Show a Numeric Progress Indicator on the Progress Bar

Following on from #61, Use a “Linear” Progress Bar If a Task Will Take a Determinate Amount of Time, we can enhance the experience by showing a numeric (percentage) indicator on the progress bar, but only if there’s time to read it.

Figure 62.1: A progress bar with a numeric indicator

A progress bar and a number that appears for a fraction of a second is just confusing and adds to the visual clutter that the user needs to process. If they’re going to be stuck looking at the progress bar for a few seconds, then a percentage is a nice, universally understood way of keeping them updated.

Also, this numeric indicator could be an amount of time. So, for an update, you can show a certain number of minutes remaining. However, a percentage is more useful for shorter processes. Be careful because calculating “time remaining” is often a big technical challenge. It’s common...