

[https://fasterscaleapp.com](https://fasterscaleapp.com) \-- is a tool to help
you become more self-aware of your emotional status and why you feel whatever
way you feel. Addicts are notoriously awful at identifying what they're really
feeling (and people in general are worse than they might initially think). The
idea is that as you become better able to identify the direction you're headed
in you can take actions to prevent a relapse or acting out BEFORE you get to
that point. Both of those projects are OSS and the repos should be easily
findable from those websites.

Both of these projects would really benefit from help, contributors, and just
regular users. Net Responsibility has a forum and mailing list that you can
get involved in. Faster Scale App is not quite as organized, it's just one guy
working on it.

------
joeclark77
I've heard it said that to kick an addiction, you have to achieve a mental
change where you stop _wanting_ the thing you're addicted to. Consider someone
who is addicted to overeating. He could go on a _fast_ for a while, as long as
he has the willpower, but eventually the willpower is going to run out and
he's going to cheat. By contrast, if he were to make a positive decision to
become an athlete, or a bodybuilder or model or something, he would be able to
control his diet not as a strenuous act of self-deprivation but because he now
sees himself differently, as someone with a mission, and snacking starts to
seem really irritating to him.

So my unsolicited advice is that you need to come up with a way to see
yourself differently. Maybe as a man of faith. Maybe as a mountain climber or
something. Consider giving yourself a mission that will get you the heck out
of your apartment and take up all your free time, so that your addiction
becomes an annoyance that you won't want to bother with.

And good luck!

------
Mz
I suggest you figure out what you are getting out of it and find another way
to get that which lacks whatever downside you feel this has.

My opinion:

Porn can be "addictive" because there is a significant emotional component to
human sexuality and porn mostly gets a rise out of people by being shocking,
which is why so much porn apparently revolves around social taboos
(interracial, group scenes, barely legal in terms of age, etc). But the more
you watch it, the more inured you become, so you need to move on to even more
shocking things to get the same effect.

I think people suggest relationships as a solution because emotional intimacy
can get that same strong emotional response without needing to keep upping the
ante in an unhealthy way.

Do with that personal opinion what you will.

Best.

------
smilesnd
You can just set your dns to a provider that blocks porn.
[https://www.raymond.cc/blog/how-to-block-pornographic-
websit...](https://www.raymond.cc/blog/how-to-block-pornographic-websites-
without-spending-money-on-software/)

Secondly if this is a addiction then you should seek a help group. There is a
AAA style meeting for everything.

Finally best of luck.

------
clackanon
Why all the moralizing, when codesmoothie is asking for a technical solution?

Yes, porn is destructive. Codesmoothie didn't ask for our feelings on it. Just
answer the question.

One thing I'd recommend is using OpenDNS. They have policies that allow for
blocking that kind of material.

Codesmoothie in addition to whatever technical solution you decide on, I'd
recommend asking a trusted friend to hold you accountable, like someone else
suggested.

Have your trusted friend put the OpenDNS settings in your router and have him
set (and keep) the password for your router.

------
afarrell
[https://selfcontrolapp.com/](https://selfcontrolapp.com/),
[https://freedom.to/](https://freedom.to/), and
[https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/momentum/laookkfkn...](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/momentum/laookkfknpbbblfpciffpaejjkokdgca?hl=en)
are useful braces for building healthier habits around internet use.

------
am_i_down
Modify your hosts file to block all porn domains. Here is an extremely popular
list on github:
[https://github.com/StevenBlack/hosts](https://github.com/StevenBlack/hosts).
It can block malware, adware, porn, gambling, and social sites. I personally
use it for all of those and have been pleased so far.

------
notburnt
SimpleBlocker is a chrome plugin I use to block out distracting websites.

Here's what I did:

1) Installed RescueTime

2) 1 week later looked at my most visited websites and made a list of all I
didn't want to visit again.

3) I added them to Simple Blocker and set a random password.

Now, I can't use chrome to access those sites, unless I uninstall the plugin.
And, I've made a deal with myself that I wont uninstall it for atleast 2
months.

Anyway, tools can only help. At some point you just have to do it.

------
aq3cn
You can set up Raspberry Pi firewall using centOS and Raspberry Pi. This setup
will work at network level and it is open source.

Here are instructions:

[https://opensource.com/life/16/3/firewall-your-home-
network-...](https://opensource.com/life/16/3/firewall-your-home-network-
raspberry-pi)

You can Google about Raspberry Pi Firewall to see other setups.

------
wingerlang
Any technical limitation you put on your laptop/phone/tablet/etc/etc/etc will
easily be circumvented by yourself.

Give a close friend $1000 and tell him to keep $100 for each time you find
yourself failing at your task. Of course this relies on you being truthful to
yourself/friend but since it's on your initiative anyway, it might work.

No idea if this works.

------
yS9HC
The best case would be if your internet connection ITSELF whitelisted out
porn/viruses. Apart from massive government intrusion--and criminal penalties
from circumventing your assigned whitelist--the best you can do is fix your
modem/ISP connectivity (anything device side is trivial to circumvent).

It SHOULD be trivial to have a whitelist operating via a hardpoint like your
modem or your ISP. But sadly, the market does not offer such options--and
enabling your ISP to block any particular traffic means they have to sniff it
ALL out.

But the reality is: you can just buy a different modem or ISP.

And if that isn't the case, you can just stare at women in bikinis at the
beach or the nearby pool... or the slightly short/tight skirt or loose blouse
of your co-worker... or the professionally dressed news caster on TV... or
pictures of Mother Theresa in her habit.

Well, maybe if you wean yourself down to nuns in habits, I suppose you might
be cured.

But the reality is that you are under a spell, and you don't quite realize it.
Call it sin, call it "not a struggle against flesh and blood but against
powers and principalities," call it addiction, call it some
psychological/emotional disorder....

No matter what, you are under a spell, a trance, a stupor... like the spell
the King of Rohan was under by Wormtongue in Lord of the Rings. It IS poison
that you drink daily, but you haven't really woken up to the fact.

The power of addiction is that it convinces you that it isn't really there, or
that it really isn't self destructive. And everytime you go back to it, it
gets to keep whispering its lies and pouring its poison into your ears while
you sleep, and while you stumble half-awake otherwise.

So... you either need to so fully suffer a tragedy so immense that it snaps
you back into full consciousness and gets you seriously down the road of
recovery, or you need to get maximally aggressive in getting away from it so
you can CLEAR YOUR HEAD.

What I had to do? Get rid of my computer and internet access altogether,
except under extremely controlled settings in public with accountability.

It's hard to imagine surviving without the computer and IoT, but humans
managed to do without it for 50K to 6.5K years (depending on your faith).

That's the realization I had to get to, and from what I read, my "addiction"
was about as light and controlled as yours. Still, at this point, I can see
how it was continually poisoning my mind, clouding my thoughts, lulling my
senses, turning all consciousness into a constant search for the next hit from
the slightest curve or cleavage.

F' that man! There's so many more wonderful/terrible/thrilling things to
notice and experience in the world.

Very few escape our sexuality and primal/primary drives, but we don't have to
be slaves to them!

Do whatever is necessary to get completely clear for 30-90 days to let your
brain start to rewire. You will notice a huge change after just a week!

P.S. Video games are a big problem too. Get clear of the junk.

------
i336_
What you describe is going to be very, very hard to achieve.

Looking at this simply from the standpoint of addition for the sake of
simplicity, if you cannot utterly, completely, totally (etc) eliminate _every
possible chance_ for you to be able to access what you're trying to access.
Whatever you try, you will _know_ that _there 's a way to work around it_ and
find yourself _surprisingly_ motivated to bypass any limitations you try and
impose on yourself.

The best way I can explain this is to reference the example I read that
explained this phenomena to me. You can train ferrets to happily sit on your
lap and go to sleep, but to achieve this you have to put them on a leash and
then make it utterly impossible for them to get off your lap by holding onto
the leash and only letting them roam around your lap. It'll take _quite_ a
while before they finally give up, accept that they're not going anywhere, and
settle down, but they eventually figure out that _there is absolutely no way
they can change the situation_ and accept it. Getting _yourself_ to that stage
is... you're an IT guy. You can answer that yourself.

On top of that, this whole thing is ten thousand times more intense due to the
fact that it's addiction-based.

Now, you could try and get a cellular contract that stipulates an upstream VPN
(ie, where the cell signal coming into your phone comes from from a VPN you
specify), and do the same for your wired internet (ie, the
ADSL/cable/fiber/etc line going into your house also upstreams off a VPN).
Configure the server side of that VPN on a machine with a firewall and some
scripting that does the blocking. Then, take the private key you logged in
with, encrypt that into say a tiny dm-crypt block file, take half the dm-crypt
passphrase and keep it yourself, and give the other half of the passphrase to
someone else. While the two halves are separate noone can login to the VPN
server, guaranteeing noone will snoop or be able to adjust the settings.

So, that would work.... buuut you could very easily just walk down the road
and buy a data SIM. Welp.

Unfortunately I think you would need to lock yourself in a room to achieve the
kind of solution you're trying to get at.

I saw something really amazing on addiction recently -
[http://youtu.be/Sh7YB58EFgU](http://youtu.be/Sh7YB58EFgU) \- which I found on
imgur of all places (apparently it has its moments). Being criticized for
being in such a position is unproductive and unhelpful, and I can't say I
think too highly of the couple of commentators who've replied here and mocked
you for being candid, straightforward and honest, and being bold enough to say
you need help. Kudos.

My practical/viable advice is this (you're going to have to read between the
lines so I can keep this PG-13): I suspect it's probably difficult to do what
you need/want to do without the porn anymore, and/or difficult to feel
satisfied without it. You're going to need to adjust - in workable increments
(enough to pinch a little, but not too much; a disciplined amount) - to get
yourself completely off of this extra input. By all means do _continue_ , per
se; just without the porn.

Remember that our _enjoyment_ of this whole process is just really, really
intricate commentary; the main focus is that this is our way of reproducing.
It's not the _sole_ purpose; we've been built the way we have so that we're
biologically obsessed with it and find it difficult to _not_ reproduce. It's
important, though, to remember that reproduction is the foundation of why all
of this sort of thing exists; not anything else, for example getting high for
its own sake, or forgetting other things in life, or staying wired, or
anything else (I have no idea (and don't need) the finer details of your
situation; I'm just pointing out some examples to give an idea of what I'm
talking about).

I point this out because you may need to spend some time recalibrating your
mental model to something that factors reality into the picture.

The way it's supposed to go is, if you're on your own, you have two options -
periodically run the photocopier without any paper to keep the mechanism in
shape (</euphemism>), or wait for the process to happen in your sleep. The
first approach is what most guys use; the second is the body's pressure relief
valve and only generally operates when you're already super tense and
overloaded. But _neither_ of those options are _supposed_ to be particularly
engaging or enjoyable; they're industrial means to an end. The brain is built
to find the process noteworthy regardless of cause, but sex is the _really_
enjoyable version.

However, you've (unfortunately) hyperoptimized/trained/specialized yourself to
know exactly what makes you super happy, and you've learned how to
continuously provide (= source) the top 1% of input that you really like.
That's going to need to be discarded - these skills you've taught yourself are
effectively useless - because sex doesn't work quite like that, sex is about
communication and balance between two (usually) people.

So I have an odd idea for you. I found this a while ago -
[http://www.nateliason.com/multiple-orgasms-
men/](http://www.nateliason.com/multiple-orgasms-men/) \- which you may find
interesting to throw yourself into. It's sufficiently unusual that if you
haven't discovered it before it will be novel and new and help distract you,
and it'll also help get you back on track and prepare for relationships. I've
heard some urologists freak out about these types of techniques, while others
say there's no cause for alarm. I personally sit on the "I haven't seen any
actual _studies_ showing catastrophic disasters" fence, so I'm giving this a
go myself (the main challenge is remembering to do it, which is proving a
little difficult as I don't have a smartphone and can't use the recommended
apps).

TL;DR: You need to replace the stimuli you're currently using with other
stimuli of some kind. Just flat-out removing it absolutely stupid and not
going to work (it'll just backfire very badly and disillusion you in a big
way).

~~~
codesmoothie
Thank you for your response.

> Unfortunately I think you would need to lock yourself in a room to achieve
> the kind of solution you're trying to get at.

While addictions can be so extreme as you described, this doesn't describe me,
and I don't think (correct me if I am wrong) it is very typical of someone who
would consider themselves addicted to pornography. Typically before my
session, I would be in a worse than normal mood, or just really wanting to
release. If my computer suddenly locked up for an hour, I would likely "sober
up" and go do something else.

> You need to replace the stimuli you're currently using with other stimuli of
> some kind. Just flat-out removing it absolutely stupid and not going to
> work.

I agree that is very hard to remove a pleasure source all at once, and a
plausible route would be to go incrementally. Reading the other comments, I
would agree that spending more time with people in general (not just
romantically) would be a healthy alternative.

~~~
i336_
Woops, took me a bit to get back to this.

Hm, I think I got completely sidetracked with the concept of addiction when I
was composing my initial response. It's completely reasonable to say that I
described a statistically unlikely worst-case scenario, and I'm glad to hear
your situation isn't that bad!

Looking at it from a different angle, removing high fructose corn syrup and
other forms of highly concentrated sugar from your diet is an extremely
healthy thing to do; HFCS can become addictive. What we're describing is
exactly the same thing, if you ask me; just remove the
concentrated/hyperoptimized stimulati, and everything will balance itself back
out.

Yeah, it'll be a huge adjustment and kind of depressing to begin with but it's
for the best.

As I said in my previous comment, actual sex is what's enjoyable, and
everything else is just a means to an end. IMO, guilt-tripping people into
thinking "running the photocopier" (if you will) is unconditionally wrong is
itself a hugely imbalanced view to have.

Also, /r/NoFap focuses on "short periods of abstinence" \- these might be
weeks/months long, but they aren't permanent. I'm honestly not sure how people
would abstain, myself.

Spending more time with others sounds like a great idea, but IMHO it cannot be
a full replacement for what I describe in the previous paragraph, and trying
to treat it as such may cause you to wind up in some suboptimal situations
(continuous distraction leading to, uh, _unexpected relationships_ , etc).

------
Radi
Get married.

~~~
Arizhel
There was an article in the last day or two saying married Americans were
having even less sex now than single ones, so this might not be the best
advice.

