Tabbed Browsing Experiences

I'm curious as to how others use tabbed browsing. In Firefox the only time a tab opens is when I intentionally open a new tab. Otherwise, new windows open. I've gotten used to doing things this way but I'm not certain that this is the best method. There appear to be so many options with tabbed browsing that it becomes confusing for the average user. My reasons for using it this way is simply to be able to bounce back and forth between two or even three pages... get information from one page and click the tab on the next to give that information there (i.e. to a forum). So... what am I missing or is this the "usual" way of going about using tabs?

 

James

That is the beauty of tabbed browsing, to be able to move between tabs, and not have to open a new window, thus using less resources.

This is how I use tabbed browsing:

I have 10 tabs that I move between most of the day. I have bookmarked them as a Tab Group, and added the folder to my Personal Toolbar. When I open FF for the day I click on my Tabs Group Folder, and then "Open in Tabs ", then I'm set for the day. If I need an extra tab or two, I click on the New Tab button, which I have added to my Toolbar, with "Customize ".

Hopefully others will let you know how they use tabbed browsing.

Ramona

 

I always use tabbed browsing in Mozilla and Firefox. It just makes things much easier, to me. And in Mozilla Suite, I can click the "New Tab" button on the left side of the tab bar to open a tab. Or alot of times, I will just middle/wheel click links to open it in a tab, then middle click the tab to close it. Also you can drag links onto the tab bar to open them in a new tab, but I don't do it very often.

 

Even though I have Firefox programmed to open bookmarks and most links in new tabs, I find that I almost always right-click on a link and select Open Link in New Tab from the context menu. If I want a new blank tab, I either double-click on the Tab bar or click on the New Tab button on the Tool bar.

To close a tab I can either double-click on it or click on its Close button (a feature provided by Tabbrowser Extensions).

 

Thanks for the replies. So... what are your settings? And where can a person learn more about how each setting changes the behavior of the browser and in what specific ways? Thanks, everyone.

 

James,
settings are in Tools|Options|Advanced|Tabbed browsing
The default settings to open a new window and hide Tab when only when website is open, and a couple more which confirms what you are saying, and you either did not know where the settings were, or did not change them, like I did not.
I, personally, hate to have Tabs open without me selecting them, as it was the case with the Netscape Browser Prototype, where all default settings were reversed from Firefox1.0.
I keep tabs open, pretty much like Ramona says, and I select them to open every time by selecting the General Prefs|Current Pages. I have 11 tabs in FF, 15 in Netscape7.2, and 18 in Mozilla1.7.5. Generally, I open a new page in a little use tab, so that I can go back and forth. For instance, I have Ramona's Netscape Solutions as a tab, but another newsgroup, which will remain unnamed, due to local regulations, will be opened in a little used tab. Occasionally, I open an extra Tab like JSS3rd does.
I don't find the Tab extention to be all that useful, so I ignored it.
I have only one problem with so many Tabs. Many of the names cannot be changed, so, I get a lot of "Welcome" or part of website tab.
One example is the Iowa public TV site, of which I get: http:....org/ or another website: Welcome t... And, it gets worse with more Tabs.
This website comes out as: Windows, and Ramona's site as: Netscape...
Netscape.com has four periods!

 

I don't use tab groups, and I can't even imagine having 11 tabs open at one time, let alone 18. If I'm not using the site on any given tab, I usually close it, as it's easily recalled from History (Ctrl + H, the Go > History menu, or the History button on the Toolbar).

Also, that's what bookmarks are for ... to enable you to get to frequently accessed sites while keeping down the screen clutter.

 

I am using almost all the Tabs, daily. and, I have all my bookmarks in folders in my Personal Toolbar. I know that I can reduce the number of Tabs, but it makes my life easier, and confuse others. My wife just started to use Firefox, regularly, and in her list of things to get rid of was the Tab bar. No Prefbar, no personal toolbar, no Spoofstick bar. Her screen is twice as large as mine!

 

My aim is not to confuse others, but to keep from confusing myself!

I don't like the way bookmarks open in a sidebar when called from the Bookmarks button on the Toolbar, much preferring the Menu bar display. In fact, History is the only sidebar I ever use.

I use the Navigation toolbar, but no Personal toolbar (I don't see the point of having both). I use a Tab bar, I keep the Prefbar hidden until I need it for something, and I've dumped the Spoofstick bar as being almost useless. I never had an instance where Spoofstick reflected something other than what was displayed in the Location window.

Lean and clean is what I like.

 

Everyone has different ways to do things. Out of habit, or good reasons.
For instance I like the width of the page to be mine, and not a sidebar, which may or may not help. My sidebar is always off. As for History, I use Go|History, although I hardly ever do it. The Navigation bar is only one item, while my Personal Toolbar contains every Bookmark I have, in different folders. That make my life a lot a lot easier. I try to keep my folders no larger (longer) than they can fit in a page. I may have thirty-forty entries in each folder. I may have 15-20 folders, with up to 500 bookmarks. And, of those, I select over 10 as Tabs. This is extremely practical, but it can incomprehensible to others. One can do away with the Personal Toolbar, since all folders are in the Bookark button. It is just an extraclick.