Tabs are for workflow; they're a completely different modality for working with a browser, and it's not about MRU.
The reasons we open multiple tabs is primarily for cross-referencing, and secondarily "preview"
You've completely made this up and it bears no relationship with how I use browser tabs. Many of my tabs are open for months at a time, often whole trees of dormant tasks, collapsed.
As to screen real estate, I haven't maximized my browser window since about 2005, when I moved to a wide screen. Almost all pages don't render well to a wide screen format since it's hostile to reading, and for those that do render well, typically videos and presentations, full screen is better.
The reasons we open multiple tabs is primarily for cross-referencing, and secondarily "preview"
You've completely made this up and it bears no relationship with how I use browser tabs. Many of my tabs are open for months at a time, often whole trees of dormant tasks, collapsed.
As to screen real estate, I haven't maximized my browser window since about 2005, when I moved to a wide screen. Almost all pages don't render well to a wide screen format since it's hostile to reading, and for those that do render well, typically videos and presentations, full screen is better.