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Update the "menu" menu to be a simpler, less redundant and straightfoward

Context

In %15.1 a two alternatives were proposed #362396 (closed) and tested #362536 (closed). Based on the outcome, further design refinement and testing is recommended before devising an implementation plan.

Because some of the proposed solutions to address the problems presented by the Menu introduce significant changes to product navigation, we have determined to proceed with a more minor iteration in the near term until we have a better pulse on the direction for our north star navigation work (#365403 (closed)) in addition to workspaces (#366202 (closed)). This will reduce the risk of introducing multiple shifts in our navigation model which would produce a negative experience for our users.

Tasks

  • Converge on a solution idea
  • Sync with engineering on technical feasibility
  • Kick off implementation issues

Proposal

1. Reduce some of the confusion around the Menu options by arranging them in logical groupings

  • Switch to
    • Projects
    • Groups
  • Explore
    • Milestones
    • Snippets
    • Activity
  • Your dashboards
    • Environments
    • Operations
    • Security
  • Admin (if applicable) see design
  • Anonymous User – see design

2. Eliminate duplicative functionality to reduce noise

  • Remove the following links, as they navigate to the same page (just different tabs):
    • Under Projects
      • ❌ Starred projects
      • ❌ Explore projects
      • ❌ Explore topics
      • ❌ Pending deletion
    • Under Groups
      • ❌ Explore groups
  • Remove the following links, as they are already possible within the global New menu:
    • Projects
      • ❌ Create new project
    • Groups
      • ❌ Create group

3. Remove the label "Menu" from the Menu button. This label is unnecessary as the hamburger icon is a common reference/association for menus today. We can instead utilize a tooltip similar to the other navbar icons titled "Main menu".

4. Relocate the Global Search field in the navbar to be next to the Menu button. This will help to associate it more with navigation and improve discoverability of features that can help users get back to things they were working on. (this may need to be a separate issue)

Additional Considerations (Note: Not included in this issue/update)

The 3 menu items we are proposing to be grouped within an "Explore" heading are currently scoped/filtered inconsistently.

  • Milestones - not scoped / global
  • Snippets - scoped to "Your" (personal) initially
  • Activity - scoped to "Your projects" (projects you are a member of) initially

Ideally, these would be consistent in how they are scoped (you/your team items vs. exploring). I would propose the following changes:

  • Milestones
    • Add and scope initially to "Your groups", with ability to "Explore milestones"
  • Snippets
    • Add the scope "Your project snippets" in-between "Your snippets" and "Explore snippets"
      • Note: "Explore snippets" seems almost unusable in its current state (no search or filtering)
  • Activity
    • Add and scope initially to "Your activity"

As an alternative to adding the "Your activity" scope to the Activity page, we could consider having that as a link under the user menu, as well as pulling "Your snippets" out of the current Snippets page and also having that under the user menu.

Design Resources

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Edited by Nick Brandt