Posted by Jukka K. Korpela on 01/08/06 13:54

Rob McAninch <rob_13@excite.com> wrote:

> Here's a fairly recent article.
> http://www.useit.com/alertbox/open_new_windows.html
>
> He actually encourages new window use.

For PDF and other "non-Web" documents, as an exception to Nielsen's strong
and well-argumented recommendation of not opening new windows.

But even in this restricted meaning, the advice is wrong. What the user needs
is a warning about the data format - at the minimum, "(PDF)" after the link.
This is relevant for several reasons, including the fact that not all people
can and not all people want to open PDF documents in the first place.
Moreover, it lets the user know what to expect if he follows the link
and make an informed decision on _how_ to open it.

It does not solve the problem that everyone needs to meet a PDF document on
the Web for the first time in his life and learn what to do with PDF
documents. (On my first time, it was an awful confusion, with strange
controls and no apparent way to actually use the document.) Opening a PDF
document in a new window by default would not solve that problem either; it
would add a new minor ingredient to the problem.

--
Yucca, http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/
Pages about Web authoring: http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/www.html

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