HTML and CSS Reference
In-Depth Information
Hierarchical Structures
Another popular structure is the
hierarchical structure
, in which the home page links to
pages dedicated to specifi c topics. Those pages, in turn, can be linked to even more spe-
cifi c topics. A hierarchical structure allows users to easily move from general to specifi c
and back again. In the case of the online play, you could link an introductory page con-
taining general information about the play to pages that describe each of the play's acts,
and within each act you could include links to individual scenes. See Figure 2-4. Within
this structure, a user could move quickly to a specifi c scene within the play, bypassing
the need to move through each scene that precedes it.
Figure 2-4
A hierarchical structure
Pages are arranged in a hierarchy from
the general down to the specific; users
can move up and down the tree.
home page
Play Intro
acts
Act I
Act II
Act III
scenes
1
2
3
1
2
3
4
1
2
3
Mixed Structures
With larger and more complex Web sites, you often need to use a combination of
structures. Figure 2-5 shows the online play using a mixture of hierarchical and linear
structures. The overall form is hierarchical, as users can move from a general introduc-
tion down to individual scenes; however, users can also move through the site in a linear
fashion, going from act to act and scene to scene. Finally, each individual scene contains
a link to the home page, allowing users to jump to the top of the hierarchy without mov-
ing through the different levels.
