Auto-play video ads are driving me nuts on websites - anyone else?

[Tranquility7]

This has only started in the last couple of months, and I cannot figure out why.

 

I use both Firefox and IE, and I'm prettty sure the same thing happens in both - I open a bunch of tabs to different things I want to read or get back to, and out of the blue at some point, some video ad with audio starts playing on one of them.  I then have to click and scroll down on every tab in order to find the annoying video ad and pause it.

 

IIRC, videos used to auto-play, but not with their audio. What happened that now I get the audio? And how can I stop it?!

[Unicorn.]

Yes, I'm sick of it.  The worst are the auto play ads in my TWC mailbox.  I PAY for that service- I shouldn't have ads in my inbox.  Drives me bonkers.  And FB now has the auto play stuff.  If I want to see it, I will click on it, TYVM!

[Guest]

If you're using firefox, there's a plug in you can get to take care of that.

This: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/video-without-flash/

 

should do the trick, but if it doesn't I know that installing Greasemonkey and then activating the HTML5KISS script does because that's what I'm doing.

 

Tools>Add ons>get add ons then type "greasemonkey" into the search box. Install greasemonkey. Restart firefox.

 

Go here: http://wiki.greasespot.net/Greasemonkey_Manual:Installing_Scripts

 

and you should be good to go unless userscripts.org is over capacity as it is right now, in which case just keep trying until it isn't.
 

If that sounds like gibberish to you and you're wondering what Flash has to do with it because you thought Adobe Flash was a GOOD thing, lmk and I'll put more time and effort into trying to explain it to you because it's really not that hard and it completely takes care of the problem.

 

hth

[Alice]

I use AdBlock which blocks pretty much all ads, including the video ones. Occasionally it will cause trouble on a website as something will read as an ad and not run but I can then pause it just for that webpage. It's free. https://getadblock.com

[kiana]

I quit going to websites that do this. If it was a website I formerly used frequently I email them and tell them why I quit going there.

 

I use computers frequently that I cannot install things on.

[PrincessMommy]

I find them incredibly annoying too.

 

You can also stop them on FB.  It's in the settings area :  at the bottom click on "Videos" and you should be able to stop auto play.

[VaKim]

I use Safari, but I also have the adblock add on that a pp mentioned. Works great. You can also check your flash settings. I think it has something called "click to flash" that will make it where anything using flash has to be clicked on in order to play. 

[flyingiguana]

I am blissfully unaware of this problem.  Adblock is the way to go.

 

It'll even stop ads on Pandora.

 

When these ad companies figure out a way around Adblock, I may have to leave the internet.

 

Another possibility is just to keep your sound off all the time.  And cut way back on the number of tabs you leave open.  That will probably improve your computer's speed as well.  Firefox is a real memory hog.

[Forget-Me-Not]

It was a thread like this that helped me stop the auto play on my iphone and PC for facebook. But on facebook the iphone setting will only work in one mode (when you aren't on wifi).

 

 

Check your iPhone settings again. Mine has an "off" option available now. It might have changed with a recent update. Settings > Facebook > Settings