Opera Tips & Tricks: Background and foreground tabs

July 18, 2011 · by Aleksander Aas

From time to time, we come across questions on our Facebook page and Opera Twitter profile. A common questions from new users is how to open links in new tabs. Our usual answer is "middle click EVERYTHING", but further customization allows you to:

Action	Background Tab	Foreground Tab
Right Click	Right Click » Open In Background Tab	Right Click » Open In New Tab
Mouse Gestures	Right Hold » Move Down and Up	Right Hold » Move Down
Keyboard + Click (Windows)	Ctrl + Left Click	Shift + Left Click
Keyboard + Click (Mac)	Cmd + Left Click	Cmd + Shift + Left Click

What's your preferred way of opening tabs?

Readers' comments 45

Left under the original article, as archived.

TamilMonday, July 18, 2011 12:32:07 PM
Middle click and its action can be quicly configured using Shift + Middle click.
Anton TsigularovMonday, July 18, 2011 12:45:46 PM
open-in-background-with-long-press extension. Works wonders on those silly little computers with only 1 button. You know - the ones Apple makes.
Докучаев КонстантинMonday, July 18, 2011 12:47:06 PM
Middle Click rules
Espen André ØverdahlMonday, July 18, 2011 12:47:34 PM
Originally posted by TheAtilla:

open-in-background-with-long-press extension.
Link?
mArtinko5MBMonday, July 18, 2011 12:47:52 PM
it doesn't work for me in windows ...
alfromaMonday, July 18, 2011 12:48:14 PM
Middle click or Ctrl+Click.
praetor87Monday, July 18, 2011 12:49:48 PM
Ctrl+t.
JaredMonday, July 18, 2011 12:50:31 PM
I choose to marry middle click.
mehdusMonday, July 18, 2011 12:56:00 PM
Originally posted by EspenAO:

Originally posted by TheAtilla:
open-in-background-with-long-press extension.
Link?

https://addons.opera.com/addons/extensions/details/open-in-background-with-long-press
XenoAntaresMonday, July 18, 2011 12:57:45 PM
Originally posted by EspenAO:

Originally posted by TheAtilla:
open-in-background-with-long-press extension.
Link?

A simple search for "background" on the Extensions' page leads you to: ”open-in-background-with-long-press“ by Lex1.
RegnarebMonday, July 18, 2011 1:01:22 PM
The problem is you can't middle click EVERYTHING in Opera.

When I let try Opera to a new user, a common question comes back : "How can we middle click a link on the interface of Opera... like a bookmark in a bar ?" (other than the personal bar)

It's impossible, and I say "Press ctrl before you click", but the users don't want to use the keyboard, and I understand them. It would be a great thing to fix that by default !
kszumnyMonday, July 18, 2011 1:09:10 PM
Middle click + Back/Next Arrow (from navigation bar) doesn't work. This issue was reported dozens of times...
big-osMonday, July 18, 2011 1:16:57 PM
What is really bothering me is that middleclick on the border between tabs and a page opens "thumbnails tab mode". Which sucks. No, really, who uses it? It takes screen space and is slow as hell on my machine.

To close tabs i mainly middleclick them. But every other time I miss the tab and click on the separator and BOOM, laggy "tab thumbnails" mode ensues, it changes viewport size, so all the pages re-render, slowing Opera even more. Also now I have to stop paying attention to the site I was viewing to close this shitty mode -- which isn't easy, because this separator is, I don't know, maybe 3 pixels thick, so every other time my cursor slips again and I close a tab I wanted to see. Ctrl-z. Try again. Okay, I fuckin' closed it. Now, where was I... Oh, yeah, I wanted to say that I just lost 5 secs of life because someone at Opera did not pay attention at their usability class.

FIX THIS, Opera. I want this separator middle click to do nothing, OR AT LEAST BE CONFIGURABLE. I don't think I have to add, that there is no option of disabling this useless "tab thumbnail mode" in the menu.
Daniel AnghelMonday, July 18, 2011 1:28:17 PM
open-in-background-with-long-press extension is the best
FizykMonday, July 18, 2011 1:40:40 PM
mouse middle button (new tab in background)
Patrick (Dysiode)Monday, July 18, 2011 1:44:01 PM
While I do middle click many links it's important to note that ctrl/shift+left click work on ANYTHING that opens a link be it searching form the context menu to opening a bookmark.

@big-os: Right-click the tab bar > Customize > Appearance > uncheck "Enable thumbnails in tabs"
didisupriyonoMonday, July 18, 2011 1:56:49 PM
QuHnoMonday, July 18, 2011 2:05:34 PM
Spatial navigation and
Shift + Enter
for background tab.

Heavy KB user here
Charles SchlossMonday, July 18, 2011 2:11:21 PM
Letting it open in the background, when I click on a link and have a window for links
abdur92Monday, July 18, 2011 2:55:04 PM
I just use the mouse gesture, its just muscle memory now.
Twalumba mwiinga jnrMonday, July 18, 2011 3:42:47 PM
Mido clik z gr8 4 me.
TobbenTMMonday, July 18, 2011 4:14:30 PM
Re-mapped so I use mousegesture mouse-down to open in background tab.
d4rkn1ghtMonday, July 18, 2011 4:22:32 PM
Middle click everything!
Dustin WilsonMonday, July 18, 2011 4:25:12 PM
Middle clicking, personally. Allows me to continue reading what I'm reading. Over the course of reading an article or something I can open all the links I'm interested in the background.

@big-os: Yeah like Patrick stated you can disable them. If you're a compulsive middle-clicker disabling tab thumbnails is a must.
Yeni SetiawanMonday, July 18, 2011 4:31:43 PM
Middle click FTW!
Yeni SetiawanMonday, July 18, 2011 4:41:03 PM
Originally posted by Magnus616:

open-in-background-with-long-press extension is the best

ain't it reduce the speed?
i have to click long enough (let's say 2 seconds) while i can click middle button in one second or even less.
QuHnoMonday, July 18, 2011 6:08:24 PM
Originally posted by sandalian:

while i can click middle button in one second or even less.

... true, but only if you have a middle mouse button - which for example my trackball doesn't have
macecoshubiMonday, July 18, 2011 6:19:12 PM
open-in-background-with-long-press extension

It changed my internet experience! Should be default in Opera browser.

I use it ~80% of the times I open a link.
Yeni SetiawanMonday, July 18, 2011 6:52:01 PM
Originally posted by QuHno:

... true, but only if you have a middle mouse button - which for example my trackball doesn't have

LOL, that's true
I forgot about that because I always use mouse even on laptop
webtaxMonday, July 18, 2011 7:00:28 PM
that extension is pretty good, i never use a mouse in a laptop so it comes in handy
A. DudaMonday, July 18, 2011 7:59:33 PM
I also love the open-in-background-with-long-press extension. It is very useful to me because my low quality mouse wheels/middle buttons get broken very easily
addjzat byhakqy suddraddjzatTuesday, July 19, 2011 4:42:26 AM
HenryTuesday, July 19, 2011 5:41:44 AM
+1
New tab control+T.
To next tab Ctrl + Tab.
Previous tab Ctrl + Shift + Tab.
Sw/ to previous tab Ctrl + Shift + F6.
Sw/ to next tab Ctrl + F6
#keyuser mainly use mouse gaming
Control+shift+T ! A #worksaver many a time if i've forgotten to pintab
Edit: Sorry ot.. 502s
macecoshubiTuesday, July 19, 2011 7:29:09 AM
open-in-background-with-long-press extension should be extented to use properly with tab stacking (a feature I unfurtunatly use quite seldom)
SolomonTuesday, July 19, 2011 12:07:05 PM
i luv opera
SolomonTuesday, July 19, 2011 12:08:54 PM
plz i want to know how to create operamini help me plz
itochanTuesday, July 19, 2011 4:25:41 PM
I prefer middle click as same as many users.
LёppaWednesday, July 20, 2011 6:55:58 AM
Middle Click - usually.
Shift + Left Click - sometimes.
Yeni SetiawanWednesday, July 20, 2011 7:13:50 AM
As far as I know, by default we can use middle click or Ctrl+Left Click to open a link in a background page.

But I found that middle click won't send HTTP Referer to the new page, thus I failed to open a page that request referer page information.

I have tested it on previous Opera release and that's true and I haven't tried for current version.
JulianWednesday, July 20, 2011 7:46:34 AM
Great! this kind of publications is very useful and encourage to people to be aware abut Opera functionalities. I'll take some tricks for teach the persons that visit us in the Opera's Stand in Campus Party Mexico.
Ivan KotlajaWednesday, July 20, 2011 1:08:41 PM
Mouse wheel button is best for background tabs...
Sid MWednesday, July 20, 2011 8:01:24 PM
middle click EVERYTHING
XP1Thursday, July 21, 2011 1:01:59 PM
Thanks, I didn't know about CTRL only. I was always using SHIFT and CTRL simultaneously.

(SHIFT) + CTRL + Click ALL THE THINGS.
Charles SchlossTuesday, August 2, 2011 3:03:07 PM
In background tab

Strange most of my subscriptions here are not getting email notification any idea why?
oli4pMonday, October 3, 2011 9:10:26 AM
Holding right mouse button and moving down the mouse