Fun with Firefox.

[Walkiry]

Regular ads, however, are what keeps many websites running.
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I disagree with your disagreement :P

The only real important thing to keep a website running is good content, not ads. With good content you can find ways to fund yourself if ads aren't working out. More importantly, ads shouldn't be an annoyance that the user has to put up with to get to your content. If there's an annoyance, people will try to get rid of it.

Why do you think google ads are so successful? Because it's just a little bit of text with a handful of rather small links, instead of a big chunk of my screen that will open a new window or redirect me to another page if I click anywhere in it. They're unintrusive, and they're (usually) somewhat related to what you're reading.

The more you try to block them, the worse they will become in an attempt to circumvent your blocking them.

If it's an arms race what the advertisers want, an arms race is what they'll get. There is wisdom, however, in not trying to fight and piss off what could be considered your target audience. I'm not about to give up the control of how things work in my own box, for anyone. If it becomes too much of a burden you simply will start losing readers.

I also don't buy the cataclysmic vision of the great Internet falldown if ads stop working. People (in general) are much more creative than that.