I know it can be done, just wondering why it's not the default here as it is at most other boards. I prefer it as it lets me browse around on the site of the opened link without losing my place on .Net.
Because you can do it yourself by right clicking and choosing to open in a new tab, whereas if it's made the default behavior, there is no option to have the link not open in a new tab. Doing it this way allows for both options.