Library
Notes on what the feeds are doing to your attention, and what actually helps. No productivity hustle, no digital-detox retreats.
Attention
Why feeds work the way they do, and what that does to your focus.
Why Autoplay Makes It Harder to Stop Watching
A University of Chicago study found turning off autoplay cut Netflix session length by about 18 minutes, evidence for what autoplay actually removes.
Why an Unread Notification Is Hard to Ignore
A 1927 memory study explains why a red notification badge nags at you more than the message underneath it: a documented bias called the Zeigarnik effect.
Pull-to-Refresh Runs on the Same Psychology as a Slot Machine
Pull-to-refresh and a slot machine run on the same reward pattern, the one B.F. Skinner found produces the hardest behavior to make an animal stop.
Why a Chronological Feed Feels Calmer Than an Algorithmic One
The algorithmic feed isn't just showing you different posts, it's showing you a feed with no end and no shape. Chronological order restores both, and that's most of the calm.
How-to
Specific settings, one platform at a time.
Why Screen Time Doesn't Actually Block Facebook or Reddit
Screen Time limits Facebook and Reddit at the app level, and one tap on Ignore Limit removes it instantly. Here's a fix that isn't a willpower test.
How to Hide Promoted Posts on LinkedIn
LinkedIn has no setting to remove sponsored posts from your feed. Third-party filters exist for desktop only. Here's what covers mobile too.
How to Keep X (Twitter) on the Following Tab
X added a setting in 2023 that remembers your tab choice, but the reset back to the For You feed still shows up often. Here's what to do about it.
How to Make TikTok Open to Following Instead of For You
TikTok always opens on For You, and tapping Following doesn't stick. There's no setting that saves it. Here's what actually keeps you there.
How to Hide the Instagram Explore Page
Instagram doesn't offer a setting to disable Explore. Refreshing the grid or hiding suggested content only rearranges it. Here's what removes it.
How to Turn Off Instagram Reels on iPhone (What Actually Works)
Instagram has no setting that removes Reels. Notification tweaks and Not Interested taps only trim the edges. Here's what actually works and why.
How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts on iPhone (What Actually Works)
YouTube gives you a way to hide the Shorts shelf for 30 days, and that's it. Here's what the official options actually do, and what's left when they run out.
Research
Where these patterns came from, and who built them on purpose.
Product
About DoomOff itself.
Why DoomOff Hides Things Instead of Blocking Them
Most DoomOff toggles remove a single feature and leave the rest of the app working as normal. Blocking a whole site is there too, just not the default.
Why DoomOff Is a Safari Extension, Not an App Blocker
Native apps run in a sandbox nothing outside them can reach. That's why DoomOff fixes the web version instead, and redirects the apps there.