requestAnimationFrame (rAF) is more suitable for animation than setTimeout or setInterval because it synchronizes with the browser refresh mechanism to achieve smoother and more efficient animation effects. ① rAF will call the specified function before the browser's next repaint, usually execute at a frequency of 60 frames per second to make the animation smoother; ② It will automatically pause when the tab page is not in the foreground to save resources; ③ When using it, start the animation loop by calling requestAnimationFrame recursively and stop avoiding memory leaks under appropriate conditions; ④ Pay attention to avoid frequent operation of DOM It is recommended to use high-performance properties such as transform and can use the timestamps received by the callback function for precise control; ⑤ Mainstream browsers have been widely supported but are compatible with old browsers that may require polyfill.
requestAnimationFrame ( rAF for short) is an API provided by a browser that is specifically used to perform animation-related operations before page repainting. It does not simply make the animation "move", but helps you achieve animation effects more efficiently and smoothly.
Why is it more suitable for animation than setTimeout or setInterval?
Many people use setTimeout or setInterval to control the rhythm of animation, but these methods are not always synchronized with the browser's refresh mechanism. The result is: animations may stutter, skip frames, and even affect performance.
What's special about requestAnimationFrame is that:
- It will tell the browser: "I'm going to do the animation next, you prepare and call my function before the next repaint."
- The browser will execute your code at the right time, usually 60 times per second (that is, one frame around 16.7ms), so that the animation looks smoother.
- If the tab page is not in the foreground (such as the user switches the browser tab), it will automatically pause, saving resources.
How to write a simple animation using requestAnimationFrame?
The basic usage is actually very simple. It accepts a callback function as a parameter, and this function will be called in the next frame.
For example: You want an element to move from left to right.
function animate() {
// Do something to update location/style element.style.left = newX 'px';
// Continue to requestAnimationFrame(animate);
}
// Start the animation requestAnimationFrame(animate); The key point of this code is to call yourself "recursively" and constantly request the next frame until you stop actively (for example, by conditional judgment, no longer call requestAnimationFrame ).
Some tips and precautions for using it
- Don't operate DOM frequently in it : Although rAF is a good tool for optimizing animations, if you operate DOM in large quantities every frame, it will still affect performance. It is recommended to batch processing or use high-performance properties such as transform.
- You can pass a timestamp to the callback function : the callback function receives a parameter to represent the current timestamp (unit is milliseconds). You can use this to do more precise animation control.
- Remember to clean up unnecessary animation loops : for example, when component uninstallation, unfinished rAF requests may be cancelled, otherwise memory leaks may occur.
- Compatibility is already very good : mainstream browsers support it, but if you want to be compatible with very old browsers, you may need to add a prefix or polyfill.
Ending
In general, requestAnimationFrame is one of the foundations of modern web animation. It not only makes animations smoother, but also helps us write better performance code. If you use it too much, you will find that it is not complicated, but it is indeed easy to ignore details.
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