Creating a site sans Tables - but how to do this with Nav?

[DavidBeoulve]

I am designing a table-less site.

On the left side of the site, I want to have this kind of navigation:

or (image altered mildly to clarify what the links mean -- I'll play with how it looks slater)

This navigation is supposed to show the current stack in the first section (Home -> Candidates -> Page 1, as bread crumbs do), then a special box showing the pages that are at the same level you're on now (all of "Page 1"'s links) and beneath that, the pages from the previous level (all of "Candidates"'s links, the parent).

My plan was to have five DIVs:
1: Invisible container
2: Background, which appears under the next 3
3: Stack Navigation, the first words you see
4: Child/Current Navigation - the outset box
5: Previous stack links, the last set of words you see

#1 CONTAINER DIV:
This Div should contain the others.

#2 BACKGROUND DIV:
The background DIV can't contain DIV#4 or DIV#2's width is altered -- perhaps I should make its border part of the image.

#3 STACK NAV DIV:
A UL formatted to appear this way -- I need it to push down DIV#4 and cumulatively increase #2's height.

#4 CURRENT NAV DIV:
Current level links - I need it to push down DIV#5 and cumulatively increase #2's height.

#5 PARENT LEVEL DIV:
Previous level links - I need it to cumulatively increase #2's height.


Sounds simple, but I'm lost. How can I accomplish this?

 

[BillyRayPreachersSon]

I really don't think your nav structure is obvious - I think you've got a design that you like the look of, and have decided to run with it, despite the fact it's not intuitive about the level structure.

Personally, I'd rethink having the "Main section" / "Child section" graphic above the child section - it serves no purpose, and sets the child section away from its parent.

Also, your child menu goes outside the bounds of the parent menu, which I think may cause you problems.

Hope this helps,
Dan

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[DavidBeoulve]

First off, you are correct about liking the concept before considering how usable it looks once its done -- and no, I don't like the look of it. As I play with it, and now that it works:

[/url]

http://img435.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot0056nf.png

I am less and less entranced with it. It's just non-inuitive.

Anyone's thoughts appreciated.

Personally I like this one better:

http://img510.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot0068ij.png

Look at the navigation.

Tell me what you think, guys.

http://www.gamersgonebad.com

 

[kaht]

Don't listen to Dan, he's just bitter because it's not a British flag

-kaht

How much you wanna make a bet I can throw a football over them mountains?

 

[BillyRayPreachersSon]

I'm not flagist, honest! ;-)

Re. the new design... I can't see how it relates to the old one at all. There are no obvious sub-levels, and it's not at all obvious what the graphics are in each menu (or why there are many menu options saying the same thing).

If you want this to be intuitive, you'll have to make it easy for dumb users to work out what each menu item does - which the new design clearly does not ("Voting", "Voting", "Citizen", "Citizen", "Citizen").

Dan

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