I see no “target=_blank” on your menu links, so I’m thinking you have a plugin someplace that is doing this.
Please attempt to disable all plugins, and use one of the default (Twenty*) themes. If the problem goes away, enable them one by one to identify the source of your troubles.
Thanks Steve
I disabled all the plugins and reinstated one by one, nothing solved it, in fact even with all the plugins deactivated it still happened.
I cant find anywhere where this code is? Its almost as if its treating each one of those links as a preview page? Bizarre.
Hi just to update, I have tried to debug the problem, but nothing is coming up as an error.
I also rolled back the WP installation on my localhost, no change, there. Any other ideas on what I can try?
Denise
I’m at a loss; I can’t see it. It seems to happen only when opening the first link. too.
Andrew Nevins
(@anevins)
WCLDN 2018 Contributor | Volunteer support
@thatsinsurance, This can be tracked down to a couple of scripts:
Can you again deactivate all your plugins and keep the Twenty Seventeen theme active so that we can debug this on a clean environment? At the moment it’s pointing to your theme.
Your menu is entirely JavaScript driven, it’s not a normal WP menu. With JS disabled, the menu does not work at all. I’m fairly sure the new windows are in how the menu script is written. I’m assuming the menu functionality is part of your theme. If it is a plugin, replace all instances of “theme” below with “plugin”. All I can suggest is to poke around your theme settings and see if there’s a setting to disable new windows somehow. If you can’t find anything, try inquiring with the theme’s developer. It’s hard to imagine someone would add that feature without there being a way to turn it off. But I’m not all that imaginative. 😉
Steve – sorry I missed your ping earlier today regarding this topic. I was in drive by posting mode before running out the door. Obviously it caught up with me 🙂
Hi
So, I have the site on my localhost, I have de-activated every plugin and put Twenty Sixteen Theme on. The Twenty Seventeen didn’t show the menu at all, twenty sixteen did show the menu’s but the links still opened in a new window.
All plugins were disabled
In terms of the links some of the pages went to localhost/dashboard, and a couple went to the page id.
So if this is still happening and my theme is not installed, can I be sure that its not due to my theme?
Can I rule out the plugins if they too are not installed?
This is really strange, as you say it only does it on the first linkout.
Ok so I just installed SKT Complete Theme, because it has a prominent top menu, so the menu structure is all over the place.
I have set it up to Home, Search, Communicate, Travel Guides. On this theme, there seem to be random pages that have a menu link and no correlation to the actual menu structure. Some still open up a new tab though.. its still present
Does that point to a database issue? Rather than a theme/plugin issue?
Does the fact that the page goes to
about:blank and then redirects to the correct URL mean anything?
It means something, but doesn’t explain how about:blank is part of the process. It’s difficult to speak about your localhost experience because we cannot not observe it for ourselves. It still appears that on your public site that the menu is JavaScript driven and the script is the one causing new tabs/windows to open. The fact the menu disappeared with twentysixteen could confirm this, or it could mean nothing.
It sounds like whatever script is causing the new tab behavior is still active regardless of theme or lack of plugins. This normally should not be possible, but yet it remains a possibility if the script was added in a manner that’s not recommended method.
On your twentysixteen localhost, try defining a new menu and assigning it as the primary theme menu. In your browser, disable javascript. It’s harder to find where this is done these days. Do an Internet search for how to do so on your particular browser if you’re not sure. The new menu should still work, even with JS disabled, and not open new a tab or window.
Switch back to your other menu, with JS still disabled. How does it behave? I’m not sure what the answer means either way, but it’s another data point.
I did a new menu on twentysixteen, it did show up on the page ok, but I still had this issue with the opening on the tabs.
The menu on my theme is a bootstrapper menu, this is how they added the second level menus. However, in view of the fact that the developers who did the site, made it fit to wordpress, I have now reverted back to them to look at it.
I will post back here if I get a resolution, and I really just wanted to give you guys on the wordpress forum a big thanks and thumbs up! Frankly this is probably the best level of response I have had on a forum – and that includes those sites where I have paid a lot of money for the software.. so thanks to all
Denise
