They Live (1988) inspired Adblocker
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"They Live Adblocker" 是基于流行扩展 uBlock Origin Lite (uBOL) 的一个富有创意的分支，它从 John Carpenter 1988 年的邪典电影 They Live 中汲取了独特元素。与单纯隐藏那些绕过网络层屏蔽的广告不同，这个扩展会把这些广告替换为白色方块，方块上随机显示电影中的标语，如 "OBEY" 、 "CONSUME" 、 "SLEEP" 、 "SUBMIT" 和 "NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT" 。这个想法源自开发者在 2015 年的一篇博客，最终被付诸实现。
项目改变了 uBO Lite 处理"元素隐藏"过滤的方式。标准插件通过注入 CSS 、使用 display: none 来隐藏广告元素；而该分支会拦截这些注入点，改用 CSS 的 ::after 叠加层绘制白色遮罩。每个被屏蔽的广告会通过 data-ubol-they-live 属性获得一条随机标语。扩展还用 MutationObserver 来处理页面初始加载后动态插入的广告。
安装流程与 Chromium 内核浏览器（如 Chrome 、 Brave 、 Edge）上的开发者模式方法相同：从 GitHub 下载最新发布包、解压并在 chrome://extensions 以"未打包扩展"方式加载。不过，开发者提示，要真正看到那些带有 OBEY 等字样的方块，需将过滤模式从默认的 "Basic" 切换为 "Optimal" 或 "Complete" 。因为 Basic 模式只在网络层阻止请求，不会在 DOM 中创建被拦截的元素；而只有通过元素隐藏规则筛出的广告才会被替换成带标语的遮罩。
从源码构建要求 Node 版本 22，步骤包括递归克隆仓库并运行 uBlock Origin 的标准构建脚本。修改后的文件放在 davmlaw/uBlock 的 they-live 分支的一个独立子模块中，使元素替换逻辑与上游代码分离。关键改动包括新增的 they-live.js（包含标语列表和 CSS 生成器）以及对若干处理过滤注入点的脚本文件的修改。
项目有几条重要说明：首先，它明确标注为个人兴趣的 fork，与官方 uBlock Origin 无关。将原本隐藏的元素重新显示有时可能破坏页面布局——因为站点的 CSS 可能假定广告位会收缩。用户自定义的元素隐藏过滤仍照常生效，不会应用 They Live 效果；另外，通过网络层屏蔽掉的广告不会有标语叠加，因为根本不存在可供修改的 DOM 元素。
尽管改动相对简单，该扩展在 GitHub 上已获 103 星，说明不少用户喜欢在浏览时看到这种带有颠覆意味的小彩蛋，当广告侥幸绕过网络过滤时还能看到一条电影式的评论。
The "They Live Adblocker" is a creative fork of the popular uBlock Origin Lite (uBOL) browser extension with a unique twist from John Carpenter's 1988 cult film They Live. Instead of simply hiding advertisements that slip through network-level blocking, this extension replaces them with white tiles featuring iconic slogans from the movie, including "OBEY," "CONSUME," "SLEEP," "SUBMIT," and "NO INDEPENDENT THOUGHT." The concept originated from a 2015 blog post by the developer, who finally decided to bring the idea to life.
The project modifies how uBO Lite handles cosmetic filtering. While the standard extension injects CSS to hide ad elements with `display: none` rules, this fork intercepts those injection sites and instead applies a white-box mask using a CSS `::after` overlay. Each blocked advertisement receives a random phrase from the movie's slogan list through a `data-ubol-they-live` attribute. The extension also employs a MutationObserver to handle dynamically loaded ads that appear after the initial page load.
Installation follows the standard developer mode process for Chromium-based browsers like Chrome, Brave, and Edge. Users download the latest release package from GitHub, extract it, and load it as an unpacked extension through `chrome://extensions`. However, the developer notes that to actually see the OBEY tiles, users need to change their filtering mode from the default "Basic" to either "Optimal" or "Complete." This is because basic mode only blocks ads at the network level, preventing DOM elements from being created altogether. The cosmetic replacement only works on ads that uBO Lite filters through cosmetic rules.
Building from source requires Node version 22 and involves cloning the recursive repository and running the standard uBlock Origin build script. The modified files reside in a separate submodule at `davmlaw/uBlock` on the `they-live` branch, keeping the cosmetic replacement logic separate from the upstream codebase. Key modifications include a new `they-live.js` file containing the phrase list and CSS generator, plus changes to several scripting files that handle the actual filter injection points.
The project comes with several important caveats. First and foremost, it's explicitly marked as a personal hobby fork and not affiliated with the official uBlock Origin project. Making previously visible elements can occasionally break page layouts where site CSS assumed ad slots would collapse. User-defined custom cosmetic filters still function normally without the They Live treatment, and network-level blocks don't get the slogan overlay since there's no DOM element to modify.
Despite being a relatively simple modification, the extension has garnered 103 stars on GitHub, suggesting that plenty of internet users appreciate having a bit of subversive commentary injected into their browsing experience every time an advertisement manages to slip past the network-level defenses.
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- 《 They Live 》（1988）通过一副太阳镜揭示被隐藏的消费主义信息，以此对大众媒体与资本主义进行批判。
- 影片的主题至今仍具现实意义，不少人把它与真人秀等现实电视节目以及日常生活中的非人化现象联系起来。
- 用潜意识信息替换广告或用眼动追踪数据进行"过滤"，可以被看作是该片理念在现代技术下的延伸。
- Slavoj Žižek 对影片做过著名的哲学解读，特别讨论了人们如何在意识形态中自我参与并被控制。
- 关于怀疑与质疑权威的主题有多种解读，颇具争议——部分极右翼团体甚至把它当作阴谋论的佐证。
- 区分合理的怀疑与有害的阴谋论是一个关键挑战：前者需要细致调查和证据支持，后者往往受动机性推理驱动。
- AR 眼镜以潜意识操控或"替换现实"为可能，与影片的前提相呼应，也带来类似的伦理担忧。
- 影片用的是一副简单太阳镜，而现代的 AR 和眼动追踪技术虽然更令人不安，却也提供了新的"现实过滤"手段。
- 用 AI 开发受影片反建制主题启发的 Web 应用，往往显出一种讽刺性的矛盾。
讨论集中在 John Carpenter 执导的《 They Live 》持久的文化影响及其批判性联想上，尤其是关于隐藏信息与社会控制的核心概念。许多人把影片的前提出现在当下议题中，比如广告影响、怀疑与阴谋论心态，以及增强现实技术在操纵或过滤现实方面的潜力。讨论也凸显了对影片原意的多重解读，以及用现代技术（包括 AI）向其主题致敬时产生的讽刺意味。 • "They Live" (1988) uses sunglasses to reveal hidden consumerist propaganda, serving as a powerful critique of mass media and capitalism.
• The film's message remains relevant today, with some drawing parallels to reality TV and everyday dehumanization.
• Replacing ads with subliminal messages or filtering eye-tracking data could be a modern extension of the film's concept.
• Slavoj Žižek provided a notable philosophical analysis of the film, particularly on how people are complicit in their own ideological control.
• The film's themes of skepticism and questioning authority are widely interpreted, sometimes controversially, with some far-right groups misinterpreting its message as validation for conspiracy theories.
• Distinguishing between healthy skepticism and harmful conspiracy thinking is a key challenge, with the former requiring nuance and evidence, and the latter often driven by motivated reasoning.
• The AR glasses concept of subliminal manipulation or "replacing reality" mirrors the film's premise and raises similar ethical concerns.
• While the original film uses low-tech sunglasses, modern AR and eye-tracking technologies offer new, albeit unsettling, possibilities for such "reality filtering."
• Using AI to create web applications, especially ones inspired by anti-establishment themes, presents an ironic contradiction.
The discussion centers on the enduring cultural impact and critical relevance of John Carpenter's "They Live," particularly its core concept of hidden messages and societal control. Many participants draw parallels between the film's premise and contemporary issues, such as advertising influence, the nature of skepticism versus conspiracy thinking, and the potential for augmented reality technologies to manipulate or filter reality. The conversation also highlights the subjective interpretations of the film's original message and the ironic implications of using modern technology, including AI, to pay homage to its themes.