Well tabs are an advanced user feature, but then again, so are smart bookmarks and extensions. Moving to epiphany-extensions for further consideration.

I reported the downstream bug.  I think everyone can agree that opening the results in the *current* window is not a desirable result.  So that leaves us with a new window or a new tab.  

Tabs are the better option.  Tabs aren't so advanced that they can't be a default option.  Firefox opens search results from a context-menu search in a new tab by default (if I remember correctly) and there is an option to change it.  In fact, trunk builds of Firefox currently open *all* popup windows in tabs.

A tab makes sense because the highlighted text that you're looking up on a page with a smart bookmark clearly is associated with that page itself, so the results should be in the same window.  Furthermore, if you look up multiple items, there quickly is a lot of ugly window clutter.

Tabs as default behavior in this instance makes a lot of sense.

Hi Franklin,

I won't go into a yes-no discussion about which is better right now, but do take into account the GTK notebook problem that newly opened tabs can "disappear" (bug 330676). As long as that isn't solved, a new window is safer from the UI feedback point of view.

Thanks for pointing that out, Reinout.  I've been in touch with Jean-François Rameau, the extension's author, about this.  As the code is now, it goes to gconf to look for 

/apps/epiphany/extensions/smart-bookmarks/dictionarysearch/open_in_tab

But this setting is not created by default.  Whether the results open in a new window is determined by the following

		if (eel_gconf_get_boolean (CONF_OPEN_IN_TAB))
		{
			flags |= EPHY_NEW_TAB_IN_EXISTING_WINDOW |
				 EPHY_NEW_TAB_JUMP;
		}
		else
		{
			flags |= EPHY_NEW_TAB_IN_NEW_WINDOW;
		}


Since CONF_OPEN_IN_TAB calls a gconf setting that doesn't exist by default, the "else" always is the case.  There are two ways to fix it:

One is, just make the behavior only opening in a new tab, removing the if..else  and only setting the flag as EPHY_NEW_TAB_IN_EXISTING_WINDOW

Second is, change the default setting for CONF_OPEN_IN_TAB to make it open in a new tab.

I'd guess that #2 is preferred, since it allows power users to change the setting using gconftool if they really want results in a new window.  

a new window makes sense too, you get the information you asked for without having to do an extra action which is switching tabs and it's easier to get back to your window than having to do tabs switching for that

Responding to comment #5- the code as it is now includes the EPHY_NEW_TAB_JUMP flag, so the new tab would automatically come to the front, just as a new window would.  So there's no extra action with having it open in a tab.

I'd also like to add that with a new tab, the "x" to quickly dispose of the window is in the same place every time, which is clearly a superior UI behavior than having to deal every time with a window whose size will vary and whose buttons will correspondingly be in a different place almost every time.

To emphasize: 
* with a new tab, the results come up in the same window, as they should since the results are "spawned" from the original page
* with a new tab, the "close window" buttton is in the same place every time
* with a new tab comes all the benefits of using tabs, including not cluttering the taskbar.

* in a new window, the behavior is less predictable, the window will spawn in different places all over the screen
* new windows clutter if you're looking up several things, which many people do

The only argument here against the change is that a new window would come to the front, while you would have to switch to a tab.  That's demonstrably false.  So that's where we stand right now.  Does anyone else care to chime in on this?

I still stand for the new window by default, tabs are confusing for users not used to them. Switching the tab when opening the new one would be especially confusing. Note that the window geometry is predictable since that's it only uses the geometry you used before

OSX uses the modifier/apple-key, to allow the user to toggle this behaviour on the fly. Since OSX has "replace current page" as default, this is quite vital and I have become quite addicted to it.

I think that a similar solution would be a really nice addition to the smart bookmarks extension, whatever you choose to be the default action. (My suggestion is that pressing CTRL while activating the action will toggle where the new page will be directed too - tab vs. new window - in case I did not make that clear).

Background: I usually try to group pages that belong to the same "context" into one window, using multiple tabs. So from my POV, the new page should in most cases go into a tab. But I can also see cases where I want it to be in a new window, if  the new page belongs to a "different context", and I want to come back to it only later.

According to its developer, epiphany-extensions is not under active development
anymore. (For reference: https://mail.gnome.org/archives/gnome-i18n/2013-May/msg00035.html and bug 700924.)

It is unlikely that there will be any further active development.

Closing this report as WONTFIX as part of Bugzilla Housekeeping - Please feel
free to reopen this bug report in the future if anyone takes the responsibility
for active development again.