[Nov 10, 12:52] Moneypenny [e-mail]
LUKE!! Why, oh why, do the links on your site open another browser window? Bad design!

[Nov 10, 13:02] Luke [e-mail]
You mean blog links? Because I like it that way, of course. When I'm reading a blog or Slashdot or something, I always open links in a new window. Links internal to my site should all stay in the original window.

[Nov 10, 17:00] Moneypenny [e-mail]
Usability-wise, it's always better to let the user decide whether to open additional instances of an application. If I want to leave a site via an intra-entry link, I have made the decision and when a new window pops open it's basically as if the site administrator is having one last go at making you read their content. A better way would be to use a leetle beet of Javascript and the "[] check to have links open in new window" at the top of the page (unchecked by default). Just a little usability feedback.

[Nov 10, 17:01] Moneypenny [e-mail]
Forgot to mention that the checkbox approach is what Atrios uses.

[Nov 10, 21:37] Luke [e-mail]
I just took a look at Atrios' code. I don't like it. It applies to every link on the page, rather than just external links. If I can modify things in such a way that you only have the option with external links, I might try it, but I don't like that solution as-is.

It might have to do with our computers and browsing habits. When I go to a site with a lot of external links, I want to be able to keep that available while I visit those links. For me, closing a browser is easier than going 'Back' a bunch (especially if I follow a bunch of links on the page I jumped to), and faster too. And if I can just click on the link instead of bringing up a contextual menu, I'm all for it.

[Nov 10, 22:07] Luke [e-mail]
Try the option on the left. It defaults to checked, but otherwise should work.

If I get really ambitious I'll have a cookie save the value for you.

[Nov 11, 09:29] Moneypenny
Yep, it works. Thanks Luke.

BTW-- I use tabbed browsing in Firefox, so I use contextual menus all the time. I know you can CTRL-click, but I tend to browse with mouse only so I right click and choose "Open in new tab". What that means is that if I click on a link I truly want the new content to open in the same window, same tab. Otherwise I would have explicitly stated via rght click where i wanted the content opened.

Just my browsing habits, though, and I guess I would consider myself fairly advanced because I think a lot of about usability.

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