Most apps do click-t0-roll, actually: it takes an initial click to open
one menu option, but after you open one, you can roll to the others.
Then after  you put the focus on something else in the app, the menu
requires a click.




-----Original Message-----
From: ACM SIGCHI WWW Human Factors (Open Discussion)
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Mathijs Panhuijsen
Sent: Friday, July 20, 2007 11:29 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Hover or menu item: open menu or only highlight?

Hello all,

 

I'm part of a team that is building a Web application with a menu, much
like a desktop application menu (but with less items).

My question is: should the application open a menu as you hover over
each item in the menu bar, or should it wait for the user to click the
item (and only highlight it when the user hovers over it)?

 

I've checked Windows and Mac OS X, and both require a click before the
menu opens (Mac doesn't even seem to highlight the hovered-over item).
But on the Web, I've often seen 'spontaneously opening' menus.

I can imagine that seeing these menus open as you move your mouse can be
distracting, but having to click the menu item every time is also not
ideal.

 

Any thoughts on this? Research results, standards etc?

 

Thanks for your input,

 

Mathijs Panhuijsen

Technical Writer

SDL Tridion

 

 

 




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