Google Chrome may ease auto-playing video headaches

Let's face it: audio and video that automatically plays on a web page is pretty annoying. To help remedy the headache, a new feature in Google Chrome's Dev Channel won't play those items on tabs that you're not looking at. If you click a link for the latest Hunger Games trailer and bounce back to your inbox while it loads, you won't have to struggle to find the mute switch on the preceding ad. The content will still preload (if the developer opts to), but it won't play until that particular tab is in the foreground. That should ease the panic of finding the sound or catching a glimpse of an item you'd really rather not see soon enough -- in Chrome at least. Features in the Dev Channel often find their way into the stable release of the browser (eventually). While there's no guarantee this will make the cut, we're crossing our fingers.