IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT

[Admin]

Now that I have your attention (sorry) but the site is coming to a huge problem and I need your input. We need to plan for the future.

 

The current side menu system is great but it takes up side space causing some pages to display squashed up horizontally PLUS it only has room for one more item...BUT there is a lot more to come.

 

What we have and what is coming:

1. Forums
2. Groups/Clubs
3. Blogs
4. Events
5. Gallery
6. Videos
7. Movies
8. Books
9. News
10. Articles
11. Our Shop (replacing Clear Prop)
12. Classifieds
13. Suppliers (Business Directory)
14. Product Reviews
15. Downloads
16. Quizzes
17. Tutorials
18. Airfields
19. Great Aviators
20. Reference Items
21. Aircraft
22. Members
23. Member Map
24. Support

Now that is only what is currently planned and NOT other features that we, the users, may find that they would like to have here on Recreational Flying as their all encompassing recreational aviation resource

 

There are 3 options:

1. OPTION 1: Keep the side menu and group some areas together with a landing page. This means that when you click on a grouped link, there is a Home page with snippets of entries for each section within that group. Once you are on the Group Home Page or in any section within that Group, the sub menu across the top will contain links to each section within that group. Negative is more clicks needed to get to where you want to go and we still have some horizontally squashed views. Possible benefit is a Group Summary Page of all the sections in that group.
2. OPTION 2: Keep the side menu and group some areas together. When you click on a menu item in the main side menu, a sub menu box comes out with each of the sections in that group for you to click on (like the current Notification, PMs and Account boxes are displayed). Once you are on a section in that Group, or in any section within that Group, the sub menu across the top will contain links to each section within that group. Negative is more clicks needed to get to where you want to go and we still have some horizontally squashed views. Benefit is there is extra room to extend the section list in a group even further than planned
3. OPTION 3: Move to a standard Horizontal menu and group the relevant sections with links to them in the sub menu. Negative is that you don't have a side menu that is easy to use on a tablet without your hand leaving the side of the tablet and space is taken up across the top of the page for an extra menu line. Benefit is we no longer have the horizontally squashed view on some pages and there is extra room to extend the section list in a group even further than planned:

 

Please vote to let me know your preference...thanks

 

The one thing I am concerned with is OUT OF SITE OUT OF MIND when this site will offer so much

[Admin]

I have just added 3 extra votes to Option 2 for the wife and kids who have voted for Option 2 when I explained it all to them...Caitlin said:

 

"It is 2020, go for the Click and Collect option"

[Kenlsa]

I don't understand this stuff.....so what you think works best is good for me

Ken

[bull]

Corporate takeovers always stuff up a good thing,,,bloody shame to see this site [which has always been a "friendly" site] now turn into the 2020 """we want more and more""" just like the RAA has gone .  Will be the death of recflying me thinks ,,,,,sad

[kgwilson]

I hardly ever access Recflying on my phone and almost never on a tablet.  I browse when in my office with a fast PC & 16:9, 27" monitor so there is always plenty of room for everything. Horizontal menus with drop down options used to be the go but I like the side menu now so my preference would be for No 2 with the slide out box rather than go to the page in option 1 and then find the option I was looking for isn't there.

[tillmanr]

I normally check recalling on an iPad and have no problems with reading  the page. Don’t over work it Ian.

Edited September 28, 2020 by tillmanr
Incomplete

[Admin]

Ok so with only 14 member votes and 3 family votes the fly out box of menu links is the preferred option. I will need to get @Ahmed Zayed to see if this can be developed with the current framework or not. basically it needs to have the sub menu items in a fly out box similar to that of the Account, Notifications and Messages box and then when on one of those sub menu items the same sub menu items are displayed in the sticky sub menu bar across the top.

 

Just to be clear it will be a box that comes out from the main menu item (ignore the cosmetics as the image is from another site):

[tillmanr]

Ian, do what fits the system and your vision. I am comfortable with the result