The address bar Your web browser accepts references to public and private resources that begin with URIs (Uniform Resource Identifier) http: o https:. At one time, for example, most browsers also supported the FTP protocol (hence the ftp:// URIs) but this functionality was, over time, removed. But try typing something like file:///C:/ in Windows: you will find yourself in your hands a file manager which allows you to explore the contents of the local drive by identifying letter C:.
About:blank it’s simply a URL that represents a blank page. It is often used as a home page or as a destination to open a new tab in the browser without any content.
What it is and where it comes from about:blank
In general, about: is a URI reserved for internal browser protocols, which do not directly refer to resources published on the Internet and accessible over the network. The string blankas mentioned in the introduction, simply indicates a blank page, without content.
Try typing about:blank in your browser’s address bar and then press Enter. The navigation program shows a web page completely bianca.
URLs are used in networks and represent a subset of URIs, which express a more general concept. In the case of the URI about:just think that they also exist about:settings to access browser settings, about:downloads to get the list of downloaded files, about:version to access version information, and many more.
Most browsers automatically convert the URI about: in chrome:, edge: and so on, depending on the application used. As you can easily verify, however, the URI about: it is common to almost all browsers.
When to use about:blank and why it is not a problem
The appearance of about:blank in the address bar is therefore not a problem. Indeed, by going to the Web browser settings, you can type about:blank come first page to ensure that the application used to browse online always shows a blank page.
In Chrome you can do this by writing chrome://settings/onStartup then select Open a specific page or set of pages and finally, clicking on Add a new pageinserting your own about:blank in the field Site URL.
Alternatively, for example, the option Continue from where you left offallows you to reopen the same web pages you were consulting during the previous one browsing sessionbefore closing the browser.
The same thing can be done with Microsoft Edgetyping edge://settings/startHomeNTP then choosing the option Open these pages. With one click on the button Add a new pageyou can simply add about:blank.
In Mozilla Firefoxyou can type about:preferences#home in the address bar then choose Empty page at Home page and new windows or by specifying directly about:blank in Personalized addresses.
The procedure is essentially identical for other web browsers and also works for the “navigators” used on mobile devices.
The opening image is generated with Microsoft Bing Image Creator.