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Re: Reason For Links Opening In New Window

for

From: Philip Kiff
Date: Jan 8, 2007 10:10AM

Andrew Kirkpatrick wrote on 8 January 2007 09:50 EST:
> The questions that I ask myself about this general guideline for
> accessibility are
> 1) Are there web applications that are similar to desktop applications
> in terms of complexity (answer: yes)
> 2) Can I imagine operating complex apps with all user interface
> appearing in the same window - no dialogs, no extra windows? (Answer:
> no)

This is an interesting way of approaching the issue of pop-up windows on
websites in the context of the burgeoning popularity of "Web 2.0" apps. I
hadn't really thought about the issue from this perspective before, and it
seems clear that you are right to draw a parallel between JavaScript (or
other) pop-up windows on websites and modal (or other) dialog boxes in
operating systems.

Having said that, however, I wonder about two things.

First, while there are growing parallels, especially superficially
(visually) between the function of web-based applications and
local-operating-system-based applications, there is still a deep chasm of
underlying (code) differences. I can imagine a very near future in which
there are potentially thousands of different web-based interfaces that a
person might reasonably stumble upon on the web, and each interface will
come with its own design principles and coding ideas. Some will eventually
become dominant and perhaps thereby become the defacto standards for how to
code pop-up behaviour in Javascript/AJAX/PHP/whatever. But there will still
be thousands of others that exist only on a couple individual small sites
somewhere. In such an environment, the lack of predictability of web-based
applications could become a nightmare for a user with cognitive disabilities
or for creating fully-compatible screen-reading or other AT software. By
contrast, isn't it a much, much easier task to get such AT software to work
correctly with just a couple different operating systems? (This is not to
say that new standards for "web applications" won't be created, I expect
they will, but for the moment that seems at least a couple years off). So,
aren't you asking your questions a couple years too early, before there is a
standard for such behaviour available on the web?

Second, while I haven't sat down and tried to envision an entire operating
system, it does seem to me that you could design productive, complex
applications that did not require the spawning of windows and/or modal
dialogs. Certainly, the modal dialog box is the currently dominant standard
method of working with applications, but I suspect one could develop a
streamlined application that worked without such things. I'm not a software
designer, but my imagination suggests that our currently accepted "normal"
computer interface could very-well be superseded by something else entirely
within 10 years. And I'm not immediately convinced that pop-ups would have
to be part of that newfangled interface. I'm not sure why web-based
applications have to be stuck in the same design mode as
local-operating-system-based applications do...isn't part of the promise of
the web precisely that such new interfaces could become possible where they
weren't before?

As I say, interesting questions. I haven't thought much about the issue at
this "macro" level before, and it does make one wonder where the future of
pop-ups might lead us.

Phil.