Take action so that sites in Safari start behaving the way you need them to
REQUIRES Safari
YOU WILL LEARN How to manage Safari’s preferences so that websites work the way you want them to
IT WILL TAKE 15 minutes
WEBSITES AREN’T ALWAYS fun. Some insist on auto–playing media. Others bombard you with pop–up surveys. And many will interrupt your reading with adverts. In a lot of cases, websites will do all three (and more), but the good news is you can start to take control of websites by managing preferences in Safari.
Apple’s web browser enables you to determine whether you want to be sent notifications, view videos, download content, grant access to various functions of your Mac, and see pop–up windows. For even more control, you can nail a particular preference to every website you visit or create settings on a site–by–site basis. You can also quickly manage all of the changes you make.
Such versatility is complemented by Reader — a quick–fix mode that formats web pages to make them easier to read by handily removing distractions. Reader doesn’t offer as many bespoke options as Safari’s preferences, however, as you’re about to see.
HOW TO Set Safari’s preferences
There are two ways of managing Safari’s Preferences. The first is to Ctrl–click the Smart Search field and click “Settings for [website]”. This instantly displays the preferences that only affect the website you’re viewing.
You could, for example, manage auto– playing media on a website. To do this, click Auto–Play and use the menu to allow or stop the function, or prevent media with sound. Preferences are remembered for future visits.
The second way to control Safari is handy if you want to apply the setting to all websites. Go to Safari > Settings > Websites, then click Auto– Play and choose the option from the “When visiting other websites” menu.
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