Feature request: Infinite scrolling

So I've been finding myself using the mobile version of the website a lot more lately, and I usually have to view it off of data. When I want to read through a thread though, I find that when I get to the bottom of the page and go to the next page, I then have to reload the page content. What if there were a scrolling feature so that when you reach the bottom of the replies for a thread the page automatically loads the next pages worth of replies, and then increments a counter someone on the page to indicate what page of the thread you're actually on?

Is this or something like it a feature that has ever been considered?

a reply to: Aazadan

I think this sounds like a good idea, I use my phone a lot for ATS. Not knowing the first thing about Web Pages, have no idea if it's viable or not..

Would be a great idea, imo. I also primarily use my phone, and it can be a real p.i.t.a. to make threads or just to read threads - especially when cell coverage is spotty for us rural folks.

a reply to: Aazadan

I just logged in on my phone. I went to the thread about china planning missile attacks, as it had a lot of replies.

at the bottom, I clicked on 2 and it loaded page 2, just like on a desktop.

I'm not sure what you are looking for. It shows me what page I am on. It looks just like on a desktop.

Do you want it to load onto the end, automatically? It would need to load it anyway.

It would be the same amount of data if it loaded the entire thread at once or page by page. It would probably be a lot slower to load the entire thread at once and you would have to refresh for new replies, reloading the entire thread yet again.

a reply to: reldra

That's how my iPad works too.
Don't see the problem

originally posted by: reldra
at the bottom, I clicked on 2 and it loaded page 2, just like on a desktop.

I'm not sure what you are looking for. It shows me what page I am on. It looks just like on a desktop.

Do you want it to load onto the end, automatically? It would need to load it anyway.

It would be the same amount of data if it loaded the entire thread at once or page by page. It would probably be a lot slower to load the entire thread at once and you would have to refresh for new replies, reloading the entire thread yet again.

It would be the same amount of data if it loaded the entire thread at once or page by page. It would probably be a lot slower to load the entire thread at once and you would have to refresh for new replies, reloading the entire thread yet again.

Yes, append it to the end. Use the page marker to jump to a reply number and then load from there. It would result in less data overall as you wouldn't be reloading the page body, css, _javascript, and so on over and over. Only the message contents would have to be appended.

The end result is less data used, and a faster layout when you're using a network that's often limited on speed.

Infinite scrolling doesn't load the entire thread at once.

Basically, you load a page. It displays replies equal to page number*25 to page number*26. When you hit the end, rather than have the current bottom of the page with navigation buttons it simply loads replies numbered from (page number+1)*25 to (page number+1)*26. In order to get around the issue of having to scroll up a lot if you want to get to the navigation buttons, simply attach the navigation to the floating banner header that's already there.

On a refresh you wouldn't have to reload the thread, because scrolling keeps track of what reply you've checked. Reply number % 25 gives you the page number to load (assuming in all these examples that you have 25 replies per page... I think that's variable in the user settings)

a reply to: Aazadan

I seem to have no issues on mobile by not using the app(is there one for ATS?)...and staying signed in at all times...and using the desktop version on mobile (and on my tablet tethered to my phones-data part of the time).

Scrolling continues at the last thread on 1st page and keeps going like always. At least for me...?

Good luck!
MS

I was only thinking of this the other day, strangely enough.

As with the New topics list, once you reach the bottom, it loads the next section of New topics. So the feature is already implemented for that part of the forum, I don't see why it couldn't be implemented for threads also. As long as there were still the navigation buttons to jump to a specific page, and a marker of what page you were last on (otherwise you'd never be able to return to a thread and not have to go through the entire lot again, which happens with any thread already...)