Firefox: How do I open external links in tabbed windows by default?

My only complaint about Firefox is that on the SDMB (and other MBs) when I hit the back button to get out of a thread, I wind up at the very top of the previous page instead of in the exact place I left off. It gets really annoying if I was all the way at the bottom of the thread list and then when I return I am back at the top. Does anyone know if there is a fix for this?

Not exactly a fix, but you could change your browsing style slightly - what I do on message boards like this one is go down forum(like the GD or GQ) and middle click each thread that looks interesting into a new tab - I find this method to be a much faster method of browising, especially when the SDMB decides to act slowly. YMMV.