# Timeline-last-read and back-button often don't appear

**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/timeline-last-read-and-back-button-often-dont-appear/259458
**Category:** UX
**Created:** [March 26, 2023, 2:01pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/timeline-last-read-and-back-button-often-dont-appear/259458 "2023-03-26T14:01:46Z")
**Posts on this page:** 1
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![rahim123](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@rahim123](https://meta.discourse.org/u/rahim123)
#### Post date: [March 26, 2023, 2:01pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/timeline-last-read-and-back-button-often-dont-appear/259458/1 "2023-03-26T14:01:46Z")

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Hi there, I just noticed on my forum that the extremely useful `timeline-last-read` and `back-button` elements only appear on some topics after jumping to a previous date in the timeline. ~~There appear to be two circumstances that prevent this functionality:~~

~~ 
- There seems to be a hard limit somewhere around 1000 posts, after which the “Back” functionality doesn’t appear. This functionality becomes more and more useful the longer the thread gets, and I have tons of topics with thousands of posts.
- This is an imported forum. It appears that the “Back” functionality doesn’t appear on _any_ imported topics, whether they have newer posts created directly in Discourse or not.

 ~~

~~Are there any ways to work around these limitations? Or can anyone confirm if it’s normal for it not show the “Back” marker under certain circumstances? Thanks!~~

_ **Edit:** _ _So it appears that I was usually going directly to the last post in the topic, which disables the “Back” functionality because it’s the last one. I guess this makes sense, but there is room for improvement here I think:_

- Even if I reach the last post in the topic and then jump back up, I think it should start tracking the `last-read` post number if I go down again and then back up again. Example: 1) Viewing post # **1500/1500** clears `last-read`, 2) Jump up to post **1200/1500** , 3) Read down to post **1205/1500** , 4) Jump back up to post **1100/1500** should offer the “Back” button and marker for post **1205/1500**.