Tag: chrome’s
Google is replacing Chrome’s lock icon because most people don’t know what it means
Do you know what the lock icon in your web browser means? If not, you’re far from alone. Google now plans to replace the lock next to the address in Chrome with a variant of the “tune” icon you see below. Simply put, most people don’t understand it. According to Google’s research, only 11 percent of users realize that it refers to HTTPS encryption. Many others think it means the site is trustworthy — a problem when even phishing sites use the technology.
The tune icon doesn’t imply trustworthiness, Google says. Instead, it signals that security is the default state. It also invites a click, making it more likely that you’ll use site controls. Many people never even realized they could click the lock, according to the company.
Most users will see the replacement icon in Chrome 117 on Android and desktop, which is scheduled to arrive early in September. As you can’t tap the icon in Chrome for iOS, Google is pulling the icon entirely on Apple’s mobile platforms. If you just can’t wait, you can see the icon now in Chrome Canary if you enable the Chrome Refresh 2023 flag.
The change is overdue in some respects. Google defaulted to HTTPS web connections in Chrome 90 two years ago, and that came months after Mozilla made a similar change in Firefox. Over 95 percent of page loads in Chrome for Windows use HTTPS, the company adds. Much like the floppy disk icon sometimes used to represent file saves, the lock is a relic from another era.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/google-is-replacing-chromes-lock-icon-because-most-people-dont-know-what-it-means-194503194.html?src=rss
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Google Chrome’s Latest Optimizations Let You Watch YouTube for 18 Hours on the M2 MacBook Pro
With improvements to Energy Saver mode, browsing time is extended for another 30 minutes by reducing unnecessary background tasks, and while Google uses the M2 MacBook Pro as an example, the company says that those using older Macs will also see performance gains.
To boost battery life, Google made changes that include tuning iframes to consume less energy, tweaking JavaScript timers to wake the CPU less often, streamlining data structures to optimize access, and eliminating unnecessary redraws.
Google plans to continue to optimize Energy Saver mode in the future. The Chrome browser for Macs can be downloaded from Google’s website, with the 110 version released last week.
This article, “Google Chrome’s Latest Optimizations Let You Watch YouTube for 18 Hours on the M2 MacBook Pro” first appeared on MacRumors.com
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Google fixes Chrome’s biggest problem – and it could boost your laptop’s battery life
Google Chrome’s memory and battery saver modes are rolling out to everyone
Over the 14 years since it debuted, Google Chrome has increasingly become a resource hog, vacuuming up more and more of your system’s memory and battery life with seemingly reckless abandon. At long last, Google is doing something to make the browser less of a strain on your computer. As part of Chrome 110 for Windows, Mac and Chromebook desktops, the company is rolling out memory and energy saver modes.
The features, which Google announced in December, are both enabled by default. You can turn them off from the Performance section of the Chrome settings.
Memory Saver puts inactive tabs on ice to free up RAM for other pages and apps. When you click on a frozen tab, you’ll be able to continue from where you left off. As Android Police notes, a speedometer icon in the address bar will show that the tab was inactive and now it’s in use again. There’s the option to exempt certain sites from Memory Saver too. Google claims that the feature reduces Chrome’s memory usage by up to 30 percent. You know what else would help? Closing tabs you aren’t using!
Energy Saver, meanwhile, can start limiting background activity, video frame rates and animated effects when you’re using Chrome and your laptop or Chromebook’s battery level drops below 20 percent. It’s also possible to configure the feature to kick in as soon as you unplug the charger to improve efficiency. When Energy Saver is active, you’ll see a leaf icon next to the address bar, not to mention fewer visual effects in the tab you’re using.
Google Chrome’s latest version includes tools to address its memory hog problem
Google has released optimization features designed to improve battery life and memory usage on machines running the latest version of its Chrome desktop web browser. Chrome’s new Energy Saver and Memory Saver modes were first announced in December last year alongside the release of Chrome 108, and now as noted by Android Police, the two optimization utilities are starting to roll out globally onto Chrome 110 desktops for Mac, Windows, and Chromebooks.
Memory Saver mode essentially snoozes Chrome tabs that aren’t currently in use to free up RAM for more intensive tasks and create a smoother browsing experience. Don’t worry if you’re a tab hoarder though, as these inactive tabs are still visible and can be reloaded at any time to pick up…
Google is working on making Chrome’s picture-in-picture more useful
The latest Chrome beta, version 111, includes a trial for a feature that could make the browser’s picture-in-picture feature significantly more useful. Instead of being only for playing videos, Google’s looking into letting it display basically any web content in a floating window that stays on top of all your other windows.
There are quite a few ways this feature, which is called Document Picture-in-Picture, could be useful. Some of Google’s examples are mostly just spins on how picture-in-picture already works, such as video players but with custom UI (such as buttons to like or dislike a video, a timeline, or captions), or a miniplayer for video conferences that let you see a grid of people and access controls to mute yourself or…