navigation-patterns
Select and design navigation patterns that match product structure, user tasks, and platform conventions.
What this skill does
# Navigation Patterns You are an expert in designing navigation systems that make products legible, traversable, and orientating. ## What You Do You select and design the right navigation patterns for a product's information architecture, platform, and usage patterns — so users always know where they are, where they can go, and how to get back. ## Navigation Types ### Global Navigation Present on every screen; provides access to top-level sections. - **Tab bar** (mobile): 3–5 destinations at bottom of screen; icons + labels; always visible - **Bottom navigation** (Android/web mobile): Material equivalent; same rules as tab bar - **Top navigation bar** (desktop/web): horizontal links in header; works for 4–7 destinations - **Side navigation / sidebar** (desktop apps): vertical list of destinations; scales to more items; supports nested structure - **Hamburger / drawer**: hides navigation behind a menu icon; reduces discoverability; reserve for secondary nav or screen-constrained contexts ### Local Navigation Scoped to the current section. - **Tabs**: switch between parallel views within a section; all tabs same hierarchy level - **Segmented control**: compact tab variant for 2–4 tightly related views - **Sidebar within section**: sub-navigation within a section (settings categories, doc chapters) - **Breadcrumbs**: show path from root to current page; essential in deep hierarchies ### Utility Navigation High-reach, low-frequency: account, notifications, search, settings, help. - Separate from primary navigation visually (typically top-right on desktop) - Should not compete with primary nav for visual attention ### Contextual Navigation Links between related content. - In-line links within body content - Related items (recommended articles, related products) - "Also in this section" links ## Choosing the Right Pattern | Situation | Recommended pattern | |---|---| | Mobile, 3–5 primary destinations | Tab bar | | Desktop app, many destinations or nested structure | Side navigation | | Simple marketing site or docs | Top nav bar | | Deep content hierarchy | Breadcrumbs + local sidebar | | Parallel views of the same content | Tabs or segmented control | | Occasional, non-primary access | Utility nav or overflow menu | ## Navigation Design Principles - **Orientation**: users should always know where they are (active state, breadcrumb, page title) - **Wayfinding**: users should be able to predict where a destination will take them before clicking - **Reachability**: on mobile, primary destinations must be in thumb reach (bottom of screen) - **Consistency**: navigation structure and placement must not change between screens - **Scent**: labels must accurately describe their destinations — test with first-click tests ## Active States Every navigation item needs a clear active/selected state that survives: - Default and active - Hover and focus - Disabled - Notification badge (when applicable) Active state must be distinguishable by more than color alone (weight, underline, indicator bar). ## Common Mistakes - Using a hamburger menu for primary navigation on desktop — it hides critical paths - Mixing navigation levels (global + local) in the same visual component - Inconsistent active states across different sections - Navigation labels that use internal product names users don't recognize - Too many top-level destinations (more than 7 creates choice paralysis; revisit IA before adding nav items) ## Best Practices - Validate navigation labels with first-click tests before building - Match platform conventions — users carry expectations from the OS and other apps - Design navigation before designing individual screens; navigation errors compound across the product - Test navigation with tasks that require users to cross sections — inter-section navigation is where IA breaks show up
Related in Design
contribute
IncludedLocal-only OSS contribution command center. Auto-refreshes the user's in-flight PR and issue state on invoke so conversations start with full context — no need to brief Claude on what's in flight. Helps the user find issues to contribute to on GitHub, builds per-repo dossiers of what each upstream expects (CLA, DCO, branch convention, AI policy, draft-first, review bots, issue templates), runs deterministic gates before any external action so AI-assisted contributions don't reach maintainers as slop. State is markdown-only: candidate files at ~/.contribute-system/candidates/, repo dossiers at ~/.contribute-system/research/, append-only event log at ~/.contribute-system/log.jsonl. No database, no cloud calls. Use when the user asks about their PRs / issues / contributions, wants to find new work to take on, claim an issue, build/refresh a repo's dossier, or draft a Design Issue or PR. Trigger with "/contribute", "what's my PR status", "find a contribution", "claim issue X", "draft a Design Issue for Y", "refresh dossier for Z".
architectural-analysis
IncludedUser-triggered deep architectural analysis of a codebase or scoped subtree across eight modes — information architecture, data flow, integration points, UI surfaces, interaction patterns, data model, control flow, and failure modes. This skill should be used when the user asks to "diagram this codebase," "map the architecture," "show the data flow," "give me an ERD," "trace control flow," "find the integration points," "verify the layout pattern," "audit the UX architecture," or any similar request whose primary deliverable is mermaid diagrams plus cited reports under docs/architecture/. Dispatches haiku/sonnet sub-agents in parallel for per-mode exploration, then verifies every citation mechanically before any node lands in a diagram. Not for one-off prose explanations of code (use code-explanation) or for high-level system design from scratch (use system-design).
mcp
IncludedModel Context Protocol (MCP) server development and tool management. Languages: Python, TypeScript. Capabilities: build MCP servers, integrate external APIs, discover/execute MCP tools, manage multi-server configs, design agent-centric tools. Actions: create, build, integrate, discover, execute, configure MCP servers/tools. Keywords: MCP, Model Context Protocol, MCP server, MCP tool, stdio transport, SSE transport, tool discovery, resource provider, prompt template, external API integration, Gemini CLI MCP, Claude MCP, agent tools, tool execution, server config. Use when: building MCP servers, integrating external APIs as MCP tools, discovering available MCP tools, executing MCP capabilities, configuring multi-server setups, designing tools for AI agents.
react-native-skia
IncludedDesign, build, debug, and optimise high-polish animated graphics in React Native or Expo using @shopify/react-native-skia, Reanimated, and Gesture Handler. Use when the user wants canvas-driven UI, shaders, paths, rich text, image filters, sprite fields, Skottie, video frames, snapshots, web CanvasKit setup, or performance tuning for custom motion-heavy elements such as loaders, hero art, cards, charts, progress indicators, particle systems, or gesture-driven surfaces. Also use when the user asks for fluid, glow, glass, blob, parallax, 60fps/120fps, or GPU-friendly animated effects in React Native, even if they do not explicitly say "Skia". Do not use for ordinary form/layout work with standard views.
plaid
IncludedProduct Led AI Development — guides founders from idea to launched product. Six capabilities: Idea (discover a product idea), Validate (pressure-test the idea against fatal flaws, problem reality, competition, and 2-week MVP feasibility), Plan (vision intake + document generation), Design (translate image references into a design.md spec), Launch (go-to-market strategy), and Build (roadmap execution). Use when someone says "PLAID", "plaid idea", "help me find an idea", "product idea", "idea from my business", "idea from my expertise", "plaid validate", "validate my idea", "pressure-test", "is this idea good", "find fatal flaws", "validate the problem", "plan a product", "define my vision", "generate a PRD", "product strategy", "plaid design", "design from image", "translate image to design", "create design.md", "extract design tokens", "plaid launch", "go-to-market", "launch plan", "GTM strategy", "launch playbook", "plaid build", "build the app", "start building", or "execute the roadmap".
nextjs-framer-motion-animations
IncludedAdds production-safe Motion for React or Framer Motion animations to Next.js apps, including reveal, hover and tap micro-interactions, whileInView, stagger, AnimatePresence, layout and layoutId transitions, reorder, scroll-linked UI, and lightweight route-content transitions. Use when the user asks to add, refactor, or debug Motion or Framer Motion in App Router or Pages Router codebases, especially around server/client boundaries, reduced motion, LazyMotion, bundle size, hydration, or route transitions. Avoid for GSAP-style timelines, WebGL or 3D scenes, heavy scroll storytelling, or CSS-only effects unless Motion is explicitly requested.