Document Viewer (Evince) history navigation

I am satisfied with basic functionality of Evince (3.4.0 on Ubuntu 12.04). Unfortunately in this viewer I am really missing history navigation i.e. possibility to go back to previous views and optionally go forward in the viewing history like most of the web browsers have Alt+← and Alt+→. I think this function is very important when using hyperlinks and searching during browsing.

For Evince I did not find this function on the standard keyboard shortcuts, in the menu, in the documentation.

Does Evince have this function and how can it be used?

Which other PDF viewers maintained for Ubuntu have this function?

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

You want to click on a link which takes you to another part of the same pdf file and then navigate back to where you were? I just looked at the pdf viewers that are part of Firefox and Chrome. Looks like they don't have this feature either. Or if they do, I didn't come across it. Would be a handy feature to have.
– user25656
Aug 8 '13 at 11:57

@vasa1: Yes, this is the most frequent use case - to return to the link. Also sometimes when I use search I would like to return to the original location later. I know that Adobe Reader for Windows has this function but I would prefer using a more lightweight viewer.
– pabouk
Aug 8 '13 at 12:08

add a comment |

For Evince I did not find this function on the standard keyboard shortcuts, in the menu, in the documentation.

Does Evince have this function and how can it be used?

Which other PDF viewers maintained for Ubuntu have this function?

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

You want to click on a link which takes you to another part of the same pdf file and then navigate back to where you were? I just looked at the pdf viewers that are part of Firefox and Chrome. Looks like they don't have this feature either. Or if they do, I didn't come across it. Would be a handy feature to have.
– user25656
Aug 8 '13 at 11:57

@vasa1: Yes, this is the most frequent use case - to return to the link. Also sometimes when I use search I would like to return to the original location later. I know that Adobe Reader for Windows has this function but I would prefer using a more lightweight viewer.
– pabouk
Aug 8 '13 at 12:08

add a comment |

For Evince I did not find this function on the standard keyboard shortcuts, in the menu, in the documentation.

Does Evince have this function and how can it be used?

Which other PDF viewers maintained for Ubuntu have this function?

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

For Evince I did not find this function on the standard keyboard shortcuts, in the menu, in the documentation.

Does Evince have this function and how can it be used?

Which other PDF viewers maintained for Ubuntu have this function?

keyboard shortcut-keys pdf evince navigation

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

asked Aug 8 '13 at 11:32

pabouk

1,99411624

You want to click on a link which takes you to another part of the same pdf file and then navigate back to where you were? I just looked at the pdf viewers that are part of Firefox and Chrome. Looks like they don't have this feature either. Or if they do, I didn't come across it. Would be a handy feature to have.
– user25656
Aug 8 '13 at 11:57

@vasa1: Yes, this is the most frequent use case - to return to the link. Also sometimes when I use search I would like to return to the original location later. I know that Adobe Reader for Windows has this function but I would prefer using a more lightweight viewer.
– pabouk
Aug 8 '13 at 12:08

add a comment |

You want to click on a link which takes you to another part of the same pdf file and then navigate back to where you were? I just looked at the pdf viewers that are part of Firefox and Chrome. Looks like they don't have this feature either. Or if they do, I didn't come across it. Would be a handy feature to have.
– user25656
Aug 8 '13 at 11:57

@vasa1: Yes, this is the most frequent use case - to return to the link. Also sometimes when I use search I would like to return to the original location later. I know that Adobe Reader for Windows has this function but I would prefer using a more lightweight viewer.
– pabouk
Aug 8 '13 at 12:08

You want to click on a link which takes you to another part of the same pdf file and then navigate back to where you were? I just looked at the pdf viewers that are part of Firefox and Chrome. Looks like they don't have this feature either. Or if they do, I didn't come across it. Would be a handy feature to have.
– user25656
Aug 8 '13 at 11:57

@vasa1: Yes, this is the most frequent use case - to return to the link. Also sometimes when I use search I would like to return to the original location later. I know that Adobe Reader for Windows has this function but I would prefer using a more lightweight viewer.
– pabouk
Aug 8 '13 at 12:08

add a comment |

3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

Under Evince 3.4 you can activate a "back" button by editing the toolbar (Edit → Toolbar; drag and drop functions to toolbar):

enter image description here

I don't think there's any hotkey by default but you might be able to add a custom one.

If you're looking for customization you might be better off with a PDF viewer like Okular or qpdfview anyway. Both should offer the function you're searching for.

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

1

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

1

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

3

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

3

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

2

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

|
show 3 more comments

Annoying Evince history bugs

These have haunted me for years, including Ubuntu 18.04, Evince 3.28.2, and make the history jump back feature unusable for the technical documents I read all day:

the history jump does not jump to the expected location of a sane human:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/399
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/558
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/810

there is no default (Alt+Left) shortcut / it is not documented / I don't have the patience to find out how to create it:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/770

You should go and upvote them.

Best solution I've found for Ubuntu 18.04: use Firefox!: What PDF viewers are available for Ubuntu?

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

add a comment |

I prefer the xpdf viewer for this reason. It has history navigation and is quite lightweight and rapid. It is available for ~any system running X11.

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

add a comment |

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3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

3 Answers
3

active

oldest

votes

Under Evince 3.4 you can activate a "back" button by editing the toolbar (Edit → Toolbar; drag and drop functions to toolbar):

enter image description here

I don't think there's any hotkey by default but you might be able to add a custom one.

If you're looking for customization you might be better off with a PDF viewer like Okular or qpdfview anyway. Both should offer the function you're searching for.

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

1

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

1

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

3

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

3

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

2

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

|
show 3 more comments

Under Evince 3.4 you can activate a "back" button by editing the toolbar (Edit → Toolbar; drag and drop functions to toolbar):

enter image description here

I don't think there's any hotkey by default but you might be able to add a custom one.

If you're looking for customization you might be better off with a PDF viewer like Okular or qpdfview anyway. Both should offer the function you're searching for.

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

1

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

1

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

3

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

3

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

2

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

|
show 3 more comments

Under Evince 3.4 you can activate a "back" button by editing the toolbar (Edit → Toolbar; drag and drop functions to toolbar):

enter image description here

I don't think there's any hotkey by default but you might be able to add a custom one.

If you're looking for customization you might be better off with a PDF viewer like Okular or qpdfview anyway. Both should offer the function you're searching for.

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

Under Evince 3.4 you can activate a "back" button by editing the toolbar (Edit → Toolbar; drag and drop functions to toolbar):

enter image description here

I don't think there's any hotkey by default but you might be able to add a custom one.

If you're looking for customization you might be better off with a PDF viewer like Okular or qpdfview anyway. Both should offer the function you're searching for.

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

edited Aug 9 '13 at 21:18

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

answered Aug 9 '13 at 11:47

Glutanimate

16.1k873131

1

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

1

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

3

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

3

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

2

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

|
show 3 more comments

1

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

1

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

3

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

3

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

2

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

Thank you! The back button has a different behaviour in comparison to page history in web browsers but it is very useful. Unfortunately the procedure for adding keyboard shortcuts works for menu items only. I will test the two recommended viewers.
– pabouk
Aug 9 '13 at 14:58

Thanks for mentioning qpdfview! It allows setting the page background color. That's a feature I was missing.
– user25656
Sep 5 '13 at 10:44

qpdfview is great, but it doesn't have smooth scrolling like evince (3.10) has. How can one browse history with evince 3.10? Edit->Toolbar does not exist any more.
– Bach
Apr 25 '15 at 13:50

I don't think the back button is available in Evince 3.10
– becko
May 27 '15 at 18:10

I see no back button in 3.18.2.
– Daniel
Nov 24 '16 at 10:04

|
show 3 more comments

Annoying Evince history bugs

These have haunted me for years, including Ubuntu 18.04, Evince 3.28.2, and make the history jump back feature unusable for the technical documents I read all day:

the history jump does not jump to the expected location of a sane human:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/399
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/558
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/810

there is no default (Alt+Left) shortcut / it is not documented / I don't have the patience to find out how to create it:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/770

You should go and upvote them.

Best solution I've found for Ubuntu 18.04: use Firefox!: What PDF viewers are available for Ubuntu?

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

add a comment |

Annoying Evince history bugs

These have haunted me for years, including Ubuntu 18.04, Evince 3.28.2, and make the history jump back feature unusable for the technical documents I read all day:

the history jump does not jump to the expected location of a sane human:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/399
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/558
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/810

there is no default (Alt+Left) shortcut / it is not documented / I don't have the patience to find out how to create it:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/770

You should go and upvote them.

Best solution I've found for Ubuntu 18.04: use Firefox!: What PDF viewers are available for Ubuntu?

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

add a comment |

Annoying Evince history bugs

These have haunted me for years, including Ubuntu 18.04, Evince 3.28.2, and make the history jump back feature unusable for the technical documents I read all day:

the history jump does not jump to the expected location of a sane human:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/399
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/558
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/810

there is no default (Alt+Left) shortcut / it is not documented / I don't have the patience to find out how to create it:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/770

You should go and upvote them.

Best solution I've found for Ubuntu 18.04: use Firefox!: What PDF viewers are available for Ubuntu?

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

Annoying Evince history bugs

These have haunted me for years, including Ubuntu 18.04, Evince 3.28.2, and make the history jump back feature unusable for the technical documents I read all day:

the history jump does not jump to the expected location of a sane human:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/399
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/558
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/810

there is no default (Alt+Left) shortcut / it is not documented / I don't have the patience to find out how to create it:
- https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/evince/issues/770

You should go and upvote them.

Best solution I've found for Ubuntu 18.04: use Firefox!: What PDF viewers are available for Ubuntu?

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

edited Dec 27 '18 at 13:25

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

answered Jun 11 '18 at 5:56

Ciro Santilli 新疆改造中心六四事件法轮功

9,25444346

add a comment |

I prefer the xpdf viewer for this reason. It has history navigation and is quite lightweight and rapid. It is available for ~any system running X11.

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

add a comment |

I prefer the xpdf viewer for this reason. It has history navigation and is quite lightweight and rapid. It is available for ~any system running X11.

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

add a comment |

I prefer the xpdf viewer for this reason. It has history navigation and is quite lightweight and rapid. It is available for ~any system running X11.

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

I prefer the xpdf viewer for this reason. It has history navigation and is quite lightweight and rapid. It is available for ~any system running X11.

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

answered Apr 25 '17 at 15:56

maxelost

101

add a comment |

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