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Jan 13, 2023

Using Locomotive Scroll in Vue for Smoother UX

Websites use scrolling animations to make browsing more enjoyable. In this article, we’ll use locomotive scroll in Vue to create a smoother user experience.

decorative cover image showing a locomotive train

Websites, especially those with enormous amounts of material, can use scrolling animations as features to make browsing more enjoyable. With the advent of specialized libraries, scrolling animations are becoming increasingly widespread on the web. Web pages may use a variety of scroll movements, including sticky scroll, smooth scroll, CSS parallax, and more. In this article, we’ll be using Locomotive scroll to create a smoother user experience with scroll effects.

What is Locomotive Scroll?

The Locomotive scroll is a scrolling library that is used to create custom scrollers that support touch, keyboard, and mouse interactions. It comes with a variety of customizable features including Locomotive Smooth scroll, Page overlay scroll, and parallax effects.

Why use Locomotive Scroll?

An accessible and fully customized website is one of a developer’s main priorities for users. With the browser's default scroll, just a few scroll effects are possible. However, we can alter how your website scrolls and behaves when you go from page to page thanks to the Locomotive scroll library. Now, let’s walk through how to use Locomotive scroll.

Installation

Let’s get started with scaffolding our Vue application. Run the command below in the terminal.

yarn create vite my-vue-app vue-locomotive-scroll

Once the command above is done installing all of the required files, install the locomotive scroll library using the command below.

cd vue-locomotive-scroll && yarn add locomotive-scroll

Project Setup

Let’s create a basic home page that we’ll customize later with some cool locomotive scroll speed effects. To achieve this, replace all of the code in the App.vue file with the code below.

<template>
    <main>
        <section class="hello">
            <h1>Hello World From Sam</h1>
        </section>
        <section id="sticky">
            <h1>Sticky Scroll Example</h1>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
        </section>
        <section class="parallax">
            <h1>Vertical Parallax Scroll</h1>
            <h1>Horizontal Parallax Scroll</h1>
        </section>
        <section class="scroll-into-view">
            <h1>Here, we're calling the Animate class when the content scrolls into view</h1>
        </section>
    </main>
</template>

<script>
    // You can add JavaScript here for dynamic functionalities if needed
</script>

<style>
    section {
        height: 100vh; /* Full viewport height */
        display: flex; /* Flexbox for centering content */
        align-items: center; /* Center content vertically */
        justify-content: center; /* Center content horizontally */
        color: white; /* Text color */
        font-size: xx-large; /* Large font size */
    }

    .hello {
        background-color: red; /* Background color */
        background-image: url("./background.png"); /* Background image */
        color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.745); /* Text color with transparency */
    }

    .parallax {
        background-color: greenyellow; /* Background color for parallax section */
    }

    #sticky {
        background-color: rgba(137, 43, 226, 0.469); /* Sticky section background color */
        padding: 50px; /* Padding for content */
    }

    .scroll-into-view {
        background-color: black; /* Background color */
        color: white; /* Text color */
    }
</style>

In the code above, we’re creating four sections, namely, hello, sticky, parallax, and scroll-into-view. These will be customized later on in this tutorial.

For the hello style, we’re adding a background image. Download this image and add it to the src/assets folder.

With the project setup complete, run the code using yarn dev to see the results below.

Configuring Locomotive Scroll

Let’s configure the Locomotive Scroll library into our application before looking at its features. Update the <main> tag in the App.vue file.

<template>
    <main ref="container">
        <!-- other code blocks here -->
    </main>
</template>

In the code block above, we’re giving the <main> tag an identifier, a ref value.

Next, copy and paste the code below into the <script> tag.

<script>
import LocomotiveScroll from "locomotive-scroll";

export default {
    methods: {
        setLocomotiveScroll() {
            new LocomotiveScroll({
                el: this.$refs.container,
            });
        },
    },
    mounted() {
        this.setLocomotiveScroll();
    },
};
</script>

In the code above, we’re calling the setLocomotiveScroll() function whenever the page is initialized on the browser. The setLocomotiveScroll() function creates a new LocomotiveScroll instance that accepts certain properties for its customization.

The el property initializes its children as a scrollable container.

Finally, replace all of the code in the style.css file with the code block below.

* {
    margin: 0;
    padding: 0;
    box-sizing: border-box;
}

html.has-scroll-smooth {
    overflow: hidden;
}

html.has-scroll-dragging {
    -webkit-user-select: none;
    -moz-user-select: none;
    -ms-user-select: none;
    user-select: none;
}

.has-scroll-smooth body {
    overflow: hidden;
}

.has-scroll-smooth [data-scroll-container] {
    min-height: 100vh;
}

[data-scroll-direction="horizontal"] [data-scroll-container] {
    height: 100vh;
    display: inline-block;
    white-space: nowrap;
}

[data-scroll-direction="horizontal"] [data-scroll-section] {
    display: inline-block;
    vertical-align: top;
    white-space: nowrap;
    height: 100%;
}

.c-scrollbar {
    position: absolute;
    right: 0;
    top: 0;
    width: 11px;
    height: 100%;
    transform-origin: center right;
    transition: transform 0.3s, opacity 0.3s;
    opacity: 0;
}

.c-scrollbar:hover {
    transform: scaleX(1.45);
}

.c-scrollbar:hover,
.has-scroll-scrolling .c-scrollbar,
.has-scroll-dragging .c-scrollbar {
    opacity: 1;
}

[data-scroll-direction="horizontal"] .c-scrollbar {
    width: 100%;
    height: 10px;
    top: auto;
    bottom: 0;
    transform: scaleY(1);
}

[data-scroll-direction="horizontal"] .c-scrollbar:hover {
    transform: scaleY(1.3);
}

.c-scrollbar_thumb {
    position: absolute;
    top: 0;
    right: 0;
    background-color: black;
    opacity: 0.5;
    width: 7px;
    border-radius: 10px;
    margin: 2px;
    cursor: -webkit-grab;
    cursor: grab;
}

.has-scroll-dragging .c-scrollbar_thumb {
    cursor: -webkit-grabbing;
    cursor: grabbing;
}

[data-scroll-direction="horizontal"] .c-scrollbar_thumb {
    right: auto;
    bottom: 0;
}

The code block above is the recommended style when using Locomotive Scroll to prevent page distortion.

Locomotive Scroll Features

A number of features are included in the Locomotive Scroll package to provide your website with a nice UX and UI. We'll examine some of the Locomotive Scroll package's most practical capabilities in this section.

Locomotive Smooth Scroll

Locomotive Smooth Scroll is one of the major Locomotive Scroll effects; this gives the page a sleek and fluid scroll experience. Let’s add this to our page.

export default {
    methods: {
        setLocomotiveScroll() {
            new LocomotiveScroll({
                el: this.$refs.container,
                smooth: true, // added this
            });
        },
    },
    mounted() {
        this.setLocomotiveScroll();
    },
};

In the code block above, we’re setting the smooth property to true.

locomotive scrolling quickly between 4 slides

Locomotive Scroll Speed

With the Locomotive Scroll library, the scrolling speed of a page can be fully customized. This feature is dependent on the smooth scrolling feature.

export default {
    methods: {
        setLocomotiveScroll() {
            new LocomotiveScroll({
                el: this.$refs.container,
                smooth: true,
                multiplier: 5, // add this
            });
        },
    },
    mounted() {
        this.setLocomotiveScroll();
    },
};

In the block above, we’re adding the multiplier property to the LocomotiveScroll instance. The multiplier boosts or reduces the scrolling speed of the page based on the value provided.

locomotive scrolling very quickly between 4 slides

Locomotive Scroll Attributes

Before looking into other Locomotive Scroll features, let’s review Locomotive Scroll attributes.

Locomotive scroll attributes are custom classes that give children tags special locomotive effects.

These include:

data-scroll-container: This is a required attribute used mostly in the top-level tag of the container to define the scroll container of the application.

data-scroll: This attribute detects if an element is in view, and is necessary when trying to add an effect to any element.

data-scroll-section: This attribute defines a scrollable section within your section.

data-scroll-speed: This sets the speed of the element it's used on.

data-scroll-direction: This helps in parallax scrolling. It scrolls the element into place from the direction specified.

data-scroll-target: This attribute targets the element’s location when it scrolls into view.

data-scroll-repeat: When set as true, this attribute makes all effects repeat their initial phase, thus causing a continuous effect when scrolling over.

Section Overlay Scroll

Creating a nice visual effect where a section scrolls over the previous section before going out of view can easily be achieved with the Locomotive Scroll library. Let’s add this to our application.

<template>
    <main ref="container" data-scroll-container>
        <section className="hello" data-scroll data-scroll-speed="2" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Hello World From Sam</h1>
        </section>
        <section id="sticky" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Sticky scroll example</h1>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
        </section>
        <section className="parallax" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Vertical Parallax scroll</h1>
            <h1>Horizontal Parallax Scroll</h1>
        </section>
        <section className="scroll-into-view" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Here, we're calling the Animate class when the Content scrolls into view</h1>
        </section>
    </main>
</template>

In the code block above, we’re initializing all of the sections using the data-scroll-section attribute to prevent page distortion among the sections. We’re then making the hello section with the data-scroll attribute to enable the Locomotive Scroll feature to work on it when its in view. We’re also delaying the scroll-out time of the hello sections by setting the speed to 2. This combo gives rise to the Scroll-overlay animation.

locomotive scrolling with an overlay between 4 slides

Locomotive Scroll Sticky

Pinning an element in its position when scrolling can also be implemented with the Locomotive Scroll library. Let’s implement this by updating the <h1> tag in the sticky section.

<template>
    <main ref="container" data-scroll-container>
        <section className="hello" data-scroll data-scroll-speed="2" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Hello World From Sam</h1>
        </section>
        <section id="sticky" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Sticky scroll example</h1>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
            <p>Placeholders Placeholders</p>
        </section>
        <section className="parallax" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Vertical Parallax scroll</h1>
            <h1>Horizontal Parallax Scroll</h1>
        </section>
        <section className="scroll-into-view" data-scroll-section>
            <h1>Here, we're calling the Animate class when the Content scrolls into view</h1>
        </section>
    </main>
</template>

In the code block above, we added the data-scroll-sticky attribute to our h1 tag. We also pinpointed the target section that we want the text to stick to, which is the sticky section.

locomotive scrolling with an overlay and sticky text between 4 slides

Locomotive Scroll Parallax

Parallax scrolling means moving elements around a page either horizontally or vertically at different speeds when scrolling. Let’s see how we can achieve this in our Locomotive parallax section.

<template>
    <main ref="container">
        <!-- other code blocks here -->
        <section className="parallax" data-scroll-section>
            <h1 data-scroll data-scroll-direction="vertical" data-scroll-speed="9">
                Vertical Parallax scroll
            </h1>
            <h1 data-scroll data-scroll-direction="horizontal" data-scroll-speed="9">
                Horizontal Parallax Scroll
            </h1>
        </section>
        <!-- other code blocks here -->
    </main>
</template>

In the code block above, we added the data-scroll-direction to both h1 tags and specified the direction we want them to flow. We also increased the speed to make it move faster when scrolling.

locomotive scrolling with an overlay and parallax text scroll between 4 slides

Scroll-into-view Classes

Sometimes we want to add some style to an element when it is scrolled into view and remove it when it is out of view. The Locomotive Scroll library makes this feature very easy to achieve; this comes in handy when dealing with certain animations.

<template>
    <main>
        <!-- other code blocks here -->
        <section className="scroll-into-view" data-scroll-section>
            <h1 
                className="hint-text"
                data-scroll 
                data-scroll-repeat="true" 
                data-scroll-class="animate" 
                data-scroll-speed="5"
            >
                Here, we're calling the Animate class when the Content scrolls into view
            </h1>
        </section>
    </main>
</template>

In the code block above, we’re adding the hint-text to the h1 tag making the tag invisible on the initials. When it scrolls into view, we’re adding the animate class, which contains some animations to fade in the tag. We repeat this process every time the user scrolls to this section.

locomotive scrolling with an overlay between 4 slides and a fade animation at the end

Building a Simple Landing Page with Locomotive scroll features

Let’s build a Mini project with all of the Locomotive features we’ve discussed. To get started, clone the project starter file from Github.

A full landing page built with these scroll features

First, install and configure the Locomotive Scroll library the same way we did in the “Configuring Locomotive Scroll” section. With that done, your App.vue should look like the code below.

<template>
    <main ref="container" data-scroll-container>
        <Introduction />
        <Services />
        <Appreciation />
    </main>
</template>

<script>
import Introduction from "./components/Introduction.vue";
import Services from "./components/Services.vue";
import Appreciation from "./components/Appreciation.vue";
import LocomotiveScroll from "locomotive-scroll";

export default {
    components: {
        Introduction,
        Services,
        Appreciation,
    },
    methods: {
        setLocomotiveScroll() {
            new LocomotiveScroll({
                el: this.$refs.container,
            });
        },
    },
    mounted() {
        this.setLocomotiveScroll();
    },
};
<

Next, we’ll add smooth Locomotive scrolling and multiplier properties to our Locomotive scroll instance to give it some swift scrolling and speed.

setLocomotiveScroll() {new LocomotiveScroll({el: this.$refs.container,smooth: true,multiplier: 3,});},

Head over to the Introduction.vue file in the src/components/ folder and update the template to the code block below.

<template><section data-scroll data-scroll-speed="2" data-scroll-section><h1 data-scroll-speed="2" data-scroll>Welcome to Jexxi Code<br />Lorem ipsum, dolor sit amet consectetur adipisicing elit. Nostrum teneturmagnam natus repellat quod dolorem culpa excepturi doloremque, autem.</h1><div><img src="../assets/man-thinking.png" /></div></section></template>

Now we’ve registered our section with the Locomotive library and given the h1 text some scroll speed to make it scroll off of the page before it is completely removed.

Next, head over to the Services.vue file in the scr/components folder and update the template to the code below.

<template><section id="sticky" data-scroll-section><div class="service-text"><h1data-scrolldata-scroll-stickydata-scroll-target="#sticky"data-scroll-speed="9">Services we Offer</h1></div><div><ServiceText /><ServiceText /><ServiceText /></div></section></template>

We’ve made our h1 text stick to its position on the screen whenever the user scrolls.

Finally, head over to the Appreciation.vue file also in the src/components and update the template to the code below.

<template><section data-scroll-section><h1className="appreciation-text"data-scrolldata-scroll-repeat="true"data-scroll-class="animate"data-scroll-speed="5">Thank You For Using The Locomotive Scroll Library</h1><br /><h2 data-scroll data-scroll-direction="horizontal" data-scroll-speed="9">- Sam Victor</h2></section></template>

In the code block above, we’re adding the animate class whenever the user scrolls this section into view to give our element a fade-in animation. We’re also giving the h2 tag some parallax scroll effect with speed.

With our achievements so far, run the code using yarn dev to get the project running.

locomotive scroll being showcased on a web landing page that displays information

Conclusion

In this article, we’ve practiced some Locomotive scroll examples. We learned how to configure, use and build with the Locomotive library. We’ve also seen how to combine two or more attributes to build some nice effects. Head over to the official documentation to find out more about the library.

Here is the link to the complete source code on Github.

Written by

Sam Victor

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