Enable click-to-play for Chrome plug-ins

Be the boss of your Chrome browser by deciding when certain plug-ins are allowed to play with these quick steps.

Isn't it annoying when you load a Web page and audio starts playing without warning? Usually it's a background music track or an advertisement video, but it always seems to happen at the worst time: when your volume is the loudest. Maybe you just finished watching a movie on Netflix with a lot of whispering and suddenly your ears are being assaulted by loud noises.

Instead of policing your volume levels before each Web browsing session, why not just disable those plug-ins from loading content unless you say it's OK? Here's how to disable plug-ins from playing content automatically in Google Chrome:

Step 1: Open the general menu in the top right-hand corner of your Chrome browser, then go to Settings.

Step 2: Scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on Show advanced settings.

Step 3: In the new area that loads, find the Privacy subsection and click on the Content settings button.

Step 4: Scroll down to Plug-ins in the small pop-up window and select the bubble next to Click to play. Don't forget to click the OK button to save your selection.

(Optional) Step 5: Test out your new rule for running plug-ins by opening a YouTube video. You should see an image similar to the one above.

Now you won't have to worry about sound randomly playing from Web sites, and can save yourself some aggravation from listening to ads.

Has a Web site startled you with music or video? Have a funny story about it? Share it in the comments.