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How do I prevent Firefox from automatically placing me in the tab that is created when I click on a link?

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For example, sometimes I want to open all the links in a "Google Alerts" email in new tabs BEFORE I look at any of them. By default, I have to keep clicking back to the original email after I click each URL. I want to be able to open multiple links in new tabs without being automatically placed into each tab after every click. I know I can right click and say "open in new tab" but I want to just be able to click on the link.

For example, sometimes I want to open all the links in a "Google Alerts" email in new tabs BEFORE I look at any of them. By default, I have to keep clicking back to the original email after I click each URL. I want to be able to open multiple links in new tabs without being automatically placed into each tab after every click. I know I can right click and say "open in new tab" but I want to just be able to click on the link.

Modified by firefox4life3423

All Replies (5)

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Tools > Options > Tabs

un-check - When I open a link in a new tab, switch to it immediately

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This only works in some cases. But if I click links in a 1) Google Alerts email OR 2) click on "Documents" or "Calendar" in my Gmail account, I am automatically placed into the new tabs. I want to be able to click on these links without being placed into the new tabs (and not having to right click on them to open the links).

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I'm not entirely sure, but that may happen when a window is diverted to being opened in a tab by Firefox, and that "new window" was coded to have the focus.

I get around that by middle-clicking or {Ctrl + Click} on most JavaScript coded hyperlinks, you should see that is a JavaScript link by the wording in the Status Bar.

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Are that regular links or are they handled by JavaScript ?

There are three prefs, accessible via the about:config page, to control the focus if you click a link.

  • browser.tabs.loadInBackground (normal links; also Via Options > Tabs)
  • browser.tabs.loadDivertedInBackground (javascript)
  • browser.tabs.loadBookmarksInBackground (bookmarks and searchbar)

See also http://kb.mozillazine.org/about%3Aconfig_entries

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They are regular links, not JavaScript links. This is an example of the Calendar link in Gmail (https://www.google.com/calendar/), and the Google Alerts links in the emails look like some sort of google.com redirect to the URL.

Any help in figuring this out is much appreciated! Can you direct me towards exactly how to fix the issue?