For questions about the mechanisms you can use to help people find their way around your application or web site.
42
votes
10answers
3k views
Home button vs Logo link?
Is a "home" button on the navigation required if there is a link to the homepage using the company's logo?
Increasingly I have noticed more and more websites using the logo as a link to return to ...
42
votes
7answers
4k views
What's the best way to view a deep hierarchy?
I've been pondering the best way to show a deep hierarchy for a desktop application I'm working on. Here are some alternative designs I'm considering...
Mac OSX Finder:
If you understand what ...
26
votes
3answers
4k views
Do users understand the browser back button?
You hear a lot about not breaking the back button on websites, but can you assume that most users know and use the back button?
Is it redundant to add a JavaScript or HTML back button/link on a page?
...
13
votes
7answers
751 views
Are hover menus in headers easy to use?
Do users find it easy to use headers/menus like the one displayed below?
17
votes
4answers
1k views
How to explain to director that a multilevel dropdown menu isn't a good idea
My director and designer want to make a big drop-down menu on our site. Multilevel menu :
| MENU 1 | MENU 2 | MENU 3 | MENU 4 |
...
15
votes
5answers
1k views
Is it ever okay to have multiple rows of tabs?
We're working on a UI at work and people want to have the number of tabs in a certain area be flexible width so that in certain situations depending on the title length and the number of tabs, the tab ...
7
votes
4answers
4k views
Breadcrumbs: ok to use on mobile site?
Wondering if anyone has thoughts on using breadcrumbs as a method of navigation on a mobile website (for a content site). The breadcrumbs would show the heirarchy of the site as such:
Site >> ...
15
votes
9answers
2k views
Should I add a 'Home' Button to the navigation?
I know that it is common behavior to have the logo of a web page be a link to the home page, but should I also have a 'home' link in the navigation bar for it as well?
8
votes
4answers
819 views
What is the top navigation called when it is common to a network or suite of websites?
What is the top navigation bar called when it is common to a suite or network of sites with a common login, as in StackExchange, 37 Signals (Basecamp, Backpack, etc.), or Google Apps for Your Domain?
...
26
votes
8answers
948 views
Is it a good idea to have a large footer containing many links?
In recent years, it's become quite a common design pattern to have a large footer on every page, containing a 'mini sitemap'.
For example:
This has supposed SEO benefits, but would also seem to ...
12
votes
10answers
447 views
External links: Whether & how to distinguishing them from internal links, and to open them
How do other IAs/UXD's treat external links & what are the perceived pros/cons of different options. Specifically looking for recommendations on:
whether & how to visually distinguish ...
12
votes
8answers
1k views
Which side of a web page should a side menu go on?
Many websites have side menus and I seem some have the side menu on the right and some on the left.
Which side is better?
4
votes
3answers
586 views
Categories or tags based navigation ?
I am not sure if tags based navigation would be easier for users. In our web we categorize software (like download.com) and categories maybe are hard to understand.
21
votes
6answers
2k views
What is “eyebrow navigation”?
Just came across this term in a document I'm reading through, referring to "eyebrow links" in the context of navigation. Presumably it's a form of navigation at the top of the page, but what ...
8
votes
4answers
475 views
How do I handle secondary navigation within a wizard-style form that will work for touch screens?
I am working on redesigning the UI for a Web app that registers users for something work-related (so my audience is captive). One of the main reasons for the redesign is to make it mobile-friendly; I ...
9
votes
1answer
819 views
Using a combination of horizontal navigation with submenus and vertical side navigation with submenus in one website
I've been involved in a website redesign where the navigation includes a primary horizontal navigation menu with one level of dropdowns and secondary navigation in the left column that repeats the ...
6
votes
3answers
127 views
Select as title vs. Tabs
I'm trying to decide between using a custom css select as a title versus using tabs on a page I'm working on. I drew up two wireframes below:
1. Using Tabs
2. Using Select
As you can see, the ...
6
votes
6answers
307 views
Suitable alternative to trackbar control
I use a track bar control in two different places in an touch-screen application I have. The first to record a specific amount of Data. (lets say 260 samples) the second to record an unlimited amount ...
6
votes
2answers
284 views
Should 'Home' be included in website breadcrumbs?
This may vary based on your site hierarchy and IA but when configuring breadcrumbs should they include home or stop the first filter (categories, for example).
Which is better? I have seen both used ...
5
votes
5answers
635 views
Pros and cons of a Single Page site versus a Multi page site
I am working on trying to re-design the site for the agency I work for and a recommendation was made that we should move to a single page site with a vertical scroll which which walks through all the ...
5
votes
1answer
273 views
Unifying Search and Browse
I am working on a part of a website right now. Let's just call it a Map for now. Every user has a map, which displays his or her interests as images in a grid. Quite obviously, the user can add or ...
14
votes
4answers
1k views
When is a right-handed navigation sidebar appropriate?
When is a right-handed sidebar for navigation a good choice? If possible, I would like some examples where it has been used, such as this sidebar from Google's official blog.
3
votes
2answers
179 views
Mirror top navigation order between left to right-languages and right to left-languages?
It's common to see international companies and organizations having a global web site with several country web sites. The country web sites is often translated to the countries' own language, which ...
2
votes
2answers
187 views
Is it better to have more than one way to navigate to functionality or only one way?
We are building a web app in Silverlight and currently have more than one way to navigate to the same functionality. I.e. there is more than one button/link on the page that does exactly the same ...
1
vote
3answers
554 views
Android app - Look and feel
I'm developing my first app for Android. It's a small productivity app for smartphones and tablets.
(I'm using Flash CS5 and Adobe Air to build it.)
Is it recommended to use/copy the native Android ...
22
votes
7answers
1k views
Would Breadcrumbs be effective if they incorporate Dropdowns?
I'm currently thinking about adding a quite comprehensive section to a website: the section I'm talking about starts at level 3 of the overall website and itself has another four structural levels. ...
17
votes
2answers
793 views
Senior Usability and Navigation
Does anyone have any current resources for senior usability? I'm specifically researching navigation: tabs and accordions. The Jacob Nielsen site has a report that's over a decade old. I'm looking for ...
5
votes
2answers
164 views
Multilevel navigation menus for mobile devices
We have a 5 level navigation menu that needs to be incorporated in Mobile devices with a good & best usability approach.. which does not cost multi click for the user to view the 5th level menu.
...
29
votes
12answers
1k views
Do website visitors return to the homepage once they're inside the site?
I have been (unsuccessfully) looking for some research that supports / rejects (or even discusses) the hypothesis that:
Once a user has entered a website a significant percentage of them do not ...
15
votes
4answers
616 views
What reasons are there for “go to bottom/top” links no longer being used much? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Do people use back to top links?
Some websites have links like Go To Bottom or Go To Top.
It seems like this technique has fallen out of style. Are there good reasons ...
12
votes
3answers
718 views
Drawer Navigation vs. Drop Down Menus
Are there any studies on drawer type navigation such as: http://www.ibm.com/us/en/ where the navigation pushes down content, compared to traditional drop down menus where navigation covers up content? ...
10
votes
6answers
486 views
Button bar: criteria and position
Me and my team are (re)thinking some UI details of our main application.
It's a "traditional" desktop application for the Windows platform. It's a business targeted application, and our customers are ...
5
votes
3answers
2k views
Elegant, simple and obvious sub-tabs?
I have a simple navigation setup that requires tabs and sub-tabs. I have the main tabs ready:
But I don't know how to make the sub-tabs fit in and still be user-friendly. What's a good way to ...
3
votes
2answers
609 views
Is there any research or data on horizontal vs. vertical navigational menus?
I've seen many sites using both horizontal (top) navigation, vertical (left) navigation, and both across web sites for a long time. My understanding is that they're both conventions, but I would ...
9
votes
3answers
2k views
Fixed-position header and menu on a web page — is that okay?
A client of mine is insisting on two things for a website I am designing:
That every single link is shown in the header – about 10 links or so with no sub-categories. ie. no drop-downs, rollovers, ...
8
votes
2answers
2k views
Usability of multi-level tabs versus dropdown menu for navigation
We're in the middle of a redesign of our client portal, and there's been some discussion about whether to pursue a multi-level tab design or a dropdown menu (used on the current version of the ...
7
votes
3answers
523 views
Horizontal menus, do they scale?
I'm a user of a popular website that uses horizontal menus for navigation. As the site's functionality grows, the number of menu items also grow. As the horizontal space is limited, the design choice ...
3
votes
3answers
254 views
How to choose the better placement for Sidebar: Left or Right?
I have a question about sidebar navigation.
I am designing a web page for latest news and placed the sidebar (news navigation) on the right side. My logic was that "On the news page at first people ...
3
votes
5answers
1k views
Best way to present navigation for mobile? [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How to structure Android app navigation with many levels?
What is the best way to present navigation with around 3 levels of sub-categories for mobile? The problem is ...
8
votes
2answers
773 views
Combining breadcrumb and selected facets/filters into one
Given a site with faceted-search, etc. I want to display the facets a user has selected, not only as part of the faceted-navigation controls (left vertical) but also at the top of the page.
Showing ...
6
votes
3answers
424 views
Breadcrumb or tabbed form or best of both?
We have a web application that allows users to query a database.
The results are returned in a breadcrumb style interface.
We brought this change in at a new version, and our users have been ...
3
votes
5answers
1k views
Slide out teasers near the bottom of the page?
On more and more sites now I'm seeing what I'm calling "slide out teasers" appearing at the bottom of pages. What happens is I'm scrolling down the page and nearing the bottom, and then a small box ...
11
votes
4answers
150 views
Should you optimize mobile experiences based on individual handedness?
In abbood's question "How to implement a stack exchange style voting for mobile?" he answers his own question with the following mock-up:
My immediate thought was that the up-vote control was on ...
8
votes
3answers
185 views
Why do menu labels behave differently in desktop applications and websites?
In a desktop application when you click a menu, you see all the options which reside within it, in a drop-down/pop-up list.
In many websites with a navigation menu which has sub-categories, I have ...
8
votes
6answers
980 views
Should breadcrumb menus ever be two lines?
Should a long breadcrumb menu ever spill into a second line? If so, what are some good examples of this done right so that it looks decent? If not, what are other solutions that can solve the length ...
7
votes
1answer
107 views
Easiest cursor move?
In relation to making a pie-menu.
I've tried finding research on this, but to no avail.
My reasoning is this: Put the most used features at the easiest places (although putting opposites.. opposite ...
5
votes
6answers
217 views
Best Practice for Tab Placement on Widget?
For the past week I have been working on restyling tabs on a widget. Some problems I have encountered during the restyle is our 960 grid system which with a side navigation included allows me a space ...
5
votes
1answer
590 views
Global navigation - best practices
What are some of the best practices when designing global navigation menus that tie together multiple websites that have no common layouts, color schemes or typography?
I've looked at examples such ...
5
votes
3answers
420 views
On Android, how do you design a very shallow navigation?
I need to create a simple account section in my mobile app with 1-level deep navigation:
___ Register
/
Account --
\___ Login
On iPhone, I'm using a grouped table ...
5
votes
2answers
477 views
What is the best way to allow users to navigate through a large amount of information on a website that is categorised in numerous ways?
As a web developer, I'm often given designs that look good from the web designer, but don't necessarily function as well as they should. This is especially true for navigation elements, increasingly ...
