Comment by applfanboysbgon
20 hours ago
> different platforms behave differently, and you can’t match it all
Why do I care about matching it all? Do we need a scrollbar with all kinds of bespoke per-platform functionality? If I have a scrollbar, that people can use to scroll on all platforms, and it fits the visual aesthetic of my application instead of looking like an absolute dogshit eyesore, is that not good enough? What percentage of the population would you reckon is shift+clicking their scrollbars on a routine enough basis to notice a web-app that doesn't meet their expectations? 1%? 0.1%? 0.0001%? And in this fail case, when they shift+click the scrollbar and it doesn't behave as they expected, how much harm is really being caused? Will it ruin their day or will they maybe just go 'tch' and then use the scrollbar normally to achieve their scrolling needs like everyone else?
Apparently I have angered the scrollbar shift+clicking hordes. There might be dozens of you!
They'll just assume your site/app is broken, because their reference for what's correct is their platform. If they're annoyed enough, they go to a competitor unless it's a site/app mandated by their employer.
There is a literal 0% chance a single person in the entire history of our species has made the decision to switch to different software because shift-clicking the scrollbar didn't do what they expected it to. On the other hand, plenty of people are drawn to applications that look visually cohesive and are not an eyesore; not only because humans appreciate aesthetics, but also because visuals are an information channel and thus having non-obstrusive graphic design that guides your eyes to what matters has a very practical benefit.
I go out of my way to avoid using applications that ignore the macOS system preference for what clicking in the scrollbar does. People who care about the "feel" half of "look and feel" genuinely do exist. Janky scrolling behavior drastically lowers my opinion of an app, and in a web page it prompts immediate closure of the tab.
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