Articles Log

By Florie Lyn Masarate / Published on March 8th, 2008 / Programming

The day Javascript was created, web site owners may have rejoiced at the wonders that man can think of in adding something to make sites more enjoyable for the readers. The readers having had some sort of amusement while browsing through were quite taken by this also. After sometime, people got tired of figuring out where the links will take them. They have to mouse over them to find the exact destination they wanted to go. Sometimes too, this design technique can be quite deceiving. Telling about a link but once readers is there, they get disappointed to note that that is not the information they expect and needed. Too much wasted effort on the side of the readers just to get something they though would only take a minute of their time.

Mystery Meat Navigation, or MMN, is what they call this technique. Popular but also horrible.

MMN can be very seductive if done perfectly. For those who have not yet encountered much of this design technique, chances are they would probably fall into its trap and be hooked even before they know it and even if they want to or not. They look pretty cool on sites too and design awards have already been won by some sites that use this style. MMN makes site look clean and polished because of the non-existence of long winding texts. Thus taking the concept of “white space” in effect.

If you think about all the good attributes that MMN has to offer, then why do people consider them as horrible? Let us put it in a concrete example that anyone can relate with. When you drive down a road, you expect signs along the highway that leads you to a certain destination or warns you about something that is important. Put them into the MMN concept. There is no road sign that wait for people to be near them to tell them what they say or what they are about. It would be absurd having to take the effort of getting out of the car and walking towards the sign to see what they are about. This would be too frustrating too for those who are in a rush and do not have all the time in the world.

That same analogy is what makes MMN a horrible tool for web sites for some people. They may seem fun at first but the fun will slowly be converted to frustration and lack of interest. Many people enjoy mysteries and cannot wait to see what they are about. But take note of those that prefer going straight to the point with no effort done at all.




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About the author:


Florie Lyn Masarate got the flair for reading and writing when she got her first subscription of the school newsletter in kindergarten. She had her first article published on that same newsletter in the third grade.