turning off Auto-Play, Saving Photos from an old Phone

Q. When I visit certain webpages, a video starts playing automatically. Is there a way to disable this annoying behavior?

A. The simple answer is yes, there is probably a setting you can adjust to stop most videos from automatically playing. Where things can get messy is finding the right setting. Chrome, Edge, Firefox, and Safari each have preferences that block video auto-play everywhere, and they can also selectively block auto-play on specific sites. These options can be found in the browser’s preference (settings) screen, under the heading Privacy or Media, depending on the browser.

The story for mobile devices adds another wrinkle. Mobile devices are usually on cellular data plans. Videos, even short ones, can consume your data allowance fast. In addition to the advice above about web browsers, also look for options to prevent loading video while using cellular networks.

Annoying auto-play behavior is not limited to browsers. Apps like Facebook and Instagram can consume tremendous amounts of data by automatically showing video and high-res photos. These kinds of apps usually have settings that let you trim their appetite for data, with the added benefit of stopping most auto-play behavior.

The bottom line is that most videos can be silenced automatically. But it will take some patience to configure the right settings for your device.

VALENtINES from facing page positive intent in promoting love.

During the Middle Ages, Feb. 14 was associated with the beginning of birds’ mating season, thus the link with romance. In 1415, the first written Valentine’s Day card is attributed to Charles, Duke of Orleans, who penned a poem to his wife while imprisoned in the Tower of London.

The first commercially made Valentine cards were produced in 1849 in Massachusetts. In the 1860s, Richard Cadbury, of Cadbury Chocolates, England, was the first to package chocolates in heart-shaped boxes to increase sales.

Cadbury originally sold cocoa for drinking. They introduced the first chocolate to be eaten, but the recipe was unpalatable by today’s standards. The Cadbury brothers removed the starchy materials, and in 1897 they introduced the milk chocolate we know today.

The greeting-card industry took off in the 1850s after Congress voted to decrease postage rates to avoid the privatization of the postal service. Mass-printing machines and lower postal costs made it possible for everyday Americans to send and receive mail, typically postcards.

In 1910, Joyce C. Hall and his brother founded a postcard company in Kansas City: the Hall Brothers Co. When postcard sales declined around 1916, they printed their own high-quality Valentine and Christmas cards to be mailed in envelopes. In 1954 they changed their name to Hallmark Cards.

Q. I have an older smartphone I no longer use, but it has photos that I would love to see again. Can I copy the images to a new phone?

A. Check out the PhotoStick line of products. They have models that work with computers and smartphones. The smartphone versions are available at getphotostickmobile.io.

The phone cannot be too old. And it has to turn on and hold a charge long enough to copy the photos off it. It also requires a compatible connector, such as iPhone’s lightning port or USB on Android.

If these requirements are met, you can insert a PhotoStick into the phone’s connector and it will make a copy of all the photos on the device.

PhotoStick is reusable, which is handy if you have more than one smartphone.

One mild downside is that PhotoStick will copy every image. So it might sweep up odd images you do not want. It avoids making duplicate copies of the same image, and there is always a chance that an image might be missed.

But overall it is a reasonably easy-to-use tool that can rescue photos from an out-of-date phone.

Worldwide, about 1 billion cards are sent annually for Valentine’s Day (not including children’s classroom cards). Nearly 85% are sold to women.

Spending on the expression of affection in the U.S. totaled $23.9 billion in 2022, which included $6.2 billion for jewelry and over $2 billion for candy, mostly chocolate. Flowers, gift cards, food treats, wine, and personalized items or experiences are popular.

Within this buying frenzy, Cupid’s reputation and imagery remain a mainstay in the expression of love and friendship. They are imbedded in the commercialization of Valentine’s Day. An alternative this year: Be love.

Doris Montag is a homespun historian and an exhibit curator who researches and displays historical collections of ordinary things, such as can openers, crochet, toy sewing machines, hand corn planters, powder compacts, egg cartons, and more. Contact or follow her on Facebook, HistoryofOrdinaryThings.