Great Idea – Continuous Scrolling
Search behavior evolved largely due to Google. People now assume that only the first page of results is relevant.
Pagination is often painful to use, difficult to search and arbitrary but, the alternative (displaying all results on a single page) is no better since it calls for intimidating and slow-loading pages.
Continuous Scrolling (or loading results as the user scrolls down the page) takes the best from both approaches. By displaying results onScroll, it optimizes page load, creates shorter pages and contextualizes the results which can easily be searched.
(Google Reader)
Although the solution can create confusion with regard to the scrollbar’s positioning, sites with a lot of traffic (eg. Facebook and Google Reader) can, and are already, benefiting from this technique.
With a simple pre-loader, an indicator of the number of results and a good lead-in to show that the page can be scrolled, this approach will feel more natural than going through a paginated list of results. It may also increase the number of results viewed. A great idea based on the work of Humanized.
Suggested Reading:
- No more “more” pages?
- The Importance of Taking a Step Back
- Don’t Force People to Stay on your Website
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Yes, i agree. Continuous scrolling is surely another step in Google’s aim to make their systems and user interfaces more closer to perfect.
Indeed. You’re also touching up on an important point. This type of optimization is mostly for companies with the time and ressources to make things perfect.
I also agree that continuous scrolling provides a better user experience by reducing the number of clicks and by providing a continuous smooth experience by letting the user scroll… Indefinitely.
Bing (Microsoft) did the same thing with their images search: http://www.olivierlorrain.com/2009/07/20/bing-images-great-user-experience/
thanks for the article