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Right-click contextual menu in Firefox 4: Is there a way to move/remove "Open in new tab?"

  • 11 replies
  • 151 have this problem
  • 4 views
  • Last reply by kencsmith

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I don't really like tabbed browsing, but "Open in new tab" is the first choice in the right-click contextual menu. I would like to have "Open in new window" be the first choice.

So is there a way to edit the contextual menu to change the order of menu items or delete them entirely?

Thanks in advance.

I don't really like tabbed browsing, but "Open in new tab" is the first choice in the right-click contextual menu. I would like to have "Open in new window" be the first choice. So is there a way to edit the contextual menu to change the order of menu items or delete them entirely? Thanks in advance.

All Replies (11)

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You can use the Menu Editor add-on to rearrange or remove menu items - https://addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/menu-editor/

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Thanks, TonyE! That add-on did exactly what I needed. I was even able to remove the "New Tab" menu item from the File menu.

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You're welcome

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This UI change is really stupid and useless. People got used to some specified menu items order. Changing this order could only annoy and anger.

Also the reload button has been relocated. This is another example of stupid Firefox 4 UI change. The good news is that it could easily be relocated to its original place.

It looks like the Firefox developers are suffering from idleness and boredom.

CHANGE IT BACK ASAP!!!

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2 Solutions found in http://support.mozilla.com/en-US/ques.../791244

the user cor-el has a method that does not require any add-ons. He States ---

This code in userChrome.css will move "Open Link in New Window" to the top of the context menu.

@namespace url("<a href="http://www.mozilla.org/keymaster/gatekeeper/there.is.only.xul">http://www.mozilla.org/keymaster/gatekeeper/there.is.only.xul</a>"); /* only needed once */
#contentAreaContextMenu > * { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 2; }
#context-openlink { -moz-box-ordinal-group: 1 !important; }

---

the user jay_ff shows how to do it using the Menu Editor Add-on

1. Install the Menu Editor add-on from https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/menu-editor/ .

2. After the installation, go to Firefox> add-ons (or simply use Ctrl+Shift+A)

3. Go to the Menu Editor "Options"

4. In the "Main context menu," simply grab the "Open link in New Tab" and place it below the "Open Link in New Window"

5. and Voila! You may also change other menu options if you want to!


I tried jay_ff method first and found that indeed changing the Main Context Menu did cause the hotlink context menu to change as well.

Modified by CaptainCosmic

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Is there a way to reinstall the older version over this stupid and annoying version? Why have you removed the way to jump straight to an "back" site? All what you have done in this version is MakeUp! Who needs it? And by the way you have removed almost all of the addons I had!!! This is unforgivable, I don't remember what addons I used. And finally, this version works slowly than the former version.

Roby

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I actually really like this change. I'll bet most people do because that's the option most people use more often. Might I suggest that if you don't like it, you may enjoy middle-clicking on a link - that will open it in a new tab without having to go thru the context menu. Hope this helps

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ace105. People don't all respond to change the same way. Some will like it and some will hate it and many will just go "oh FFS" (or equivalent) and get on with it.

I can see the logic that most people open in tabs so it might save a miniscule amount of time in the long run.

The problem is that it is a high use thing if you happen to use this and it is as someone else pointed out learned behaviour which can be hard to change. Clearly then the potential for upsetting people is very high and one has to question why the designers of the interface took this decision WITHOUT offering an easy way to revert behaviour.

Sometimes you have to clean up when things get messy, but with an interface this ought to be at the point of a complete overhaul when you are changing the whole method of operation. When you do minor things such as this there should be options.

I have to say other than speed, I have only noticed some of the interface changes and they all bug me. I wasted about an hour after installing FF4 "fixing" the bits I didn't like. That's a massive waste of time but actually a quicker return than spending several weeks seconds at a time learning new behaviour and more importantly not raising my blood pressure when I forget and things aren't going the way I want.

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I really don't understand why the developers changed around and removed some things in 4.0.

They removed the status bar, I had to install an add-on to get that back.

They also changed the order of the open in new window/new tab right click menu options.

I had to install ANOTHER add-on to change that back, too.

I've been using FF for years and like someone mentioned, the right click menu options for open in new window/new tab, over the course of those years, has indeed become a learned behavior, people get used to right clicking and having them be in a specific order, so the switch confused me. I was so used to right clicking and hitting open in new tab BELOW open in new window, that I kept hitting open in new window by mistake and couldn't figure out why.

I looked at it and realized the order had changed and then set about to finding how to fix it, and saw that I had to install ANOTHER add-on just to put it back the way it has been for years.

Having to install add-ons to get back things that we've been using for years was, honestly, kind of a shake my head moment.

And as someone else said, it appears as though the FF developers were suffering from boredom when they developed 4.0.

Was it a combination of boredom and a "let's screw with our users heads" kind of thing when the idea to remove things and switch the order of other things, was thought up?

I just don't get it.

Modified by katcooper

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This really is one of the more annoying changes in 4.0...

Ironically the thing I like most about 4.0 is the ability to revert most of the silly stuff that's new for 4.0. I do LOATHE the idea of needing add-ons for certain functionality that was in previous versions however.

If I wanted to use a browser that was like Chrome, I would just use Chrome. However I don't WANT to use Chrome, which is why I stuck with Firefox, so STOP TRYING TO MAKE IT LIKE CHROME. Please.

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I'd like the change (I'm a big fan of tabs) and I'm sure I'd get used to it in a week or so BUT I use FF 3 at work on several different computers. The version isn't under my control and it will be months to years before they're all up to FF4. I'm going to look at the menu editor to change FF4 back because using two different menu orders every day is going to drive me crazy.