Planning a Web Project

by Amy Kerr

In this article:

Navigation

The most common navigation models on the Web today are navigation columns and navigation bars. The column normally acts as a "table of contents" for the site. It contains a vertical list of links that display content in a separate pane. The navigation bar typically runs horizontally across the top of the site, the bottom, or both. The navigation bar is useful for moving between major sections of the site. It sometimes contains dropdown menus to make more content directly available. Occasionally sites will use both, but for the sake of simplicity, it is preferable to use one or the other.

The site shown above uses both a navigation column and a bar. Some of the categories in the bar are duplicated in the column. It makes the site complicated and difficult predict.

Linking content

Don't assume you need to represent all the content in your site in the navigation column or bar. Extensive linking within your content can be an effective way of getting users to the right information. Defining relationships within the content should be a part of planning the site's structure. Identify related content by drawing lines between the content nodes in the site structure diagram. Indicate whether the links are one-way or two-way.

Check the content yourself, trying to imagine what paths users would choose. Make sure you do not leave them at any point in the structure where they can't get back to a navigation bar, an overview topic, or the "home" page. Be conscious of the multiple paths available to users. Each audience segment you have defined in your audience analysis may be interested in different content and navigate through it a different way.

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