Ultimately the problem is living in China. Github (along with nearly every social media site, google, etc) is blocked here. Therefore I cannot load or browse community plugins without using VPN. I have a good vpn service but it only intermittently works here as the govt is constantly at war with these app companies. Why they block github is anyone’s guess.
Proposed solution
A big ask perhaps, but is it possible to mirror the plugins on the obsidian site itself (or somewhere else)? This would require an optional switch in settings, or an automatic switch if github is not accessible (for any reason including github being down)
Current workaround (optional)
I have no workaround aside from waiting for the vpn to connect (sometimes days, sometimes weeks if the security here is bumped up, for example during big govt meetings, or military exercises)
I’m embarrassed to say it seems I was wrong about GitHub being blocked in China, I just visited there without vpn. Oops…
But the problem of “Failed to load community plugins” is still there if I hit browse in settings. I’m pretty sure that it always works with vpn on. Not sure what this means if the plugins are indeed being read from GitHub.
Setting aside the VPN for the moment, if you can’t get to a site, it’s your ISP (or higher up). Changing your DNS may or many not resolve it. How to do it is linked in the thread or google “change my dns windows” or something similar.
I know it’s a pain, but maybe try a different VPN? I have a few friends in China who have no problems connecting. I’ll ask what they are using.
I would be very surprised if someone could always connect to vpn no matter the service. The exception might be those run by Chinese companies. I don’t trust those for both the obvious reason of being in China, and the fact that vpn is technically against the law here so how does that work?
I have used ExpressVPN for years now and know many others who do. We all have a similar experience. I guess it’s possible my situation is worse for some reason.
So having said that I would love to know what your friends are using and I can give it a try. Why not.
Confirmed what you said; ExpressVPN hasn’t been working reliably for a while now.
I wasn’t aware.
Don’t know if it’s location dependent but a friend in Macau said PIA works most of the time for them. Another in Shenzhen said they (and many of their colleagues) use Astril. “Expensive, but solid” they said.
Yeah those are the two big ones in China. I used Astril for many years until it went flakey then tried many others, ending up with ExpressVPN (also not cheap). If I were running the CCP Great Wall project I guess I would have the teams concentrate on the most used vpn services, so the trick is to find a good yet under-appreciated one. I often wonder what the top officials here use because hey, they don’t want to be locked out of YouTube!
As for DNS, haven’t done it yet. I briefly looked into it but I’m going to get some help with it first. (wow, forgot to hit reply on this the other day)
