Article
Designers: Use the scrollbar
Here’s a common design problem: You have a long list of data, far too long to fit on one screen.
Sound familiar? You might be tempted to paginate the results, using something like this or this to help users navigate through the list.
Why not use the scrollbar?
The scrollbar was invented as a way of helping users navigate a long list of data through a limited viewport. It’s still relevant and useful — though often overlooked — today.
I’m a big fan of the scrollbar. Implementing it requires no extra development work (it’s built in to the browser), and the popularity of scroll-wheel mice means scrolling is no longer a pain in the neck. Scrollbars also offer some usability benefits — browsing, comparing and place-finding is easier than with a paged list.
One challenge is extremely large lists. Some datasets are so large that loading them all on one page is just too slow. (We have this problem with some long email subscriber lists.)
But the rest of the time, scrollbars work — better than you’d think.
I’m officially pro-scollbar. Mark me down.