Pete FreitagFireFox Click Wheel does not fire onclick Event
I just noticed something today in Firefox (on Windows, probably the same on Mac haven't tested yet). Suppose you have a link with a JavaScirpt onclick event such as:
<a href="deleteTB.cfm" onclick="javascript:return confirm('Are you sure?');">delete</a>
If you click this link with the left mouse button the JavaScript is executed. If you click with the scroll wheel the event is not fired. This is a fairly common thing for a FireFox user to do since you can open links in new tabs by clicking on links with the scroll wheel.
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Tweet Follow @pfreitagFireFox Click Wheel does not fire onclick Event was first published on May 08, 2006.
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Comments
I think this is a good thing! I use it all the time to bypass JavaScript confirmation dialogs.
by Jason Grunstra on 05/08/2006 at 4:09:37 PM UTC
Bug or feature? You decide :)
by Pete Freitag on 05/08/2006 at 9:41:08 PM UTC
I think it's a feature. If you wanted to execute the JS you could right-click and choose "Open in a new tab" instead of middle-clicking.
by Brandon Eley on 05/09/2006 at 7:25:26 AM UTC
It's the way it should be, The js can-not be opened in a new page. A web designer needs to create an alternative way of accessing the site without js. That why the href should always be there.
Middle click should open a new tab. In case there is no real link the js can't open in a new page anyway. Sites that do open the js as if it's an url are just coded badly.
<a href="javascript:popup()">like this</a>
I do agree, it would be more logical for a browser to support onmiddleclick= and target="new_tab"
Middle click should open a new tab. In case there is no real link the js can't open in a new page anyway. Sites that do open the js as if it's an url are just coded badly.
<a href="javascript:popup()">like this</a>
I do agree, it would be more logical for a browser to support onmiddleclick= and target="new_tab"
by gaby de wildw on 05/12/2006 at 11:53:41 AM UTC
I am looking for a way around this because I have my button behavior reversed so that left-click opens tabs (my default) and middle click keeps me in the same page. When I use a web app that has a mix of plain and javascript links, I have to learn which are which so I know how to navigate properly. Annoying, but surprisingly learnable. Still, I would love to get the javascript triggered on middle click if I have this behavior setup. (I use Tab Mix Plus for this)
by Calvin Spealman on 11/24/2007 at 1:50:27 PM UTC