Techmeme Back/Forward Fix

A Greasemonkey-compatible userscript for mobile browsers that makes the browser Back and Forward gestures work correctly with Techmeme’s in-page "more" overlays.

Latest Version: 1.0.0 | See What's New

Table of Contents

• Problem
• Solution
• Requirements
• Installation
• How it works (high level)
• Limitations
• Provenance
• Licence

Problem

On Techmeme's mobile site, tapping the "more" link in a story opens an in-page overlay using JavaScript without updating the URL. As a result:

• Browser Back does nothing
• You must tap Techmeme's small "Back" control instead
• Forward navigation is impossible

Solution

This script:

• Pushes a history entry when a nav_to_more cell is tapped
• Uses a URL hash to represent the opened overlay
• Maps browser Back to Techmeme's backFromPage
• Maps browser Forward to reopening the same overlay

No page reloads. No interference with outbound article links.

Requirements

• A web browser that allows UserScripts.
• https://www.tampermonkey.net/ (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, Opera)
• https://violentmonkey.github.io/ (Chrome, Firefox, Edge)

Installation

1. Install Violentmonkey or Tampermonkey from your browser's Add-Ons/Extensions page.
2. Open src/techmeme-improve-navigation.js in your browser
3. Your userscript manager should detect it and prompt you to install
4. Click "Install"

The script automatically runs on:

• https://techmeme.com/*
• https://www.techmeme.com/*

How it works (high level)

• Intercepts taps on td.nav_to_more in capture phase
• Extracts the Techmeme item id from openItemPage(...)
• Calls history.pushState() with a hash
• Listens for popstate to close or reopen overlays

Limitations

• Relies on Techmeme's current DOM structure and openItemPage API
• If Techmeme changes these, the script may need adjustment

Provenance

This UserScript was authored by Fanis Hatzidakis with assistance from large-language-model tooling (ChatGPT and Claude Code). All code was reviewed, tested, and adapted by Fanis.

Licence

Copyright (c) 2025 Fanis Hatzidakis

Licensed under PolyForm Internal Use License 1.0.0

See LICENCE.md