I dislike nearly everything about the recent vertical video format/medium that's taken over the internet since ~2018 or so. Is there an extension that globally blocks it across twitter/tumblr/youtube/anywhere embedded? Feels like it'd be pretty trivial to code if not, and I know there's a few other old web farts who would gladly use such an extension.
I'm probably much older than you and I don't mind, and in fact, I regularly watch vertical videos. They don't bother me.
But here is some sloppy code you could create a basic browser extension and shove in content.js:
function hideVerticalVideos() {
const videos = document.querySelectorAll('video');
videos.forEach(video => {
if (video.videoHeight > video.videoWidth) {
video.style.display = 'none';
}
});
}
// Run hideVerticalVideos() when the page loads
window.addEventListener('load', hideVerticalVideos);
// Run when the DOM updates
const observer = new MutationObserver(hideVerticalVideos);
observer.observe(document.body, { childList: true, subtree: true });
On youtube you can block the section with shorts in them with ublock (rclick > block element), this was good enough for my use. I don't know about other sites.
If I’m watching a two hour video, I’ll flip my phone. But if I’m cycling between reading articles and other activities for which I prefer vertical mode, then I’d rather keep it in that orientation than switch it just to watch a video.
But I would instantly install a browser extension that makes youtube shorts go away. I avoid them studiously because I find that whenever I click them, I come to 45 minutes later, deep inside a rabbit hole of everything that makes the internet horrible. Making them go away altogether would significanly improve my mental health.
But here is some sloppy code you could create a basic browser extension and shove in content.js: