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How To Disable Facebook’s Auto-play Video Feature

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Ugh! Over the past few months, my Facebook news feed was inundated with an influx of video uploads courtesy of the ice bucket challenge.  During the month of August as I scrolled through my feed, videos would start to play one after the next.  In fact, Facebook announced that they had 2.4 million ice bucket challenge related videos posted to their site during the month of August.

What aggravated me even more was knowing that this feature was running through my monthly data plan faster! (Read as: Ah! Not my monthly data!)

Facebook originally added the functionality of auto-play to be more competitive with apps like Instagram and Vine.

The demand of Facebook’s users to allow the option to disable the auto-play feature was heard loud and clear. You can bet that I was one of the first users to turn off auto-play.  (Note: If I want to watch a video from here on out, I simply click the play button on the video post.)

FacebookProposal

 

Follow these short steps to turn off auto-play on your own device!

iPhone and iPad
1. Select the Settings icon on your device.
2. Scroll down and select Facebook
3. Select Settings
4. Under video, select Auto-play
5. Choose an option

 

Android
1. Open the Facebook app
2. Select your phone’s menu button
3. Select Settings
4. Scroll down and select Video Auto-play
5. Choose an option

 

On your desktop
1. Go to Settings and click Videos
2. Click the drop-down menu next to Auto-play Videos
3. Select Off

RSS – Streamline How You View Content on the Internet

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RSS2

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by the amount of content on the internet? Are there twelve different sites you check on a daily basis, and sometimes you can’t seem to find the time to catch up on them all?

I discovered that the best way to sift through the massive amount of content the internet has to offer is to use an RSS feed. It’s a one-stop shop that helps me organize and read everything from all of the sites I want to follow. It’s basically an inbox of content.

If you’ve never used an RSS feed, then you’ll have no idea what I’m talking about. Let’s start off with the basics.

RSS – Rich Site Summary, often called Really Simple Syndication.

What does it do?
Exactly what it says! It’s a summary of a site, typically entry by entry. RSS feeds pull content from each site you add to it and let you know what content you’ve read and what you have not read. Instead of visiting each of your favorite sites, you can go to one place and read the content from all of the sites you’ve added.

How do I get an RSS feed?
Simply pick one! There are many aggregators out there to choose from. Most are web applications that allow you to add and remove any site.

What do I use?
I originally used Google Reader, but with the sunset of that project (on July 1, 2013), subscribers had to find a new alternative.

With lots of options out there, I opted to go with Feedly. I like the way it presents the information and allows me to customize what I see and how I see it (both on my mobile device and my laptop!).

When Google shut down Reader, they linked users to this site, full of alternatives: http://alternativeto.net/software/google-reader/

Pick the one you like and start adding content!

Setting up Feedly

Since I know Feedly from experience, I can walk you through adding content.

  1. Sign up for Feedly (use your Google account)
  2. Click Add Content
    RSS2
  3. Search for your interests or add a URL
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  4. Click +feedly
    RSS5
  5. Select a category to organize and then click Add
    RSS6
  6. Adjust the settings to select how you would like to view the contentRSS7

If you have any questions about how to use Feedly, respond in the comments below!

Microsoft Unveils New Technology at Build 2014

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SatyaNadella

At Microsoft’s Build 2014 developer conference, we got a glimpse at new features and innovations that will be coming soon to all of their platforms. Some of the highlights include:

  • Universal apps that will work on Windows PCs, tablets, phones, and Xbox One
  • The next generation of Lumia phones
  • An upcoming update to Windows 8.1 that will make the OS more desktop-friendly
  • Microsoft’s personal assistant app, Cortana, to rival Siri and Google Now
  • Windows will be free on all devices with screens 9″ and smaller
  • Windows for the “Internet of Things,” which is a Windows OS that will run on any type of device (an example was shown of Windows running on a piano)
  • Microsoft Office enhancements for touchscreen devices

PC World has a great summary of the Build 2014 highlights.

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