Show HN: uBlock filter list to blur all Instagram Reels

Great! The more solutions to filter unwanted content on the internet the better.

Sometimes we find ourselves stuck having to use a particular platform because that's where the group chat is.

I've had great success with Firefox and the Social Focus extension. Works on a number of different sites including YouTube, Reddit and Instagram.

https://socialfocus.app/

> I'm trying to make Instagram be what my parents said Facebook was.

Hell, you're trying to make Instagram be what Instagram used to be. Back in the early (pre-Meta) days, it was just a reverse-chronological feed of the posts from people you followed.

A decent part of why I bailed on Instagram back in 2019 or so was because it had stopped being this for a while (posts reordered, some not even shown, so many ads).

I don't use the app so I confess I'm a little confused, I saw your screenshot and it seems like the end result is just scrolling through nothing. Why would you want that? Isn't it better to just not open it altogether? Like, block the entire thing? Why scroll through a bunch of blur

From the gist:

> I'm trying to make Instagram be what my parents said Facebook was

This sure makes me feel old. It's a great goal though. I miss the golden era of Facebook when it was really just friend content.

Instead of using apps, use Brave browser and you will think that Instagram is a comepletely new social media.

I run PiHole + Unbound + OPNSense firewall at home, everything is filtered, plus Brave browser shield filter.

I also run GrapheneOS so I banned myself from using apps and use the mobile version instead, duuuuude, Instagram is actually usable.

To upload videos however, I must use its app, duuuuude, it is just ADs, suggestions, shorts and shit.

If people tried to use Instagram via Brave browser instead of the app, that alone would explain to you why I hate apps and how apps allow companies to push shit into you all.

Interesting approach.

Sometimes the simplest tools are the most useful. Bringing Instagram back to a more "friends only" experience is a nice idea

I think this is already possible. You can snooze suggestions and then if you scroll to the top of Instagram, you can select "Following" instead of "For you". Maybe this is not possible in browsers though, I've only ever done this on my phone.

I did something similar for myself a few years ago:

||instagram.com^

Nice. Love seeing simpler solutions like this pop up.

> I'm trying to make Instagram be what my parents said Facebook was. Christ, I'm old.

i was hoping Instagram would add a toggle to get rid of this stuff!

Does Instagram even have reels in the browser? If it has I've never noticed them

My solution is rather simple: don’t use Instagram.

[dead]