Using target=”_blank” for links is not outdated (anymore)

A few days ago I saw a post of Smashing Magazine on their Facebook fan page. It said (link):

“Are you actually still using target=“_blank” in your projects? Isn’t forcing links to open in new windows way too outdated these days?”.

I went through some comments on that Smashing’s post and I was positively suprised with the response of users. Facebook fans of SM totally rejected author’s view. So, let’s define “_blank”:

“_blank” is a target attribute in html that opens linked site/document in a new tab. It is written in a code of the website, or more specifically, in a html syntax for targeting links. For example, if we use it for twitter profile then it would be:

<a href="https://twitter.com/DejanUlcej" target="_blank">My profile</a>

If you click on link that uses such attribute, new tab opens in your browser. In that tab you can see your linked site. These tabs are located above your address bar of the browser and are opening from the left to the right. If there’s no target=“_blank”, link opens in the same window. That’s all. There are also other attribute values but you can get more information about those at W3Schools.

OK, why would “_blank” matter? Who cares? Well, we do. Users. Especially, if we also want to click on other links on the same page or/and we still have an interest for coming back to the source page. If there is no “_blank”, many clicks on Back buttons will be necessary, including the time for all the pages to load again. So, why “_blank” shouldn’t be ignored or treated as something outdated?

Browsers have changed

In last ten years there have been many important changes in browsers. Before these changes happened, things in browsers were different. In 1990s, “_blank” worked like that: when you clicked on the link with “_blank” target attribute, new window opened. But the impression was as if you would open “new browser” or a different application or a recently installed program! With low capacities of memory it took some extra time for that new window to lunch, without mentioning connection speeds. User had to be patient if five “_blank” links were opened, because this meant five separate windows. The result was low performance of computer and a lack of space in the (limited) taskbar at the bottom of your screen. In such condition, “_blank” was surely annoying and developers stopped using it. That’s how we entered into the era of anti- “_blank” policy that strictly forbade using “_blank” attribute. Anywhere.

Ten years later, this “policy” still holds its domination here and there, because some people still believe in it. I don’t say being retro is wrong, but would it be really so hard if they would just ask users for an opinion about “_blank” links?

At the end of millennium, big changes occured. New browsers emerged as an alternatives to Internet Explorer, like Opera (1996), Safari (2003), Firefox (2004) etc. They offered new technical solutions and features to users. In the beginning of 2000s, feature called tabbed browsing was implemented in all major browsers. This feature enabled users open multiple websites in a single window; “_blank” links were not opened as new windows anymore, but as new tabs. Tapped browsing transformed window-opening “_blank” to the tab-opening “_blank”. It offered users to open all links in tabs and simply switching between them without clicking Back or Forward buttons. The concept of tapped browsing changed our perception of browsers as “a big pop-up windows” to lightweight, elegant collections of tabs. As I see it now, this was one of the biggest change in the history of browsers and also a pretty good reason to start using “_blank” again.

Users want to have control over their movement

Usually, we are browsing because we’re looking for some information. That’s why websites should be structurized in a manner that allow users to search, read, or scan the content without being confused or involuntarily redirected somewhere. User always wants to know where he/she is and how can he/she move from there. It is just like traveling in some geographical area —no traveler wants to get lost or have any feeling of uncertainty about his location. In browsing, situation is quite similar. Browser works here as a tool that reduces user’s uncertainty in information space. It supports user’s ability to look for information, to navigate, and to keep control over his/her movement from page to page. Those are probably three most important abilities given to users.

Links can be internal, where user stays on the same website while surfing different (internal) pages, or external, that send user away to some different website (with different domain).

If user comes to a website with the content that is in the user’s interest, then this is his/her final destination. User is now where he wanted to be and he doesn’t want to be sent away. Now, he has a control over his location in information space — he knows where he is and how he got there. If he then clicks on a link that uses target=“_blank”, new tab opens. This appears as a small change above the address bar, just like a fuel indicator on the dashboard of a car — it doesn’t appear on your windshield. Since it appears discretely, it doesn’t confuse user or draws attention that much. User keeps an overview of opened links and the content — using other words, user still controls everything (information, navigation, and his position in information space).

Beside this, user can gain a lot more from unchanged content in window and with newly opened tabs:

• (1) easier, faster, and more accurate way to change the presented content just by switching between tabs;
• (2) no need for waiting links to (re)load;
• (3) comparison between different contents/pages/websites;
• (4) no need for using intermediate links to go back; if those links are not in an interest of the user he can just close the tab;
• (5) technical advantages (better computer performance etc.).

If “_blank” is not used, UX can suffer

Different situation occurs when “_blank” is not used for link. Sudden change of content in the same window causes three things:

• (1) user loses the feeling of having control over everything in the browser for a moment;
• (2) because of collapse of his navigational concept user must now adapt the understanding that the only way to go back is to use Back button;
• (3) accepting the fact that Back button must be clicked and that page (previous “final destination”) will have to load again can cause frustrations, fatigue, loss of information (in short-term memory), and loss of an interest for information searching.

All these factors influence user experience. If link would use “_blank” attribute, none of these three things could happen.

Use “ _blank” (only) for the benefit of user

Using “_blank” universally on every page would be the same mistake as not using it at all. Our goal is to deliver most important information to the user at minimal cost and effort. If tabs help to reduce user’s time and effort to get to such information, then use “_blank”. If you are still not sure, then try to think as a user and make some clicks on your website. I suggest you use “_blank”:

• If click on a link could cause losing any kind of data (e.g. user’s cover letter for a job in text format or a comment on some article),
• If linked page (link) has many links (many levels in information architecture),
• If link leads to a different website (e.g. link to your business partner’s website or explaination of some term),
• If link is a PDF file,
• If link is in a longer text of great importantance to customers (links on pages like terms of service, terms of agreement etc.),
• If opened link would mean the end of session on the previous page (e.g. login session needs to be validated again when coming back),
• If link has “heavy content” (big photos, long articles, many videos etc.) and will probably need more time to load,
• If link is a social networking website (Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Linkedin etc.),
• If link is an application form (e.g. for a job, contact),
• If link would obviously appear as unfriendly to the user (demands user’s effort and time).

Those are just few examples when “_blank” could be necessary as a target attribute. It would be appropriate now to list examples when it shouldn’t be used, but I guess it would be enough just to say “in all other situations”. Also, “_blank” could be annoying to someone in mobile browsing.

Alternatives — not as good as “_blank”

One alternative for “_blank” could be a target attribute “_new”, which opens all links in a new tab. In other words, all links will be opened in the same (newly opened) first tab. At first, I thought this is a decent alternative to “_blank”, but now I must admit I am not sure about it anymore. Maybe it is a good alternative in cases where there are few links or when all further links are not so imporant. But even in these situations I would rather use “_blank” instead.

Second alternative is third (middle) mouse button. It offers user an elegant option to open links in tabs whether “_blank” is used or not. But why would user need to try the link first — with the first mouse button (to see how it opens) — if developer could simply use ”_blank”? Mouse button is a nice solution anyway, but not all mice have third buttons.

I believe we should at least reconsider about “_blank” attribute. It’s pointless insisting on some “web stereotype” that ignores (new) technology and users. The fact is that “_blank” is not unfriendly to the user and it certainly isn’t something that would’t fit with new features of browsers.