Navigation
In the past, interaction with applications on personal computers was accomplished primarily by using the keyboard and the mouse. Windows Media Center provides an additional option: remote control.
Creating a user interface that works equally well with mouse, keyboard, and remote control requires deeper thinking about how to present computer-based information. Compared to a keyboard and mouse, the remote control is smaller and easier to use, while at the same time providing a more limited form of user input to design for. And while the greater viewing distance typically associated with remote-controlled experiences provides a more comfortable experience for interacting with digital media, it necessitates a new visual design style to ensure clarity, coherence, and readability.
In adapting the principles of information design for mouse, keyboard and remote control, it is important to consider the user's expectations. In some ways, the Windows Media Center experience is more like watching television or interacting with a video game than using a computer. As a result, users expect a more dynamic and animated experience. They expect that the input device will make their experience simpler, not more complicated. They will also expect applications to "just work", and be more convenient, simpler to learn, and easier to use than applications controlled by the keyboard or mouse.
Here are some key principles for keeping navigation simple when designing for a remote control experience:
- Navigation and all feature usage should require only the Up, Down, Left, Right, Select (OK or Enter), and Back buttons when the user uses the remote control.
- Design your navigation so that Left, Right, Up, and Down arrows can be used instead of having no action for some of the arrow keys on some pages. For example, when you group items based on functionality, you may only need to use Left or Right arrows to move focus along those items aligned in a horizontal layout. In such case, use Up and Down arrows to move to the next group.
- Distance viewing of remote-controlled experiences shrink the amount of screen real estate available to the user interface. Split tasks into multiple pages rather than trying to squeeze them in to a single page.
- Definite Up, Down, Left, Right, Select, and Back navigation models work well. Diagonal movements or actions plus navigations may be appropriate in some instances, but run the risk of confusing the user.
- Multiple scrolling sections (even if they are in sync with each other) typically do not test well.
The term navigation must apply not only to movement between pages or screens, but also to movement between selectable elements within a page. Users navigate by using the arrow buttons on the remote control to move the input focus and pressing the Enter button to act on the focused item. One item on the screen always has the focus.
At any time, the user can switch between input models: mouse, keyboard, or remote control. Special care should be taken at the very early stages of design to respect each type of usage and provide the UI necessary to enable elegant handling of each input model.
Navigation Within a Page
The Windows Media Center remote control provides less granular positioning, selection, and text entry than a keyboard or mouse. With no mouse or cursor, the remote user cannot directly point at and click selectable items. To interact with the application, the user presses arrows to focus on one item at a time, often going past several selectable items to focus on the one desired. The experience must be streamlined to accommodate this simplified form of user input, and to reduce the number of button presses required to complete tasks.
Avoid overwhelming the user with too many links and selectable items. Do not create selectable items for functionality that is already present on the remote control, such as Back, Pause, Play, or Channel / Page Up. As a general rule there should not be more than eight selectable items on a page unless they are organized into logical groups that allow quick navigation and selection. Items should be grouped logically according to their functions. When items are stacked in columns or rows, their functions should be related. Users might become confused by an illogical grouping, such as the following series:
- Save Settings
- Home
- Play DVD
- Help
- Delete Item
- My Account
It is usually helpful to separate items that perform functions on the current page from items that navigate to a different page.
Navigation Between Pages
You should provide users with an obvious method of navigating between adjacent pages or screens of information (for example, a setup wizard). Use page titles for feedback so that users always know where they are.
Previous and Next items can be useful in navigating between pages when a task must be performed in a specific order. Otherwise, do not include these navigational items. Ensure that the focus is on the correct item as a default when each page opens. On the first page of information, Next should have the focus, and Previous should not be enabled. On the last page of information, Previous should have the focus, and Next should not be enabled. Do not include a selectable Back item because this duplicates the Back button on the remote control and mouse navigation UI provided by Windows Media Center. Include clues (typically text) to show where the user is in the sequence of steps (for example, "Page 3 of 7").
See Also