Questions tagged [browser]
A browser is software to present content on a web site.
165
questions
117
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11
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How to "force" users to upgrade their browser?
I couldn't think of a better title for this question, but please don't jump to conclusions - I don't really want to point a gun at my users heads!
I have a site that works well with the modern ...
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5
answers
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Why does backspace go back a page? This behavior is so frustrating!
When using a browser, like Firefox, I appreciate that I can easily navigate my tab history with Alt+← (for back) and Alt+→ (for forward.) That makes perfectly good sense to me, and I've used that ...
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82
votes
9
answers
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User's reaction to a web-browser opening upon exiting application
I am a game developer and I want players of one game to know and try my other games, so I came up with the idea to launch their default browser, only after they quit the game for the first time, to my ...
user82382
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10
answers
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Do websites still have to support Internet Explorer 8 and below? [closed]
BACKGROUND
I am about to launch my website. It's an academic site with expected user base consisting mainly of academics. It looks good in Chrome, Safari, Firefox and IE10 and above.
I just sent a ...
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votes
5
answers
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Why does the space bar do page down in browsers
Why is the space bar doing a page down in some viewer apps, especially browsers and PDF readers?
For me this seems to be a bit counter-intuitive, and also this behaviour affects games and other ...
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55
votes
4
answers
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How many users use browser's text search within a page?
Do any significant number of users Ctrl + f windows or ⌘ + f macOS to activate browsers' text search?
I'm trying to find some usage numbers, but I can't find anything.
Background
I'm working on a ...
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47
votes
23
answers
4k
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Is there ever a good reason to force opening a new browser window?
As a power web user, I know how to use my browser and it drives me nuts when web sites force me to open a new page. My mother, by contrast, just gets confused when this happens. At the end of a web ...
Shermozle
40
votes
16
answers
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Why do we say we "browse" to a place on the Internet when we actually download a web server’s content to our browser? [closed]
Browsing the web is a common daily task for more than a billion users, and we do not pay much attention to it. We just “browse to a place” or ask our laughing friend across the table “where she is on ...
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31
votes
4
answers
4k
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Why does Firefox remove the "close tab button" when you have more than n tabs open unless you focus on the tab?
The origin of this question is that I've tried to find a way to override the behaviour of Firefox which removes the close tab button of unfocused tabs as the number of tabs rises, with no luck.
My ...
- 16.2k
20
votes
7
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4k
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How to determine the oldest browser version to support before you have users
I'm working on a brand new website and trying to figure out how to decide the oldest version of IE to support since I have absolutely no user information to look at. Most of the answers I come across ...
- 1,213
19
votes
3
answers
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Message saying "your browser is not supported" in corporate environment?
A lot of ink has already been spilled over the reasons why the infamous useragent string should not be used for browser parsing, and giving a message to the user that they have to upgrade their ...
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18
votes
3
answers
8k
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Statistics or research on browser window size based on the display screen size
There are many sources and references for reports on screen resolution and display sizes for desktop (and mobile), and there are less information about browser window sizes. I think both pieces of ...
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18
votes
5
answers
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Is there a logical alternative for the Escape key?
I have a game that can be played in your browser. It's a retro game (multiplayer snake) and the menus and your snake can only be controlled using your keyboard. Mouse input is ignored.
I was using ...
- 283
17
votes
6
answers
4k
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Tabbed browsing. Why close the application on closing the last tab?
This happens in IE, Chrome and Firefox. When you close the last 'tab' when you're navigating, the application closes. I'm aware that Chrome (at least) has a really fast restart after that, but still, ...
- 1,759
16
votes
4
answers
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Can you see a good reason to remove the plus sign in Google Chrome's create tab button?
I am talking about this button:
The plus sign that used to be on that button has been removed in recent versions.
I am very intrigued as to why they might have found it convenient.
I'm a google-...
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votes
3
answers
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Why is audio not treated like other browser permissions?
Web browsers have lots of per-domain permissions, like using location, access to camera and microphone, and notifications.
Why don't browsers have a permission for audio? Audio is especially ...
- 311
15
votes
7
answers
5k
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Why don't browsers show a dialog when closing a tab?
Is there a specific reason why browsers don't inquire whether users want to close a tab or not? This feature is enabled in some browsers (possibly all, though not certain), but only for multiple tabs, ...
- 37.3k
15
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Should web users see the http:// prefix to websites?
Chrome seems to have been the first to start hiding the http:// prefix last year, and there seemed to be significant contention. Rather than show the full prefix chrome lops off http:// and displays ...
- 40.8k
14
votes
3
answers
499
views
Guidelines for browser page overlap?
When you press Page Down in a browser, there's usually a small number of lines from the bottom of the current windowful displayed at the top of the next windowful. The amount of this overlap is ...
- 241
12
votes
7
answers
2k
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Why do the popular browsers copy each other's user interfaces?
Why do all the popular browsers blatantly copy each other's user interface?
See these screenshots to understand what I mean:
Mozilla Firefox (see Australis is landing in Firefox Nightly and ...
- 293
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votes
6
answers
1k
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Does the use of a WYSIWYG editor by itself improve the UX?
As someone with a lot of background writing low-level software, I've always felt a strong dislike for WYSIWYGs such as CKEditor or TinyMCE in the browser. To me they are mostly problematic, as they ...
- 221
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4
answers
2k
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Should scrolling in a textbox overflow to scrolling a page?
When entering long sections of text into a textbox in a browser (such as when using gmail or a site like this) we can scroll within that textbox, which is as it should be.
However, the behaviour of ...
- 68.3k
12
votes
4
answers
6k
views
Browser extensions: page action or browser action?
I develop a Firefox and Chrome extension, and I'm adding a button. It seems like a page action (button in the address bar) is the "correct" choice, as opposed to a browser action (button on the ...
- 223
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votes
2
answers
5k
views
Are there any stats on browser widths as opposed to monitor size?
Our analytics across several sites are all showing a marked increase in 1440px+ monitor size, but has anyone seen any stats about what browser size people with large screen tend to use?
Do people ...
- 121
11
votes
4
answers
3k
views
Can you characterize a user by their choice of Internet browser?
I would like to know if usability is different across different Internet browsers and if this is caused by varying demographics. Below, are some interrelated questions addressing this issue:
Does age,...
- 10.8k
10
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Should opening a modal box change the browser history?
I am displaying images which can be clicked to be opened in a modal box (like this plugin does) and zoomed when pinched on touch devices (like this demo).
The actual modalbox is as follows:
It ...
- 16.8k
9
votes
3
answers
589
views
Do niche web applications still strive for legacy browser support?
I'm developing a web application that work on mobile, tablet and laptop/desktop.
I'm curious about how common it is for niche web application developers to disregard legacy browser support, ...
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9
votes
3
answers
2k
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Is it bad practice to disable (replace) the context menu?
I'm working on a web platform where users can select/highlight text and perform selection-specific actions on the highlighted text. The current implementation shows a custom context menu on selection (...
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9
votes
2
answers
641
views
browser geolocation: offer to user automatically?
I have web where content depends a lot on users geolocation. So it would be really nice to use W3C Geolocation API. When I do that, user is asked by browser authorization bar whether allow geolocation ...
- 193
8
votes
6
answers
740
views
Should tabs changes in a web app be part of the browser history?
I've implemented a JavaScript plugin that tracks tab changes in through the browser history. Here's a brief overview of how it works:
Once tab is clicked, the URL hashtag (the part that looks like #...
- 10.3k
8
votes
4
answers
583
views
What's wrong with the old Firefox? [closed]
Firefox has changed a lot after version 3. I personally think the main reason is the advent of Google Chrome.
For example,
To open the Downloads window, one has to press Chrome's combination Ctrl+J ...
- 191
8
votes
1
answer
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Why would a dinosaur be there when chrome is offline [closed]
I was wondering why google chrome's team replaced the sad face with a dinosaur on the browser when we are not connected to the internet. (not many dinosaurs use the internet, I hope). Is the dinosaur ...
- 191
8
votes
1
answer
2k
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What is the benefit of using the HTML5 <time> tag?
I have a web application I am writing the HTML for. In the app I will be displaying a lot of dates and in HTML5 they added a <time> tag. If I wrap all of my dates and times in the <time> ...
- 249
8
votes
2
answers
2k
views
What percentage of internet users save credentials in the browser?
I'm trying to get a high-level understanding of what percentage of internet users allow their browser to store the username/password so I can understand the potential impact "breaking" this will have ...
- 181
8
votes
3
answers
707
views
Do good UX guidelines exist against little JS windows inside the browser
I encounter a lot of web applications that essentially implement a small windowing system inside the browser. On you web page there exist a number of little boxes that look like windows, which can be ...
- 1,517
7
votes
5
answers
723
views
Why do browsers allow users to open more tabs than it is possible to manage for a good user experience?
It is not unusual these days to see someone on a browser application with so many tabs open that you can't even see the favicon. I remember when bookmarks were provided to help manage a large number ...
- 26.7k
7
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Responsive design on desktop
I am creating a responsive UI application for desktop, tablet and smartphone. And it looks and works fine.
Most of the site has a responsive design like microsoft or nokia global. It also changes ...
- 181
7
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Best practice for scroll bars in a browser on iPad
We have a web application which will be used also on iPads.
In some parts content is long and users need to scroll.
On a pc it looks good, however on iPad scroll bars disappear after a few seconds. (...
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votes
4
answers
1k
views
Back breaking sites
What's the reason that so many site these days "break" my back button experience?
Even stack does this: I read a question expand the comments, scroll to the first answer, follow a link, decide I'm ...
- 595
7
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Why do some patterns flicker in strange colors while scrolling? [closed]
This image (source: Guardian Business) exhibits strange behavior when scrolling on some browsers. At 100% in Safari (on OS X on an LCD display), it flickers red when scrolling; at some zoom levels it ...
- 189
7
votes
3
answers
3k
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Why Google Chrome does not have a GoTo link button like other browsers? [closed]
Why google chrome does not provide a GoTo Link button like in IE, Firefox, etc.?
And if this is because of the simple & modern design concept than why does other browsers still have GoTo Button?
- 325
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votes
5
answers
311
views
Is it user-friendly to not provide the option to filter by price?
I'm currently working on an e-commerce website which sells magazines, books, subscriptions, and training materials.
When the user searches for a product filter options are provided to refine his ...
user25518
7
votes
3
answers
1k
views
When Back Button is Expected but Not Supported, The Least Invasive User Assistance?
Problem: I have a situation where in a browser-based web application the back button (and backspace key for that matter) cannot be supported or used. If it is used, the results can be unpredictable in ...
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3
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Why is it ok that apps don't respond to device orientation but webpages are expected to?
There are plenty of mobile apps that only work in a single orientation. Landscape (Garageband, lots of games), Portrait (Settings, Phone, Remote, App Store, Twitter, Facebook, lots of games)
What ...
- 1,071
7
votes
4
answers
246
views
Should a user be informed if their Do Not Track request is honoured?
In recent years all major browsers have added support for the HTTP Do Not Track (DNT) header. The user is able to configure their browser to send the header with all HTTP requests to a web server, ...
- 3,580
6
votes
7
answers
640
views
Why Browsers load Websites gradually?
When I visit a website, even on a high-bandwidth internet connection, the page will load bits at a time, such that I get to watch the page be constructed before my eyes.
Even though this happens ...
- 163
6
votes
5
answers
725
views
How to handle older/non-compatible browsers viewing your online app?
Say your app works well on modern browsers, but has features that don't work so well on older browsers (e.g. IE). How do you handle this?
I see three possibilities:
Ask IE 6-8 users to download ...
- 505
6
votes
1
answer
652
views
Why do some websites hijack "open in new tab"?
Just came across this annoyance reading an article at time.com. Unfortunately, this was not the first time I experience this, and I have a strong feeling it won't be the last.
Leaving aside ...
- 163
6
votes
2
answers
851
views
Are there any strategies or design patterns for managing a large number of tabs on a browser window?
Due to the changing nature of people browsing and reading through information on the web, the bookmark has been getting less love compared to people leaving tabs open on browser windows (or multiple ...
- 26.7k
6
votes
1
answer
253
views
When given the choice on a website; are people more likely to download the app or keep using the browser?
When you go to Zappos.com on an iOS device you're greeted with a splash screen saying "We made an App!" and it gives you the choice to "Download Now" or "No Thanks, I'll just use the browser."
I was ...
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