Stay distracted: Keep Netflix video running in the foreground on your Mac

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Watch your favorites while getting work done, too.
Watch your favorites while getting work done, too.
Photo: Stephen Smith/Cult of Mac

Sometimes, work is boring. You might need a distraction from whatever routine task you’re doing on your Mac, like entering data into a spreadsheet or replying to email. Netflix is a great idea, but you have to portion your screen or move windows around in order to both watch a show on Netflix as well as get your work done.

Not anymore, though, as NEnhancer lets you use the magical power of Chrome to get a Netflix movie or TV show in a small window that will float on top of any other apps you’re running, making sure your Netflix video running in the foreground on your Mac.

Just be sure to actually get your work finished, too.

Add this extension to Chrome and stay distracted all day.
Add this extension to Chrome and stay distracted all day.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

First thing to do here is to head over to the NEnhancer Chrome extension page. Click on the Add to Chrome button in the upper right corner to install it. After you confirm the install, you’ll see a little “N” logo appear to the right of the address bar in Chrome. You can click and drag the NEnhancer icon to anywhere in that section of your browser, too.

Enable this experimental Chrome feature to get the Popout player working.
Enable this experimental Chrome feature to get the Popout player working.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Next, you’ll need to enable a beta feature in Chrome. Type

chrome://flags/#enable-panels

into your address bar and then click on the Enable link underneath the Enable Panels section. This will let NEnhancer bring a Netflix window up for you that will float above the rest of the apps on your screen.

Quit Chrome and restart it.

Now, head to Netflix and find a video you want to watch. Start it playing in the main browser window, and then click on the NEnhancer logo (which should have turned red at this point). You’ll see a Popout Player icon (it looks like a tub of popcorn); click on it and it will bring up a little window with your video playing in it.

You can move this new window around your screen; it will always stay in the foreground. You can re-dock it to the bottom right corner of your Mac’s screen, too — just drag it over there by the title bar.

Minimize (or close) the player when your boss walks by.
Minimize (or close) the player when your boss walks by.
Photo: Rob LeFebvre/Cult of Mac

Clicking the line icon in the upper right of the Popout Player window will minimize it to the bottom of your Mac’s screen when docked, or to the Dock when it isn’t. Confusing, I know. The X button will close the Popout player.

NEnhancer adds some other functionality, like IMDB ratings, trailers, lets you hide category rows you don’t care about, and more to your Netflix experience, so be sure to check it all out.

Otherwise, now you can watch all the House of Cards you want while you write articles for Cult of Mac. Oh, wait…

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