this might be a hot take but I prefer page-by-page browsing instead of infinite scrolling for several reasons:

  • it gives you clear breakpoints to remind you to take a break
  • you can scroll all the way to the top or the bottom to access UI elements in those places without losing your place too badly (especially if some of the links are purple, showing you what you’ve already clicked on)
  • you can let the entire tab unload and then reload it later without losing your place either
  • it’s more intuitive to have discrete webpages that are a fixed size, and to have no special behavior on scrolling, because that’s how 90% of the internet works
  • it’s also just drastically simpler to implement (no javascript needed!) and eliminates tons of potential bugs

to be honest I am almost at the point where I’d call infinite scrolling a dark pattern - to manipulate people into browsing mindlessly without taking a break

@kasdeya 100%. Best is when the page numbers are clearly there in the URL.

So I can be on page 3, and go straight to page 15 by updating the URL.

@kasdeya agree. it was a neat idea, but give me pages!
@kasdeya Infinite scrolling is absolutely a dark pattern, especially when it doesn't properly remember where you were when the page reloads.
@kasdeya it should be a check box in the options menu
@kasdeya the thing when you scroll by dragging the scrollbar (almost feels like being an elder saying that) and suddenly the website jerks abruptly because you've hit the loading zone is super annoying.