A feature being tried out in test versions of Chrome would
place a small visual indicator on tabs that are generating audio. It is up and
running in the latest Chromium and Canary test builds for Chrome, giving it a
decent shot of reaching the masses in a regular Chrome release.
The feature is largely intended to help Chrome keep track of
tabs that are actively being used for playing or recording audio so it won't
discard those tabs when memory runs out, but I prefer to think of it as a
sanity-saver.
All it takes is one obnoxious auto-start audio file to ruin
what was otherwise a lovely Web browsing session. An audio indicator would be
an elegant solution to the problem. It would also save me from exhausting my
limited supply of expletives at my computer.
