[PeterisP]

I fully disagree. IMHO other open tabs are part of the current app state (not its history) just as the currently active tab. Do you expect clearing history to close the window you are currently looking at? None of the multiple browsers I use would close any open tabs when you clear browser history, at least on computers - mobile UX might be different, though, but I don't use mobile browsing much perhaps this is a source of differing expectations?

Regarding crashes, I fully expect that a browser which crashes or gets forcibly closed (e.g. the computer losing power) will restore all the open tabs afterwards, and modern browsers do succeed in doing that, if they did not, I would consider that as a bug to be fixed.

[tediousdemise]

Leaving a million tabs open is analogous leaving all your silverware on your countertop instead of putting it in a drawer where it belongs. Regardless of how convenient it is, it's chaotic and incorrect user behavior. People need to take accountability for not using internet browsers correctly. Learn from your mistakes. PEBKAC.

This actually gave me an idea: a web browser with a feature that automatically saves open tabs into a "tab list," which functions the same way as bookmarks. Oh wait, that's the browsing history.

[PeterisP]

If I have two tabs open, click "erase history" and one of these two tabs gets discarded, I have "used browsers correctly" (unless using the browser-provided tab functionality is always wrong) and still lost current application state. In such a situation there is no mistake to learn from, just broken user expectations (since no other browser does it that way) i.e. broken UX.

Also, I must point out that your choice of words with respect to users who have different habits than you - "PEBKAC", "need to take accountability for not using browsers correctly" is condescending, arrogant and simply rude - please do not do that. Not respecting users' choices and behavior is not an appropriate way to design user interfaces and is not an appropriate position from which to argue how user interfaces should be implemented. If browsers provide functionality for more than one tab, then browsers must work properly for more than one tab. In this case, the expected functionality for n=2 is the same as for n=1000, so the number of open tabs is not particularly relevant.