[Actionchix] State of the new website

[chris]

Hi Val,
I think we share the same objectives regarding page size, and how much
space is required to display content in browsers. Those are two aspects
of building a website that are difficult to assess when looking at an
image. 

On the other hand, Amy and I didn't want to define design requirements
by coming up with a design then via building and rebuilding the website,
so the pdf serves the purpose of generating discussion around design. 

Page width is fluid according to the window size of the browser (the
viewport). I would guess that pages for this layout will probably be
readable to a minimum of 450px and a maximum of 1000px.

So, if we go to a 2-column layout with no top navigation, then on the
homepage, the news will either go away or it will go back into the main
content area. However, it will likely be pushed down below most people's
viewport, meaning visitors have to know it's there and scroll vertically
to see it. I think the news feed is more usable in the right column.

If we place all of the navigation into a tree in the left column, I'd
highly recommend using a collapsible tree menu (=the submenu of section
you are viewing is the only submenu shown) so that it doesn't require
extensive scrolling. This is what the http://www.bitkeeper.com/ example
uses.
The default state would be to show the entire menu so anyone who does
not have javascript enabled can use it; to help make it more accessible
to people with motor challenges, we can have a toggle to show all menu
items - however that does still require people with a motor disability
to make an extra click.

I like Jen's suggestion of placing the logo to the right - we need all
the space we can get to put the navigation on the left. However, that
gives us a 3-column layout again. It would be more ideal to have a
landscape oriented logo that went in the top of the page. 

Thoughts ?

chris