So I talked about the new Twitch scare today and, while I don't think it's something fully as simple as "Twitch isn't counting your view if you are so much as unfocused on the site", I do think that it's a good plan to be on top of how so many sites use the Page Visibility API in many ways. As much as Twitch is a shit company, that actively would cut far more into their viewer numbers than even they would want by disabling ALL unfocused viewer numbers.
The Page Visibility API, as documented here on Mozilla's MDN, allows browsers to effectively track if you are not actively focused and "tabbed-in" on pages on your desktop, but there are some fairly easy ways to trick them, and this is how.
PLEASE NOTE: Some things about this API may be beneficial to you on other sites. If you notice some sites are performing strangely, try to disable these extensions - only for those sites if you can - and test again to see if that is the problem.
If you are on Chromium or Gecko-based browser renderers, meaning any common offshoots of Chrome/Edge or Firefox, your process is pretty simple, just use the following extensions:
Chromium option to disable PageVisibility
Gecko option to disable PageVisibility
If you are on Safari, either desktop or mobile, or if you just don't want another extension, you can use this Userscript. If you do not know how to use a Userscript and can't install the above extensions, here is a very simple primer on how to do so on macOS. I'm going to give two options: the first can be used on nearly any browser, and the second is macOS-specific and costs money, but is a good program.
Option 1: Use a userscript extension
While Option 1 still requires an extension, this one is extremely multipurpose and there are TONS of extensions out there that do this trick. Searching 'userscript' should pull up an extension in your browser, but since I use Safari, I personally used to use a free one called Userscripts, which can be found in the Mac App Store. It looks like this:
Option 2: Use StopTheMadness Pro
StopTheMadness Pro is an awesome program with a really good UI that allows you to remove SO much bloat from browser interactions nowadays. It is primarily for Mac/iPhone/iPad, etc. and it works in Safari on all those platforms, but it does cost money. I personally use it, though, and I definitely recommend it. Click here to go to the page to learn more about it and buy it, or you can go right to the Mac App Store to search for it.
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