Is _blank (HTML) basically an un-necessary popup?

makecheck · on Aug 14, 2011

Whenever a web site has chosen a link target on my behalf, it has been wrong; and what's more, "wrong" for me varies by device (e.g. on a desktop computer I don't use tabs and often want full control over spawning windows; whereas on an iPad with a tabbed browser I usually want tabs created automatically, but not always!).

I think the rule of "least surprise" applies; the least surprising thing for a link to do is to not specify a target at all, leaving the behavior up to the browser (where the browser in turn bows to user preferences and user overrides such as contextual menus). For example, on my iPad I already configure my browser so that different-domain links open in new tabs but same-domain links do not, and I set preferences for a reason: because it's my preferred behavior. These are things the web site couldn't possibly know about me, so the web site basically risks annoying me if they try to override my expectations.

If a web site must feel the need to fiddle with "target" (which I personally think they should not), I think the bare minimum they should do is include an icon or some hint next to non-standard links to indicate what will happen when the links are used. This is another thing that browsers could theoretically do by themselves, since they have all the information about link targets at rendering time.

kingofspain · on Aug 14, 2011

I think it would somewhat depend on your audience. The tech crowd may find it annoying but I know people who get immensely annoyed at having been taken away from the site they are reading after clicking a link. That's possibly all wrong but that's the way it is sometimes.

Personally I've been conditioned over the years to expect _blank on blogs so I don't think leaving it in will cause any great tremors in the force. TBH, taking it out probably won't make any real difference anyway. So, er, my point is

adyus · on Aug 14, 2011

Depending on who your target demographic is, you could make certain assumptions. Without reading your blog (but judging by the CMD in your post), I assume you use a Mac and write about tech. You could then assume that your readers know how to open links in a new tab, thus you might decide to remove the _blank. If your blog is geared toward readers with less experience, you might want to leave it in.

msacks · on Aug 14, 2011

Indeed, I am a Mac user and the blog is about tech. Thanks for the feedback, dropping the _blank.

chetan51 · on Aug 14, 2011

For most cases (like yours), using _blank would just annoy users. If they want a new tab, they'll open one, and if they don't but want to come back, they'll just hit the back button.

The only place where using it makes sense to me is on a web app or sign up / payment page which you don't want the user to accidentally leave and lose the state of.