Firefox audio fix
In late July, 2022, a new version of the Firefox
browser (version 103) was rolled out that may seem to "break" the audio on some web
sites - including the WebSDR. This change has to do with
the requirement for a "gesture" as of Firefox version 103 - the need for the user to do
"something" to acknowledge and accept audio and video from web sites -
a process that was introduced into the Chrome, Safari and other
browsers over a year prior.
This
change was made because the auto-starting of audio/video content
without the user explicitly allowing it is considered by the authors of
the web browsers to be an annoyance, and it is considered by some to be
a minor security risk - so please consider this fact before you take the
actions noted below.
There is now a "start" button!
The KFS WebSDR now has a "Firefox/Mozilla audio start" button located just above the waterfall and to the far right of the screen that you can press which will start the audio.
If you wish to configure your browser to NOT require the need to press this button and allow audio/video to start automatically on ANY web site, follow the steps below:
- Open Firefox
- Click on "Edit" (which may be that thing in the upper-right that consists of three horizontal lines)
- Go/scroll down to "Settings" and click on it.
- Find and click on "Privacy and Security"
- Scroll down to the "Permissions" section
- Go to "Autoplay" and click on "Settings"
- Where it says "Default for all websites", left-click on the down arrow and select "Allow Audio and Video": Please note that this will disable the "gesture" requirement for all sites, as it was before the Firefox version 103 update. Note that there is an advanced configuration to allow only certain sites, if you wish.
- Close and restart Firefox.