Pattern 18
Playback and reading positions can differ
Follow the narration without forcing the reader to follow every movement.
Concrete takeaway
Show the current playback anchor separately from the viewport.
Choose an approach
These are editorial decision conditions to validate. Some alternatives are successive states or can be combined; they are not always exclusive choices.
| Alternative | Use when | Tradeoff or requirement |
|---|---|---|
| A · Follow narration | The reader wants to follow narration | Automatic following should yield to manual scrolling |
| B · Explore freely | The reader explores elsewhere while listening | The audio anchor needs a separate label |
| C · Rejoin playback | The reader chooses to return to playback | Rejoining must not silently save a personal mark |
The problem
Someone may scroll ahead or revisit an earlier verse while playback continues. Automatic following can repeatedly pull them back.
The pattern
Show the current playback anchor separately from the viewport. Let users follow or explore freely, then deliberately return to the spoken passage. Use continuous text where the task is sustained reading.
Compare the alternatives
Follow the narration without forcing the reader to follow every movement.
A · Follow narration
The playing passage has a temporary marker.
B · Explore freely
Reading elsewhere does not silently change playback.
C · Rejoin playback
Following resumes only after the reader chooses it.
Original wireframe proposals · No live controls · Grey rows represent schematic text, not loading states · Labelled placeholders are not Scripture quotations
Download this wireframe as SVGFailure modes
Automatic recentering after manual scroll; stopping playback whenever someone explores; treating the visible paragraph as the actual playback position.
Bible and faith considerations
This pattern separates playback position from reading position. Karaoke granularity is covered by Timing has an honest granularity; styling and no highlighting by Playback cues are a reader preference. Translation switching must preserve the reading anchor and reassess audio alignment.
What to validate
Scroll away during playback, change text size and return to the spoken verse. Does each position remain understandable?
Research-informed design proposal. These visual alternatives have not been tested with users in this atlas. Source findings, documented behaviour and this proposed adaptation are different kinds of evidence.
Sources and adaptation
This card is an original design synthesis. The following sources inform its content distinctions, interaction approach or review requirements; they do not validate the whole pattern.
- Dwell Read AlongPublisher feature description reviewed · Publisher claims about comprehension are not independent study results.
- Return to the playing versePublisher release description reviewed · Behaviour reference, not a fresh hands-on audit.
- Android Audio BibleOfficial help article reviewed · Documented behaviour; no direct product usability audit performed.
Common scenarios and flows
- Listen, pause narration and repeat — Create a bounded listening-and-reflection session.
Examples in use
Attributed app evidence with dates and review limits. A screenshot illustrates an implementation; it does not establish that the proposal works for every audience.
Design principles in this decision
Editorial application of Missional by Design. These values frame review questions; they do not validate a pattern’s effectiveness.
- Hospitality — Who can use this approach in their actual context, and what complete alternative exists for someone who cannot?
- Honesty — Could this interface lead a person to infer more authority, certainty, privacy or human support than the service provides?
- Costliness — Who pays for this convenience through time, labour, privacy, risk or exclusion, and can the organisation support its promise?
Compare alternatives using the task and evidence above. Record competing needs instead of treating a principle as an automatic verdict.