New Distraction Control Safari Feature Is Now Available in the iOS 18 and MacOS 15 Betas

Juli Clover, writing last week for MacRumors:

Distraction Control can be used to hide static content on a page, but it is not an ad blocker and cannot be used to permanently hide ads. An ad can be temporarily hidden, but the feature was not designed for ads, and an ad will reappear when it refreshes. It was not created for elements on a webpage that regularly change.

To use Distraction Control, go to the Page Menu and select Hide Distracting Items. You can select an area on the page that you want to hide, and static content that you select will remain hidden. It is a good way to eliminate the pesky popovers that show up when browsing online stores, reading articles, and more. iPhone, iPad, and Mac users need to opt in to hiding elements on the page, and Apple says that nothing is hidden that is not proactively selected.

When hiding a cookie banner or GDPR popup with Distraction Control, the function is the same as closing a banner without submitting website preferences at all.

This is a really great feature, and the animations it employs are delightful.

Just last week, I found myself shaking my head at this screenshot posted by Nilay Patel of CBS News’s website. It’s ridiculous and sad that the state of web design has sunk so low, but the web browsers themselves — led by Safari — continue to allow users to fight back.

★ Tuesday, 13 August 2024