Chrome 32 fights back against tab noise
Which of my two dozen browser tabs is that obnoxious sound coming from? The latest Chrome stable will tell you, while offering a lengthy list of other fixes.
Think of it as Google's annoying horsefly detector, where the irritating insect is one of your dozens of tabs streaming audio.
A new feature in Tuesday's update to Google Chrome brings to the masses a tab indicator to tell you when a site is streaming audio. The feature will add a speaker icon to tabs streaming audio, a red record button when a tab is using your Webcam, and a Google Cast icon when you're sending a tab to your Chromecast.
Google Chrome 32 brings to the fore other new features worth mentioning. It calls out potentially malicious downloads in a more visible way, so you know when the browser is blocking you from downloading something dangerous. To the Windows 8 Metro mode, it brings the Chrome OS desktop launcher, making it easier to see Chrome Apps. However, there are several known bugs in Windows 8 Metro, including problems with the keyboard, profile switching and support on legacy computers that don't have hardware acceleration. These problems do not affect the desktop mode.
Chrome 32 also offers an interesting option called Supervised Users, which allows the main Chrome account to offer sub-accounts. A supervised user can have his or her Web access restricted by site, and browsing activity can be monitored through a control panel.
Chrome 32's security fixes included one fix that stops an unprompted sync with an attacker's Google account, and another one that prevents address bar spoofing in Chrome for Android.
Chrome 32 has an unresolved conflict with Symantec's Norton security software, including its toolbar.
