New Windows

[Todd]

I'm the same as dubiousdisc. I use _blank for outgoing sites like links, affiliates, and my own contact page. It is about the flow to me.

Hearing you guys is making me think though! Maybe I should give up _blank altogether.

[dubiousdisc]

I was thinking, maybe it bothers most of us because we're all power users. On the other hand - aren't people who would visit a shrine also gonna be power users...

[Sofia]

After being bombarded with usability and good web practice rules at university by one of my professors I wouldn't dare use the "_blank" target again XD

Actually I believe to have used it only in my early web days, when I made layouts with frames, but that phase was short lived. I always liked to decide myself whether I want to open links in new windows or not so I find it annoying when I'm not given that choice.

[dubiousdisc]

Sofia, do you maybe have more things to read on the subject? I'd be interested in reading those studies.

[Sofia]

Sure thing, dubs! I have kept all my notes so I should have some websites and books listed there. Most of them are in English so it could be interesting for other people as well. I'll look into in and if I find anything I'll post it here.

[Crystal]

I love to use "_blank" for pretty much everything that is not part of the individual site. I like it when everything opens in a new tab/window so I can easily visit the previous site I was at. It bugs me when sites I visit don't do this because I'll have to hit the back button in order to get back to it. As a result I will often right click on links and select open in new window to deal with this. Not a big deal I guess as it is kinda habit now but yeah.

[Lethe]

I'm like Emma here. By habit, I open everything in a new tab by holding down CTRL, so I don't even notice whether or not "_blank" is coded in. I do have my browser set to open "_blank" links in a new tab rather than a new window though.

I used to use "_blank" very often back when I made websites around 2003 though... when tabs weren't really a thing yet, I think. (I also remember having to get used to all sites being grouped into a single symbol on the task bar, rather than clogging it up. 8D)

Due to the habit and preferring to determine how/where to open new pages on my own, I don't code it in anymore.

I was thinking, maybe it bothers most of us because we're all power users. On the other hand - aren't people who would visit a shrine also gonna be power users...

This is something interesting to think about. For example, I don't include a "back" link in the footer of my sites because I've always either used the browser's back button or the backspace key. When I asked Todd about the rationale behind it, he explained it's most likely being done to help visitors who aren't power users haha.

[dubiousdisc]

You know, we could make a poll about this to know exactly how many people use the CTRL/middle click to manipulate that directly!

[nyxmidnight]

I use it all the time. My middle click gave out on my mouse at home recently and I am an angry Nyx.

[Laura]

I used to use _blank back in the day but now I don't use it at all.

Like dubs, I middle-click to open stuff into new tabs. I don't always want something to open up in a new tab, when when I do, I do it myself. It gives me more leeway in how I want to browse sites, rather than someone else dictating it for me.

On the other hand, I also hate being forced to leave my site when viewing images in my galleries. It's really inconvenient for people to click "back" on their browser (or backspace on keyboard) just to go view the next image. Not user friendly in any way. So this is why I use lightbox! You can still middle-click or open the image in a new tab if you want to, but you can also browse the gallery very easily without interruption.