Pattern 37:
AKA:

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‘Get me out of here.’

You want users to have a SENSE OF LOCATION (15) so you have put your SITE LOGO AT TOP LEFT (24). However, you sometimes need to take them from your site to someone else’s.

How do you ensure that users know where they are and can get back to your site?

Therefore

Use THE RHETORIC OF ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE (20) to tell users that they are visiting a site outside yours. If you open a new browser window, offset it a little so that the original window is still visible and, if possible, your site logo can still be seen. Avoid linking to sites that disable the back button where possible.

Avoid nested framesets or if this is unavoidable provide a link so that users can GO BACK TO A SAFE PLACE (34).

This pattern is terminal within this language.

Contributors and sources
Gareth Sylvester-Bradley

Discussion - forces - known uses

This is the first antipattern in wu. Many web sites have a horrible habit of having their web pages open additional browser windows without being asked (often without the usual window paraphernalia (scrollbars, close-boxes etc.) thus making it difficult for the average web user to close them). This is especially common with portals. The user may or may not be able to get back using the back button, depending on the site they arrive at. You have no control over this.

Furthermore, frame-based pages sometimes open additional framesets inside themselves ad infinitum – making it very hard to escape from.

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