Progress Indicators

Progress Indicators are one of the most important part of user experience as they provide the user with the status of their application, forms, and updates.

By providing reading time estimation, progress indicators make sure that users are hooked onto your page.

Providing feedback regarding the status of the app is particularly important to reassure the user about the functioning of the application and that progress is underway. Progress indicators also make slow systems cause less stress to your audience.

What Makes A Progress Indicator Good?

• A good progress indicator should be able to provide feedback almost instantly to the user.
• They should convey to the audience what is happening with the app and give them an estimation of the time it will take to finish it.
• Progress indicators need to be attractive and catchy to prevent users from leaving your page.

This article will provide you information on various progress indicators and how they are used.

1. Determinate Progress Indicators

These progress indicators give you a specified time it will take to complete a certain task after a percentage or number is fulfilled. You will see the bar move with progress until it is all done.

2. Indeterminate Progress Indicators

This type does not specify the time and gives the user no idea how long it will take to perform the operation. You will see the progress bar continuously moving from the beginning to the end countless times until the task is done.

3. Indeterminate and Determinate

An indeterminate progress indicator can change into a determinate one.

4. Looped Animation

These are circular animations that keep moving and does not indicate the time required for the action to end. These progress indicators should only be used when the task to be completed needs only 5 to 10 seconds.

5. Percentage Completed Animation

This type of progress bar indicates the percentage of the task completed. These type of progress indicators should be used for tasks that take longer.

6. Providing A Specific Time for Completion

This type can be very reassuring for the user as it gives an approximation of the time for completing a task.

7. Animated Progress Indicators

Using animation, you can make progress indicators fun to wait out. You can also slow the animation in the beginning to mask your delays and then speed them out at the end.

8. Showing the Tasks

Giving the users something to wait out on like showing them the number of tasks to be completed can be something you might want to do. Even though, this does not provide the time, it does, However, helps with the wait.

9. Being Creative with Progress Indicators

You all must be familiar with the dinosaur game when your internet connection is down. Adding fun things to look at along with your progress indicators can make your audience enjoy the wait.

Static Progress Indicators- Not A Good Idea

Seeing something like ‘loading’ or ‘please wait’ with no movement makes the user instantly get a bad feeling about the progress. They may confer that the app is hung, or the wait will be too long making them to leave the current page.  They should therefore be only used with other types of indicators for better User experience.

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