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submitted 2 weeks ago by sam@bikersgo.social to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

Why doesn't Lemmy have a back button?

It's really confusing me why Lemmy doesn't have a back button when you are browsing via the web. Is this something that just got missed or is it meant to be like that?

@asklemmy@lemmy.world

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[-] BartyDeCanter@lemmy.sdf.org 52 points 2 weeks ago

Because your browser has one. Why would you need a second?

[-] xmunk@sh.itjust.works 11 points 2 weeks ago

And there's also always backspace/alt+left

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 2 points 2 weeks ago

Not everyone knows shortcuts, great for those that are wanting to be more quick / know the shortcuts but for a general user experience it could be frustrating especially when you are browsing in a webapp on an iphone or something.

[-] xmunk@sh.itjust.works 15 points 2 weeks ago

Ahhh... iPhone. That's the issue. Android has a back button but for some reason iPhones have always preferred gestures and "the one button".

I don't mean to be tech elitist but browsers and other phones have built in ways to easily manage navigation. I'd rather that sites didn't adopt extraneous UI elements to make up for device shortcomings.

[-] CTDummy@lemm.ee 3 points 2 weeks ago

iPhone you just swipe right to navigate to the previous web page.

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 2 points 2 weeks ago

Not everyone is used to pressing back and forwards on there browser and it will often be hidden if you use the page as web-app through certain devices.

[-] BartyDeCanter@lemmy.sdf.org 35 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Not everyone is used to pressing back and forwards on there browser

[-] adarza@lemmy.ca 5 points 2 weeks ago

first thing i do on a new browser install is rearrange the toolbar a bit.

[-] DecentM@lemmy.ml 13 points 2 weeks ago

That's the most cursed toolbar I've seen and I love it! Kinda like vertical tabs were at first sight I guess

[-] BartyDeCanter@lemmy.sdf.org 4 points 2 weeks ago

How do you find having the navigation buttons in the middle? It seems like it would be a bit harder to hit them?

[-] adarza@lemmy.ca 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

when i first started doing this years ago in the early versions of firefox, the back button was bigger than the rest.

but i've long since gotten used to it. and i like it a lot better in the middle than way tf over on the left side. it's closer to all the other stuff up there (such as the extension buttons, which i use frequently) and to the scroll bars--which are largely unneeded with scroll wheels or touch these days, but i didn't have a wheely mouse way back when.

the only thing that would take me up to the top left was the menu bar, but i don't use that much anymore with the hamburger menu on the far right, so the menu bar is off (alt brings it back).

re-enabling the separate search box is significant. suggestions (the ones that transmit keystrokes to the search engine) are disabled in the address bar, but not the search box.

the button to bring-up the sidebar is logically placed--above where the sidebar appears.

the bookmark toolbar, which is not visible here because it's set to only show on 'newtab' has the bookmark menu icon on its far left before the bookmarks themselves, and the 'most visited' smart boomkark is re-enabled up there too.

[-] BartyDeCanter@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 2 weeks ago

Thanks for the explanation! It makes a lot of sense.

[-] datavoid@lemmy.ml 2 points 2 weeks ago

What's the benefit of splitting your address and search bars?

[-] scrubbles@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 6 points 2 weeks ago

My grandmother is over 100. She knows how to use a browser back button.

[-] deegeese@sopuli.xyz 5 points 2 weeks ago

LOL “not everyone knows how to use the browser back button.”

[-] FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world 29 points 2 weeks ago

Because back buttons are a basic feature of web browsers.

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 0 points 2 weeks ago

Not for Webapps / Mobile Webapps sadly.

[-] dingus@lemmy.world 16 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

I'm confused. Does the device you are using not have a way to go back? I have a phone, tablet, and PC, and all of these have a native "back" button or gesture or keyboard shortcut. I've not met a device without any of these capabilities since like 2008.

Legit curious what device you are using if you wouldn't mind??

[-] shortrounddev@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago

Idk what phone you have but iPhone and Default android don't have back buttons in their default UI, they use gestures now

[-] dingus@lemmy.world 2 points 2 weeks ago

I stated "button" or "gesture" in my post. You just use the gesture to go back is my point.

[-] FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

Why would you access Lemmy that way when there are lots of other ways?

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 1 points 2 weeks ago

Because sometimes people don't like apps, especially when some are paid.

[-] FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Have you tried Boost (android)? It's free and I haven't found anything to complain about..

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 1 points 2 weeks ago

Not everyone uses android, I used to but don't anymore.

[-] FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world 5 points 2 weeks ago

Mlem for iPhone? Also free

[-] DankOfAmerica@reddthat.com 1 points 2 weeks ago

Not everyone uses iPhone (lol)

[-] FourPacketsOfPeanuts@lemmy.world 1 points 2 weeks ago

Are you not very bright?

[-] Blisterexe@lemmy.zip 3 points 2 weeks ago

on webapps you can use the os back button, either on the bottom or a swipe from the side.

[-] Max_P@lemmy.max-p.me 1 points 2 weeks ago

Then use Voyager, or Tesseract, or Photon. All 3 are usable as plain webapps and have decent mobile experience.

[-] ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 10 points 2 weeks ago

Once you've joined Lemmy, you don't want to go back.

But if you must, here's the address.

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 4 points 2 weeks ago

Bro it's a simple question. I hope the Fediverse can grow and asking this question as I know some may get upset / confused with no back button on screen.

[-] ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)
[-] sam@bikersgo.social 3 points 2 weeks ago

Cool I just don't always understand jokes due to my autism. Sorry I took it as you telling me to fuck off back to centralized social media.

[-] ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago)

Here's a little something I learned many decades ago:

When you read something someone has written, always remember that you didn't hear the person's voice what they wrote, and you didn't see their body language. So you're missing 67% of the information that person meant to convey.

Your brain naturally makes up the missing information: it might assign a male or female voice to the author of the text, and it might imagine them smiling or being angry, or in some other state of mind if the text can have several meaning, like in the case of irony of sarcasm (that isn't explicitely marked as such with "/s").

My advice is this: when you think someone is insulting you, re-read the sentence, but imagining the person smiling or laughing while writing it instead: does it work too? Does the sentence work better with the author smiling or being angry in your mind's eye?

This has helped me immensely online. It might help you too.

[-] sam@bikersgo.social 2 points 2 weeks ago

I have more than just autism, I have morbid anxiety. Due to both of these I can't really imagine body language and things, sure I've got better with it in person but most of the time if they are telling me to go somewhere then it's most likely as they fucking hate my or don't understand that I won't get they are joking.

[-] ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 1 points 2 weeks ago

Well then err on whatever you read being written in a positive tone if the intent is ambiguous. If you're wrong, the worst thing that can happen to you is that you look overly optimistic. But at least you won't raise your blood pressure feeling aggression that may not be there.

I mean well incidentally. I don't want to sound patronizing.

[-] Rogue@feddit.uk 2 points 2 weeks ago

You don't need to apologise.

Given that you thought they were trying to provoke you, your response was really relaxed and from it you got the clarity you needed.

Navigating the world of neurotypicals is hard but I think you're doing fine.

[-] DankOfAmerica@reddthat.com 1 points 2 weeks ago

Not everyone answers simple questions

[-] Rhynoplaz@lemmy.world 7 points 2 weeks ago

We only look forward.

[-] WheelcharArtist@lemmy.world 6 points 2 weeks ago
[-] hisao@ani.social 4 points 2 weeks ago

Imo that's one of the lesser QoL issues. I find it more annoying that there's no pagination other than "Next" button. Why don't we have "Prev", "First", "Last" and page numbers? That's quite basic pagination functionality.

this post was submitted on 08 Feb 2025
14 points (100.0% liked)

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