4 ms·
I'm not asserting that pixel-by-pixel scrolling (vs scrolling by section) is inherently better as an approach. It's entirely possible that the latter is better
by cweagans 6y ago
I'm not asserting that pixel-by-pixel scrolling (vs scrolling by section) is inherently better as an approach. It's entirely possible that the latter is better somehow!
However, the reality is that nearly the entire web is pretty consistent in how you can navigate a page - space bar will jump down a bit, pages usually respect my scroll speed settings, tabbing between elements works if the dev didn't fuck it up, etc.
I value consistency in how I interact with my computer. I would rather not use an app/buy a thing/etc if it works differently from other similar items purely for aesthetic reasons. If it works demonstrably better, maybe there's an argument to be made, but when it's strictly a matter of _opinion_, I'm inclined to say that consistency > doing some one-off behavior.
Imagine if the brake and gas pedal were reversed in one specific car, just because the person who designed/built it thought that it was more comfortable/looked better/etc. That would be an extremely dangerous car to drive (at least for me). I have a lot of years of muscle memory built up, and if I'm in some kind of dangerous situation on the road where I'd need to hit the brakes in a hurry, I want to be _damn_ sure that I'm pressing the correct pedal.
For websites, it's an inconvenience that can be explained away as a difference of opinion. For many, many other kinds of interaction, this approach is actively hazardous.
(and to be clear, I'm not saying that we shouldn't try new things or attempt to redesign things that people are used to, but I _am_ saying that a large business trying to sell a new thing is probably not the time nor place for it. Experiment with it on your portfolio or something and don't go out of your way to degrade my experience if you want me to buy something from you!)