APOD: The Light of Stars (2012 May 08)

[Evenstar]

I love APOD and will continue to use it but I would like to point out one inconsistency that I don't like. When there is a video like the current one, "The Light of Stars (2012 May 08) please do not automatically launch the video. I've used APOD as my browser home page now for years. I do not like it launching every time I open my browser. Iirc, this is the first time a video has automatically started playing. Please fix it so it doesn't.

Thank you.

[Flase]

Back in the day it used to be bad form to have embedded midi files in a webpage. Nowadays, when embedded video saps the system resources, blows people's data caps and is harder to find amongst a number of tabs in the browser, it is considered acceptable to start them playing automatically, sometimes two or three tabs at the same time making a cacophony.

I wouldn't really do it to people.

[Chris Peterson]

I love APOD and will continue to use it but I would like to point out one inconsistency that I don't like. When there is a video like the current one, "The Light of Stars (2012 May 08) please do not automatically launch the video. I've used APOD as my browser home page now for years. I do not like it launching every time I open my browser. Iirc, this is the first time a video has automatically started playing. Please fix it so it doesn't.

Thank you.

In this case, it appears to be a poor decision on the part of the page designer. The embedded Vimeo player has "autoplay=1" set in the source; if changed to "autoplay=0" this behavior should go away. Perhaps one of the site admins can make that change, or pass it on to somebody who can.

[SuperJam]

I love APOD and it is such a great website that I set it as my homepage.

I would love to echo the request of another user regarding days which have a video: please don't set it to autoplay upon the page load! Let us control starting the video please.

Thank you

[DavidLeodis]

In the explanation it states the video sequences were taken from Tenerife, which is one of the Canary Islands. However, in information brought up through the "MAGIC gamma-ray telescopes" link it states those telescopes are located at the Roque de los Muchachos Observatory on the Canary island of La Palma. I'm thus .

[florid_snow]

El Cielo Canarias is translated "Canary Skies" in the opening title. But the word "cielo" reminds me of the English word "ceiling" which has connotations of a roof, or enclosure. "Le ciel" is the French word for the sky. I know in English we can say either "the sky" or "the heavens" recalling our ancient (and current) mythological beliefs, but to say "the ceiling" to refer to the sky would probably draw funny looks.

Does anyone else think it's neat that language records our previous mistaken beliefs, and that the meaning can change and the silly belief discarded without changing the word? Getting the religious connotation out of the word "disaster" certainly hasn't been a disaster

Why is it that some people have to attack others beliefs at every opportunity? If you don't believe in certain things, don't try to prevent others or call them "silly". Never forget this: However "ancient" and "unfashionable" death may appear, no-one has managed to avoid it even in these days of technology and medicine...

Dude, the sky is not a ceiling. Such a belief is quite silly, but understandable. If you believe the moon lies just above the treetops, it will be forever out of reach.

Please, when you die and feel like you have left your body, and you hear that strange droning buzzing noise, and realize it is the end, remember it was an agnostic materialist like me who told you about the buzzing noise. Then remember I love you.