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Vertical versus dynamic menus on the world wide web: Eye tracking study measuring the influence of menu design and task complexity on user performance and subjective preference

Published: 01 January 2011 Publication History

Abstract

Web sites need fast and effective navigation systems. An eye tracking laboratory study with n=120 participants was conducted to compare the influence of different navigation designs (vertical versus dynamic menus) and task complexity (simple versus complex navigation tasks) on user performance, navigation strategy, and subjective preference. With vertical menus, users needed less eye fixations, were faster and more successful. We conclude that, firstly, vertical menus fit better to perception and cognition than dynamic menus, where the navigation items are hidden and must be accessed by an additional mouse click. Secondly, navigation systems should be extended with different kinds of navigation items adapted to the complexity of the users' navigation tasks, because users tend to switch their navigation strategy when confronted with complex tasks.

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  1. Vertical versus dynamic menus on the world wide web: Eye tracking study measuring the influence of menu design and task complexity on user performance and subjective preference

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    Published In

    cover image Computers in Human Behavior
    Computers in Human Behavior  Volume 27, Issue 1
    January, 2011
    606 pages

    Publisher

    Elsevier Science Publishers B. V.

    Netherlands

    Publication History

    Published: 01 January 2011

    Author Tags

    1. Browsing
    2. Grouping
    3. Links
    4. Menus
    5. Navigation
    6. Task complexity

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    • (2022)Inspection of In-Vehicle Touchscreen Infotainment Display for Different Screen Locations, Menu Types, and PositionsHCI in Mobility, Transport, and Automotive Systems10.1007/978-3-031-04987-3_18(258-279)Online publication date: 26-Jun-2022
    • (2019)Image, brand and price infoProceedings of the 11th ACM Symposium on Eye Tracking Research & Applications10.1145/3317960.3321616(1-8)Online publication date: 25-Jun-2019
    • (2019)Attention to online channels across the path to purchaseElectronic Commerce Research and Applications10.1016/j.elerap.2019.10086436:COnline publication date: 1-Jul-2019
    • (2019)Effects of Menu Organization and Visibility on Web Navigation for People with DyslexiaHuman-Computer Interaction – INTERACT 201910.1007/978-3-030-29381-9_8(115-133)Online publication date: 2-Sep-2019
    • (2018)Impact of Menu Complexity upon User Behavior and Satisfaction in Information SearchHuman Interface and the Management of Information. Information in Applications and Services10.1007/978-3-319-92046-7_5(55-66)Online publication date: 15-Jul-2018
    • (2017)RicoProceedings of the 30th Annual ACM Symposium on User Interface Software and Technology10.1145/3126594.3126651(845-854)Online publication date: 20-Oct-2017
    • (2017)Location of navigation menus in websites: an experimental study with Arabic usersUniversal Access in the Information Society10.1007/s10209-015-0444-x16:1(191-196)Online publication date: 1-Mar-2017
    • (2017)WINE: Web Integrated Navigation Extension; Conceptual Design, Model and InterfaceComputational Collective Intelligence10.1007/978-3-319-67074-4_45(462-472)Online publication date: 27-Sep-2017
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    • (2016)Users' preference share as a criterion for hierarchical menu optimizationProceedings of the 8th ACM SIGCHI Symposium on Engineering Interactive Computing Systems10.1145/2933242.2935875(305-310)Online publication date: 21-Jun-2016
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