Description
We would like to begin to develop an understanding of the usage/behavior of various elements on the desktop site as we start to think about improvements we can make to the desktop experience.
1. Main menu (sidebar)
Data questions: what percentage of users use links in the sidebar? What is the usage for all of the various links?
Audiences: logged-in users, logged-out users
Why this is relevant: we're curious about a more modular design, wherein the main menu is collapsible. It could even act different for different audiences. Knowing how often it gets used, and by whom, will inform our thinking.
Notes:
- some editors customize their main menus
- some links in the main menu are available elsewhere - we are particularly curious about usage of the links as located in the main menu
2. Search
Data questions: what percentage of users use search? How many searches do users of search perform per session?
Audiences: logged-in users, logged-out users
Why this is relevant: currently search is a relatively small element on the page, and is only accessible from the top of the page (i.e. you can't perform a search if you're scrolled down, reading an article). We're curious if people have difficulty finding search, or perhaps just don't think of searching the site because they don't notice it.
Notes:
3. Language links
Data questions: what percentage of users use language links?
Audiences: logged-in users, logged-out users
Why this is relevant: currently you have to scroll in order to find the language links. We're wondering if a more prominent location, perhaps closer to the article context itself, would make it easier for users to find.
Notes:
4. User links in header
Data questions: what percentage of users use the user links in the header? What is the usage for all of the various links?
Audiences: logged-in users, logged-out users
Why this is relevant: currently the user links take up quite a bit of space in the header. As we think of ways to tidy up the site it would be helpful to understand what the usage is like there.
Notes:
5. Table of contents
Data questions: what percentage of users use the table of contents? For users who do use it, how many table of contents links do they click per article?
Audiences: logged-in users, logged-out users
Why this is relevant: currently it is not possible to access the table of contents without being near the top of an article. It seems like a key navigational component for reading, possibly deserving of some kind of UX that allows people to access it regardless of which part of the page they're scrolled to.
Notes:
- on iOS and Android the table of contents is always accessible. It could be interesting to compare usage there vs. web
