For those of you using Chrome Beta on your desktop computer, today’s latest update comes with a neat feature that should make it easier for you to kill tabs that are making noise. Starting with version 32, tabs that are either playing audio, using your webcam, or are using Chromecast, will have a little icon placed next to them for easier management. Knowing how Google works, you can expect these features to come to the stable channel in roughly six to eight weeks.
What else can Google do to prevent hearing loss caused by websites that like to play ads at the worst random times? I’d like to see Chrome come with a built in audio leveler that prevents tabs from making noise unless you specifically allow it. While that might sound annoying at first, just a simple little “this tab would like to play some sounds, is that cool?” would be nice to see instead of being thrown out of your chair because you left your headphones in your head and some publisher thought auto-playing a Flash ad was a good idea. And as for being notified when a tab wants to use your webcam, that’s a huge thing for privacy. My girlfriend recently put a piece of tape over her MacBook’s webcam, and when I asked her why, she told me she read something about a girl who had her computer hacked and then had naked photos of her taken that were then used as blackmail. Did she over react with that tape? Maybe, but it just shows you that this stuff can be useful for some.
