Bottom line: Sliding to remove or expose context operations often presents usability problems.
While many touch gestures are still used in limited ways in most mobile apps, one gesture that is fairly widely used is swipe delete — simply dragging a finger over an option, similar to taking a pen to cross out a list item in the physical world.
Originally introduced by Apple in its iOS mail app, it is now used by many applications not only to remove an item from a list, but often to expose a set of contextual actions.
In the early days of the iPhone, this gesture was not widely known, but it is now common enough that many iOS and even Android users are familiar with it and often encounter it in their apps. A large number of applications already see it as a practical and convenient way to prioritize content on a small screen, eliminate secondary actions (distractions), and associate those contents in a user-friendly way. However, context sliding (a name we will use throughout this article to refer to sliding deletions and similar processing methods that trigger context operations) still has usability issues in many of its applications.
First, the disadvantages of context sliding
While the number of applications using this gesture is growing, there are several aspects to be aware of at design time:
1. The lack of clear visual cues makes it difficult to quickly figure out where to swipe (a common problem with all gesture-based interactions). While many users are already familiar with the gesture, some are still not, and even those familiar with it occasionally ignore it without any visible cues.
There is also a concurrent factor that not all applications support this gesture, which implicitly hampers users’ learning-transfer capabilities. When encountering a new application or revisiting an application that is not commonly used, users will have a hard time predicting whether they can trigger an action using context sliding. For example, the application Key Ring (an application for storing digital membership cards) does nothing when the membership card item is swiped, although the widespread use of this technology may not recommend it.
2. The original displayed content will be blocked after sliding. While swiping shows you what you can do to the currently selected item, it often obscures some of the key content by displaying the action items. In the YouTube app, the user must swipe left on the channel item to select the unsubscribe channel. However, swiping blocks part of the current channel name, making it difficult for the user to confirm that the correct channel has been selected before performing the action. Those who want to avoid errors will need to swipe right to see the full name of the channel before continuing.
3. Some operations arising from sliding are non-standard. Since swiping was originally intended to remove a specific item from a list, most users already familiar with the gesture would naturally expect that swiping would lead to some destructive action. While many apps do this (for example, unsubscribe in the YouTube app), there are a few that go completely beyond expectations. In Spotify, for example, swiping left on songs that aren’t in the user’s library shows you the option to save the song (as opposed to deleting it). This non-standard practice is problematic, because if users want to add a song to their library, they tend not to think of sliding because save (add) is not a destructive operation.
There are also applications that slide too many actions along with deletions. Keep in mind that most users won’t find these actions (or will only find them by accident when they try to delete items).
In the example below, the B&H Photo application uses the swipe gesture to show multiple actions associated with items in the shopping cart — including not only removing items, but also moving items to favorites, pick up offers, and select accessories.
4. Context sliding is sometimes used inconsistently within the same application. Some applications determine the action items to expose after sliding based on:
1) Sliding direction (for example, the operation is different when sliding left and right)
2) The current status of the project
In Spotify, for example, sliding can mean three things:
3) For a song that is not in the user’s library, swipe left to show the option to save the song;
4) For a song already in the user’s music library, swipe left to show the option to remove the song;
5) For a song, swiping right shows you the option to join a playlist;
When multiple actions are associated with the same gesture, it makes it harder for people to learn and remember them.
5. Improper application may cause unexpected data loss. Swiping is a pretty easy gesture to use, and people often delete data by mistake.
To prevent this from happening, it is important to ask the user for confirmation before deleting or to provide easy undo operations.
Overcast app: Swiping doesn’t immediately remove a podcast. To delete podcasts, users need to press the delete button to prevent users from accidentally deleting items
6. Gesture conflict can affect its effectiveness. To make matters worse, some apps use horizontal swiping gestures not only to reveal destructive actions, but also as a means of navigation that allows users to switch between different parts of the application. In many iOS apps, horizontal swiping is used to return to the previous page, while in Android, it can be used to reveal hidden menu options. On the iPad, the gesture can also be used to split the screen into multiple Windows.
All of these gestures can affect the usability of context sliding. Let’s say you’re trying to open another app and accidentally delete an important work email. Or, vice versa, imagine trying to remove an item from the list and accidentally opening a new window.
Even if the user can easily recover from an event like this, the overall user experience will be reduced because the user will feel a lack of control over the user interface.
Two, the use of suggestions
1. Maximize the visibility of the content to ensure that the user is aware of the current project. Whenever context sliding is used, make sure the body content is in the view to minimize uncertainty.
2. Request validation before completing destructive actions.
Using context sliding to remove an item without confirmation is problematic. You can prevent errors and avoid sending errors by requiring user confirmation by using, for example, a delete button.
3. However, if the operation is highly repetitive and the request for confirmation becomes tedious, it is definitely a better idea to support fast undo. But make sure the undo option is highly displayed on the screen so the user doesn’t have to find it.
In YouTube, after unsubscribing to a channel, users can immediately unsubscribe or re-subscribe.
4. Restrict context sliding to associating destructive actions only. Hiding some key actions behind context slides prevents users from discovering them. Most users only expect to use context swipes to find destructive actions such as delete and remove: not only is this the original use of the gesture (and one of the best known), but there is also a metaphorical relationship between swiping something off the screen and deleting the object itself.
Within the same application, the actions associated with context sliding should be consistent. If multiple meanings are associated with the same gesture, it will be difficult for users to learn and understand, and they will not expect the same gesture to have different meanings on different pages of the same application. Avoid sliding associations that depend on the state of the project or the user’s position in the application. Instead, keep the meaning of context sliding consistent, which can add cognitive burden to the user and lead to confusion.
6. Avoid overuse. If you have contextual swipes in your application, make sure that the gesture does not conflict with other swipes, such as using a swipe to navigate from one page to another.
Third, the conclusion
Context sliding is now a popular practice in application development, but it can be confusing if used incorrectly, so be careful when using it. While more and more users have been able to associate the swipe gesture with the delete action, some applications still don’t use it, and others don’t use it consistently or in non-standard ways. In addition, swiping tends to obscure project information to a certain extent, increasing the chances that users will make mistakes or forcing people to be more careful to make sure they choose the right project.
Translation: https://www.nngroup.com/articles/contextual-swipe/
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