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Thread: Same-Page Navigation Links
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From: Dagmar Noll
Date: Wed, Mar 09 2005 7:56AM
Subject: Same-Page Navigation Links
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Hi.
I'm trying to look into some design theory on same-page navigaton links,
where they can improve accessability and usability, and where they can be
confusing and detrimental in these areas.
My suspicions (and assumptions):
1 "back to the top"-type links must be helpful for folks on PDAs viewing
looong HTML pages. I recently tried to make more meaningful links-- instead
of a "back to the top" after a small section, I wrote something like "More
[Main Subject] Topics/Options", but think this might confuse users with an
expectation for more info on that specific sub-topic
2 same-page navigaton links might be disorienting for screen readers because
they might indicate travel to a new page instead of just within the same
one, thus messing with people's expectations
3 same-page links can also be disorienting to visitors using graphical
browsers, again because they mess with expectations (this happens to me
frequently, and as far as I know, I don't have any cognative or visual
limitations beyond low-power corrective lenses)
I'd appreciate:
* Responses to these suspicions and assumptions,
* Examples of nicely organized same-page link navigation (if you think they
have a strong place in web page design),
* Any user testing/studies on how these work for users,
* and answers to these questions:
A. Do any/all/some of the screen readers specify if a link is a same-page
link (thus decreasing disorientation)?
B. Now I'm discovering navigation via well-formed headers, and in terms of
screen readers am considering bailing on all of the extra navigation
(because the headers make the sub-sections accessible), however, maybe they
are still helpful to PDAs? Or is there some other way for PDAs to easily
navigate around a long page? Is the scroll bar sufficient?
C. Finally, does anyone ever have trouble, personally, orienting themselves
after clicking a same-page navigation link from a sub-menu, or is it just me
(or just certain designs)?
This seems like such a simple feature of html, so maybe there is a simple
answer. That would be nice. I'm on the verge of scrapping same-page
navigation for my sections in favor of drilling down to info, but was hoping
to read some interesting discussion on the matter first.
I have tried searching for this info on my own using a variety of search
terms and looking at a variety of sources. I found almost nothing. If there
is a load of information on this out there that I've managed to miss and
someone would supply me with the appropriate keywords (or even sites), I'll
happily do my own footwork. Thanks!
Best Regards,
Dagmar Noll
From: Jukka K. Korpela
Date: Wed, Mar 09 2005 8:14AM
Subject: Re: Same-Page Navigation Links
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On Wed, 9 Mar 2005, intern.wincog wrote:
> I'm trying to look into some design theory on same-page navigaton links,
> where they can improve accessability and usability, and where they can be
> confusing and detrimental in these areas.
The short answer is that they are useless or harmful, unless they express
logical references (logical links), like a reference to another section
on a page. Admittedly some people might be used to making use of
"back to the top" links for example, but such behavior should _not_
be encouraged by inserting such links. Same-page links are not ubiquous
and will never be, so people still need to learn to use their browsers,
or find themselves lost on many (actually, most) pages.
> 1 "back to the top"-type links must be helpful for folks on PDAs viewing
> looong HTML pages.
No, any decent browser has a simple way to get to the start of the page.
Don't prevent people from having motivation to learn that simple way.
> I recently tried to make more meaningful links-- instead
> of a "back to the top" after a small section, I wrote something like "More
> [Main Subject] Topics/Options", but think this might confuse users with an
> expectation for more info on that specific sub-topic
Indeed. "Back to the top" is confusing, but such attempts would make it
even more confusing.
(Top of what? If you have never used Web before - and every day, a large
number of new users learn to use the Web - there would be little reason
to assume that "Back to the top" really means jumping to the start of the
document being currently viewed, as opposite to, say, the topmost (main)
page of a site.)
> 2 same-page navigaton links might be disorienting for screen readers because
> they might indicate travel to a new page instead of just within the same
> one, thus messing with people's expectations
In any case they are a disruption in any linear consumption of a page.
This includes listening to the page in "links reading" mode and
moving from one link to another using the tab key.
> 3 same-page links can also be disorienting to visitors using graphical
> browsers,
Right, though for most "normal" users, they are just useless.
In printed documents, same-page navigation looks particularly foolish.
Admittedly this can be prevented in a simple way using CSS, but most pages
that use same-page link don't even take care of this.
--
Jukka "Yucca" Korpela, http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/