Unlock the Power of Skeleton Screens: Boosting User Experience
When it comes to creating a seamless user experience, every second counts. That’s why skeleton screens have become a crucial element in modern web development. These low-fidelity wireframes mimic the layout of a page, providing a visual representation of content before it loads. In this article, we’ll dive into the world of skeleton screens, exploring their benefits, types, and how to create your own using React and Framer Motion.
The Benefits of Skeleton Screens
Imagine waiting for a webpage to load, only to be greeted by a blank screen. Frustrating, right? Skeleton screens alleviate this issue by providing a visual representation of content, making the loading process feel shorter and more engaging. By leveraging animations, such as shimmers or pulsating effects, skeleton screens can create the illusion of faster loading times. This approach is far superior to displaying a blank screen, as it gives users a sense of what to expect and encourages them to continue waiting.
Types of Skeleton UIs
There are two primary types of skeleton UIs: content placeholders and image (or color) placeholders. Content placeholders, used by companies like Medium and YouTube, mimic the layout of a page without displaying actual content. Image placeholders, employed by image-heavy websites like Pinterest and Unsplash, use colors to represent images before they load. While content placeholders are easier to build, image placeholders require more effort, as they need to incorporate actual content data.
Building a Skeleton UI with React and Framer Motion
To create a skeleton UI, you can use popular packages like react-content-loader, react-placeholder, and react-loading-skeleton. However, we’ll focus on building our own skeleton UI using React and Framer Motion. This approach offers more flexibility and customization options.
Our example will replicate the YouTube UI, creating a skeleton screen with a shimmer animation effect. We’ll use Framer Motion to animate the Skeleton component, creating a fade-in effect on the skeleton UI. By adding an exit animation with AnimatePresence, we can ensure a smooth transition when the skeleton screen unmounts.
Designing the Skeleton Layout
Before constructing the skeleton UI, let’s consider how content is structured on a fully-loaded version of the page. We’ll import a data.js file, which contains an array of mock YouTube data, and map over this data to render JSX for the section element displaying a heading and the CardList component.
Creating the Skeleton Component
We’ll create a Skeleton.js file and a skeleton.css style sheet to define our Skeleton component. This component will accept a type prop, specifying the type of skeleton element needed. By piecing together micro components, we can create a full skeleton UI.
Adding the Shimmer Animation with Framer Motion
Using the motion function from Framer Motion, we’ll animate the Skeleton component. We’ll create a Shimmer component within the Skeleton component, animating it to create the desired loading effect.
Using the YouTube Skeleton
Finally, we’ll create an isLoading state to conditionally render the YouTube skeleton. We’ll use AnimatePresence to create an exit animation for the Skeleton UI, ensuring a smooth fade-out animation as the skeleton screen exits the CardList component’s screen.
Conclusion
Skeleton screens are a game-changer for user experience, providing a visual representation of content before it loads. By leveraging animations and creating a low-fidelity wireframe, you can significantly improve UX and reduce user frustration. With React and Framer Motion, building a custom skeleton UI is easier than ever. Share your experience with using skeleton UI in the comments below!