[Forum] Stop vbulletin opening links in a new window

[camoit]

How do I stop the bulletin board from opening links in a new window? Any time there is a post with a link it opens them in a new window. Even if is a custom bb code. It will automatically insert the target="_blank"

How do I stop this?????? It's driving me nuts.
Please Help

[vpcarrocci]

For what it's worth, I would rather have links open in new windows as I don't want my users being taken away from my site. I prefer for the new window to open, let them do what they want to do there, close it and still be on my site.

Just a different point of view for you to consider.

[camoit]

Ya it was causing an isue with a embeded WMP I was working on in the custom BB codes. Major stopping point. I did find a fix for it and still alows for the target="_blank to work on links.

[janaf]

For what it's worth, I would rather have links open in new windows as I don't want my users being taken away from my site. I prefer for the new window to open, let them do what they want to do there, close it and still be on my site.

Let the admins choose defaults in ACP; It must be possible to have target=_self for links within the site and target=_new for external URLs if one wants that.

Please vote for having this issue fixed: http://tracker.vbulletin.com/browse/VBIV-2666

[Jérémie]

The target attribute should not be used at all.

Every modern (read: from 10 years or so) browser can let it's user choose wheter to open a link in a new tab/window if they want to. Opening a link in a new tab is usually as simple as a middle-mouse-click. Doing the opposite is cumbersome, and most people don't know how to do it.

A website should not, NOT, try to control the basic browsing of its clients/visitors. The kind of idiotic “feature” is what drives people away. It will NOT keep people on your website, it will do the opposite.

As for very specific and limited cases, like the help popup in the backend, javascript should be used and still not the target attribute which is deprecated, limited tio frames (and we all know frames are evil), and such not strict HTML/XHTML.

[Mark.B]

The target attribute should not be used at all.

Every modern (read: from 10 years or so) browser can let it's user choose wheter to open a link in a new tab/window if they want to. Opening a link in a new tab is usually as simple as a middle-mouse-click. Doing the opposite is cumbersome, and most people don't know how to do it.

A website should not, NOT, try to control the basic browsing of its clients/visitors. The kind of idiotic “feature” is what drives people away. It will NOT keep people on your website, it will do the opposite.

As for very specific and limited cases, like the help popup in the backend, javascript should be used and still not the target attribute which is deprecated, limited tio frames (and we all know frames are evil), and such not strict HTML/XHTML.

That only holds water if all your users are reasonably tech-savvy.

For most webmasters, most of their users simply point > click, point > click, point > click. Having links open in the same window takes them OFF your website and then many are unable to get back again.

Hell, many users don't even know what a "browser" is. They talk about "my internet". As in, "I just switch on the computer and open up my internet".

Internal links should be in the same window, external in a new window. But it wouldn't hurt to be an admin option I guess.

[Ramsesx]

The target attribute should not be used at all.

Every modern (read: from 10 years or so) browser can let it's user choose wheter to open a link in a new tab/window if they want to. Opening a link in a new tab is usually as simple as a middle-mouse-click. Doing the opposite is cumbersome, and most people don't know how to do it.

A website should not, NOT, try to control the basic browsing of its clients/visitors. The kind of idiotic “feature” is what drives people away. It will NOT keep people on your website, it will do the opposite.

As for very specific and limited cases, like the help popup in the backend, javascript should be used and still not the target attribute which is deprecated, limited tio frames (and we all know frames are evil), and such not strict HTML/XHTML.

All links leading to external sites should be _blank, that's the way how the net works from beginning, if you like it or not.

[Jérémie]

For most webmasters, most of their users simply point > click, point > click, point > click. Having links open in the same window takes them OFF your website and then many are unable to get back again.

That's what amateur webmasters think, without any grounds. Studies actually show the opposite, regular users spend more time closing the superfluous window than paying attention to what you wanted to tell them in the first place. Google it and select serious sources, you'll see.

Internal links should be in the same window, external in a new window. But it wouldn't hurt to be an admin option I guess.

Well, given the number of people who want to “keep their users chained to their website” (what a stupid idea), yes it would hurt. But less than the hacking we're required to do right now.

In any cases, it should not use the depecrated and obsolete and evil TARGET attribute. If you really really really want to (can't figure out why for the life of me), have that admin option use javascript to open new tabs.

All links leading to external sites should be _blank, that's the way how the net works from beginning, if you like it or not.

That's just so wrong on so many levels, I don't even know where to start. Check http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Framing...ld_Wide_Web%29 for example.

1. “The net” as you call it is not the web. IM, Emails, video & audio chat, Online gaming, a large part of the file downloading, p2p, just to cite a few, have nothing to do with HTTP protocol.
2. “The net” did not start with the world wide web. The web was added much, much later.
3. Frames date back to HTML 3.0. See this version number? It means that before there was an HTML 0.x, then 1.x, then 2.x, WITHOUT frames at all.
4. Frames were created by Netscape, implemented in Netscape Navigator 2.0 (still that version number to look up). It may be quite old to you, not for all of us, and its still much younger than archie for example, or usenet, whether you like it or not.
5. vBulletin does not use a frameset doctype. Hence, it should not use the TARGET attribute.

[beishe8]

That's what amateur webmasters think, without any grounds.

I'm an amateur webmaster and an amateur surfer.
I do not like to be careful to control-click on a link to be able to get back to the original site easily.

[Ramsesx]

Jérémie, it wasn't my intention to start a definition of the "net" and you may be right in some points.
But I meant, go and visit some big player sites for reference purposes, click at advertisings or external links and you will see they open in a new window.
So, for me it is a minority requesting external sites being opened in the same window.

[janaf]

IMO the main issue is to let admins choose the behaviour, not have it hardcoded like now. It should be possible for non-coders to change the link behaviour via ACP

In the tracker this is now marked as:

Status: Confirmed
Priority: Major
Assignee: Unassigned

http://tracker.vbulletin.com/browse/VBIV-2666

[ChromebookUser]

I can't believe this is even a debate. The software should allow content creators to specify a link target. If I want to send the user to a sub domain or another one of my sites without creating a new window, I should be able to. My writers can't even link from the blog to the cms or forum without creating a new window. They have to hand code html to get it to work.

[Loco.M]

All external links should open in a new window, there is no point in arguing that
I don't want to drive users away from my site, and neither do the majority of admins here.

[ChromebookUser]

If I want one of my sites to send traffic to my other sites without creating a new window, I should have the option. "You" deciding what the majority of people want is irrelevant.

It's beyond stupid that I can't link from MyvBulletinSite.com/blog to MyvBulletinSite.com/forum without creating a new window.

[ChromebookUser]

I hacked vbulletin link target code to not open a new window when linking between my cms, blog, forum postings!

In includes/class_bbcode.php I changed the last line of function handle_bbcode_url from this:

return "<a href=\"$rightlink\" target=\"_blank\"" . ($is_external ? ' rel="nofollow"' : '') . ">$text</a>"; 

To this:

return "<a href=\"$rightlink\" target=\"" . iif(strstr($rightlink,"chromebookuser.com"),"_self","_blank") . "\"" . ($is_external ? ' rel="nofollow"' : '') . ">$text</a>"; 

Note that you have to re-save your articles after making this code change.

I also made this change in includes/class_bbcode_blog.php to function handle_bbcode_url.

I haven't tested this a whole lot but it looks good.