I have many times looked for methods to reduce my time on social media. I am so far following along with your Air method and it feels really promising.
My situation is however slightly different. I managed, about a year ago, to completely remove all of my social media apps and lock my accounts (I keep them locked mainly to keep messenger and such). The only problem I have right now is the (foul demon) reddit, which I frequent using my browser on computer and phone.
This yields the slight troublesome situation that I need a screen timer for my browser. But, as is obvious, it's a tool that can also be used for good, and not only social media. Right now I am seeing this as a "reddit or important stuff" kind off timer, but it feels slightly unsustainable. I am thinking about getting the reddit app just for this, but I feel like this might just lead me back to the browser once the timer runs out. Do you have any tips for this?
Again, great content. I am looking forward to the next steps.
Thanks for the kind words, I actually went through almost the exact same scenario as you. Something you might want to look into is a Firefox extension called Leechblock, it's highly customizable. I started by limiting the Reddit time to an hour/day, and turning greyscale around the ~50min mark as a reminder to "wrap things up".
Something I've heard other people suggest is blocking only the Reddit front page, that way you can still access the site from google for troubleshooting, etc. In a similar vein, you may want to consider replacing your browser with "Firefox Focus" a browser that doesn't have tabs/history/cookies and is made to be an "in an out" browser for quickly looking up information and nothing more.
Lastly, there is also an app called "blocksite" which shows you an image of an angry older woman when you try to access the page, it's not as easily circumvented as Leechblock. This is actually what I ended up using to kill off the final few minutes of the habit!
Thank you for the response! Leechblock seems like a good desktop solution. However, I'm having issues finding a similar system on iOS. There is a way to block websites on the iPhone. However, you cannot put a timer on this, and it will block other websites as well (like a parental block).
I found some Safari apps for iOS that seems like they would work, but they worked using a VPN, which conflicts with the VPN I regularly have on.
What surprises me is that there's no options for this on the Firefox Focus or DuckDuckGo apps. It seems like a no-brainer for these focus-style apps to implement a timer type of block. Maybe there are legal issues that prevents this? I have no idea, but it would make sense that it's slightly regulated, as most apps on iOS are.
You actually can set timers for websites in Screen Time! Go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits > Add limit > Scroll to the bottom, Websites
I find that it recognizes apps and websites as the same thing, so if you set a limit for Twitter.com, it applies to the site in Safari as well as the official app. Pretty neat, though, like Justin said, Screen Time is a little toothless as it’s all too willing to let you slip back into scrolling oblivion for “just” five more minutes.
Oh wow, is this for real? The time I’ve spent trying to find an app or something that could allow me to restrict websites, just to now realise it was right there in front of my eyes!
The toothlessness of the screen timer isn’t perfect, but I’ve found that I have a tendency to not use the app/site if I get a gentle warning. It’s at least better than nothing.
Leechblock actually does have a version for Firefox mobile, though a quick search looks like iOS doesn't allow browser extensions (go figure). iPhone in general seems a little bit harder to tweak, others have pointed out to me that Screentime has a readily-accessible "5 extra minutes" button which makes the whole concept of having a timer that much less effective.
For those on Android, Lock Me Out by TEQTIC is the only way to go (I have no profits for saying this) - you can lock (or just set timers) for certain websites too, not only apps.
I have many times looked for methods to reduce my time on social media. I am so far following along with your Air method and it feels really promising.
My situation is however slightly different. I managed, about a year ago, to completely remove all of my social media apps and lock my accounts (I keep them locked mainly to keep messenger and such). The only problem I have right now is the (foul demon) reddit, which I frequent using my browser on computer and phone.
This yields the slight troublesome situation that I need a screen timer for my browser. But, as is obvious, it's a tool that can also be used for good, and not only social media. Right now I am seeing this as a "reddit or important stuff" kind off timer, but it feels slightly unsustainable. I am thinking about getting the reddit app just for this, but I feel like this might just lead me back to the browser once the timer runs out. Do you have any tips for this?
Again, great content. I am looking forward to the next steps.
Thanks for the kind words, I actually went through almost the exact same scenario as you. Something you might want to look into is a Firefox extension called Leechblock, it's highly customizable. I started by limiting the Reddit time to an hour/day, and turning greyscale around the ~50min mark as a reminder to "wrap things up".
Something I've heard other people suggest is blocking only the Reddit front page, that way you can still access the site from google for troubleshooting, etc. In a similar vein, you may want to consider replacing your browser with "Firefox Focus" a browser that doesn't have tabs/history/cookies and is made to be an "in an out" browser for quickly looking up information and nothing more.
Lastly, there is also an app called "blocksite" which shows you an image of an angry older woman when you try to access the page, it's not as easily circumvented as Leechblock. This is actually what I ended up using to kill off the final few minutes of the habit!
Thank you for the response! Leechblock seems like a good desktop solution. However, I'm having issues finding a similar system on iOS. There is a way to block websites on the iPhone. However, you cannot put a timer on this, and it will block other websites as well (like a parental block).
I found some Safari apps for iOS that seems like they would work, but they worked using a VPN, which conflicts with the VPN I regularly have on.
What surprises me is that there's no options for this on the Firefox Focus or DuckDuckGo apps. It seems like a no-brainer for these focus-style apps to implement a timer type of block. Maybe there are legal issues that prevents this? I have no idea, but it would make sense that it's slightly regulated, as most apps on iOS are.
Anyway, thanks for the tips!
You actually can set timers for websites in Screen Time! Go to Settings > Screen Time > App Limits > Add limit > Scroll to the bottom, Websites
I find that it recognizes apps and websites as the same thing, so if you set a limit for Twitter.com, it applies to the site in Safari as well as the official app. Pretty neat, though, like Justin said, Screen Time is a little toothless as it’s all too willing to let you slip back into scrolling oblivion for “just” five more minutes.
Oh wow, is this for real? The time I’ve spent trying to find an app or something that could allow me to restrict websites, just to now realise it was right there in front of my eyes!
The toothlessness of the screen timer isn’t perfect, but I’ve found that I have a tendency to not use the app/site if I get a gentle warning. It’s at least better than nothing.
Big thanks!
Leechblock actually does have a version for Firefox mobile, though a quick search looks like iOS doesn't allow browser extensions (go figure). iPhone in general seems a little bit harder to tweak, others have pointed out to me that Screentime has a readily-accessible "5 extra minutes" button which makes the whole concept of having a timer that much less effective.
For those on Android, Lock Me Out by TEQTIC is the only way to go (I have no profits for saying this) - you can lock (or just set timers) for certain websites too, not only apps.
But is there any Windows solution?