Safari + Google = no tabbed browsing

May 5, 2005 11:33 AM

I'm having a strange problem with Safari and Google: if I run a google search and command-click on a result (to open it in a new tab) about 90% of the time it will open in the main tab, thus only allowing me to click through to one result at a time. This makes me very unhappy, as I loved using tabs to quickly sort through search results. I haven't had any problems using command-click on other sites.

I think this started happening about the same time I upgraded to 10.3.9, but I'm not sure. Anyone else had this problem after the upgrade? Is it fixed in Tiger? Did google change something in the way it links to search results? Is there a way around this?

posted by rorycberger to computers & internet (9 comments total)

Do you notice this problem occuring more frequently when you're doing CPU/memory intensive operations? I could see how loading a page full of search results (especially if you return say, the first 100) would be something that would slow down the response of your computer enough for it to not respond correctly.

You can test this theory out by holding down command, mousing over slowly, then clicking deliberately. If you still aren't creating new tabs, my theory fails :).
posted by onalark at 12:27 PM on May 5, 2005

I have the same preferred method of browsing Google links, rorycberger, but I noticed no problem like that in either 10.3.9 or in Tiger.

Are you using any third-party Safari plugins, like Saft or PithHelmet? Any keyboard re-jiggerers like uControl?
posted by bcwinters at 12:30 PM on May 5, 2005

I think google did something. I have the same problem suddenly in Firefox and I've heard others complaining about it.
posted by CunningLinguist at 1:14 PM on May 5, 2005

the new google search history uses javascript to forward you through their own server before taking you to the correct page in order to track what you've clicked on. the status bar shows the correct text because it's a normal link, but when you click on it – modifier key held down or not – safari immediately opens the link in the current window/tab as per the javascript instructions.

there are two things you can do: ctrl-click (or right click) and select "open link in new tab" or log out of your google account so that the search history is disabled.
posted by tumult at 1:49 PM on May 5, 2005

actually, you could also disable javascript, but you probably don't want to do that.
posted by tumult at 1:51 PM on May 5, 2005

This has been happening to me too. Not all the time, but sometimes. I had thought I was going completely insane.
posted by jessamyn at 2:04 PM on May 5, 2005

Ah, the search history, of course. I completely forgot about signing up for that around the same time I upgraded to 10.3.9. Thanks tumult, logging out fixed it.
posted by rorycberger at 4:36 PM on May 5, 2005

For what it's worth, I got it working in Firefox by changing the advanced java setting to allow it to move or resize existing windows and setting my google preferences to open links in a new window.

(I use the gmail alert thing and so like to stay logged in.)
posted by CunningLinguist at 11:36 AM on May 6, 2005

You also can use the Saft plugin to work around this issue. It adds a ton of great features to Safari, and one of the smaller ones is a fix for this issue. It basically just ignores the script if you command-click it. Sounds like you'd skip the search history by using it here, but it has definitely saved me some frustration elsewhere.
posted by robotspacer at 2:04 AM on May 15, 2005