# Firefox web search and tabs **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 20, 2005, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534 "2005-12-20T23:16:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2005, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/1 "2005-12-20T23:16:41Z")
The most annoying thing I find using Firefox is when using the search bar. The results always take over the current tab, which is most often NOT what I want. Ideally I would like to be able to control this on a per-search basis, such as a button which I can activate with either the middle or left mouse button to control tab behaviour, just as I do currently to open links and bookmarks. Failing that I would prefer if searches _always_ open a new tab. Is there a solution (surely there _must_ be). I am using v1.5. ---
**Author:** ![antich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7c8e57/32.png) [@antich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antich)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2005, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/2 "2005-12-21T00:03:05Z")
If you don’t mind ditching the stock search bar, googlebar allows you to Ctrl+Enter to open the search in a new tab. ---
**Author:** ![Reply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/reply/32/15952_2.png) [@Reply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reply)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2005, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/3 "2005-12-21T00:10:46Z")
Try alt-enter with the stock search bar. ---
**Author:** ![Lok](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e8c25b/32.png) [@Lok](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lok)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2005, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/4 "2005-12-21T01:51:45Z")
Tools\>Options\>Tabbed Browsing\>User Interface checkmark the Searches from the Search bar, then Load in Background or foreground, your choice. I am using the [Tabbrowser Preferences](http://216.55.161.203/theonekea/tabprefs/) extension, so this may be different if you don’t have it. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2005, 6:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/5 "2005-12-21T06:33:18Z")
A simple Control-T creates a new, empty tab, where you can do the Google search. Firefox even carries over what you keyed into the search bar, so if you start to key something in the search bar when you realize you don’t want to overlay the webpage in that tab, you can just do Control-T, the stuff you keyed will still be there in the search bar, and you can trigger the search in this tab. You can even do this _after_ you’ve started the search. As soon as you realize that you’re going to overlay a page you want (usually immediately after you click it!), you can hit back on that tab to go back to the page you were at. Then do Control-T to open a new page, and start the search there (easy, because what you typed is still there in the search bar). ---
**Author:** ![ticker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@ticker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ticker)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2005, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/firefox-web-search-and-tabs/336534/6 "2005-12-21T16:00:29Z")
Thanks for all the suggestions. The alt-enter suggested by **Reply** seems to be the most natural, for me at least. I will try this for a while and maybe try the Tabbrowser Preferences extension suggested by **Lok** later on to see which I prefer.