JavaScript window.open only if the window does not already exist

Question

I have an application that opens a new window on clicking a link. This spawns a page that holds a Java applet. The problem I am having is that clicking the same link reloads

Answer 1

You need to perform 2 tests... 1 check if the popup window is defined, and 2 check if it was closed.

if(typeof(winRef) == 'undefined' || winRef.closed){
  //create new
  winRef = window.open(....);
} else {
  //it exists, load new content (if necs.)
  winRef.location.href = 'your new url';
  //give it focus (in case it got burried)
  winRef.focus();
}