There are two concepts at work here...
the differences in usability between web applications and web pages (and tenuous as that distinction often is).
and
External hyperlinks to webpages not on the current site.
The first concept has a different (if similar) list of usability requirements which does include sometime usage of user initiated pop-up windows. Although there are many and varied problems surrounding this practice as well.
The second concept has been pretty thoroughly tested as being a bad idea. As with everything else, know your audience, but as we work on the internet it can be impossible to completely know our audience. So we develop best practices, which sometimes include prohibiting things which are quite useful to some, but either annoying or destructive to others.
s
Ben Webster wrote:
Hey there team,*****************************************************
surely there must be a more specific objective than for the users to simply stay on the site for as long as possible.
I can assure you that is not the objective of content heavy sites like smh.com.au
I can think of many good reasons to go to a new window. Here's a good one - contextual help. Think of the UI for helps screens on your PC // Mac. They always open a new window into a help centre where you can pose your question - get your answer and then close the window. This way you're still at the place you experienced the problem, but you're now armed with the knowledge to solve it.
For an online eg go here - https://f2members.f2.com.au/f2Reg/f2members/join.do and click on the question mark icon.
Benvolio p.s. I don't work for f2.com.au
----- Original Message ----- From: "Chris Stratford" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Monday, February 09, 2004 11:11 AM
Subject: RE: Opening pages in new windows... was Re: [WSG] XHTML (OT??)
Well its more a hobby than a job...
I do work - but its not my primary source of income - that's the parents :) I still live at home - im 18 and just began university (telecommunications engineering @ UTS)
But that's true - if they click out of your website, they will probably get lost in a myriad of of links and popups, they will forget there name - let alone your website.
That's why all offsite links are new window links. :)
----------------------------- Chris Stratford [EMAIL PROTECTED] www.neester.com -----------------------------
-----Original Message----- From: Michael Zeltner [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, February 09, 2004 10:46 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Re: Opening pages in new windows... was Re: [WSG] XHTML (OT??)
i think it depends on how you see it.
the customer (i presume this is your job) wants the user to stay on the site as long as possible. if a site opens in a new window, the possibility that user will browse his site again, is much higher than if
he has just the back button.
from the usability/information architecture point, the target="_blank" is rather bad imho.
just my 0.02 euro ;)
regards, michael -- niij <http://niij.org/>
***************************************************** The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/ *****************************************************
***************************************************** The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/ *****************************************************
*****************************************************
The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/
*****************************************************
The discussion list for http://webstandardsgroup.org/
*****************************************************
