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I am designing a huge mega menu for a software application. In the menu bar, it is grouped by different tasks based on categories. At times, a user will have a need to click and open up more than one application at a time and will want to do so within the same session. The menu is designed to stay open until user clicks off the menu. While a user is opening all their necessary applications, what would be a good visual cue to signify to users that the application has already loaded and does not need to be clicked again open?

The selected applications will be open in the background, but the menu takes up a chunk of screen size so it is a bit hidden in the back.

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  • is this a GUI or a web or mobile app? Also, do you have a mockup so we can understand the reasoning for this mega menu covering the visible screen? Personally, I have never seen something like this, so some context may help
    – Devin
    Commented Jan 2 at 21:19
  • It is a web application. We used to have a cascading menu until users would constantly complain they would have trouble keeping track of where they are and getting lost so I opted for a flat lay mega menu that still had layers but was more static onto the screen. The mega menu covers screen because of how many subcategories they have for width and also how many products could be in a category as well (I.E. 16). The titles of the products are also lengthy and is hard to reduce characters based on user need & accuracy. Attached Image.
    – Tina
    Commented Jan 4 at 15:23

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Probably the most common icon to designate something has started running is 2 rounded arrows going around in a circle. I suspect that would more commonly be understood as a process running opposed to an application running.

Is this a desktop application? Are the applications that the users will be launching sub-applications within the main application? Or will completely separate apps open?

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  • Yes, that is the most common but you are right, it signifies a process instead of the application is already loaded/running. It is a web application and the applications are indeed sub applications ran. They are basically running different analyses in comparison to each other and will need to call up multiple of them at a time.
    – Tina
    Commented Jan 4 at 15:27

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