/nw-ux-web-patterns

name: nw-ux-web-patterns
description: Web UI design patterns for product owners. Load when designing web application interfaces, writing web-specific acceptance criteria, or evaluating responsive designs.
user-invocable: false
disable-model-invocation: true

Web UI Patterns

Actionable web interface patterns for requirements gathering and design review. Use when the target platform is web (browser-based applications).

Navigation Patterns

| Pattern | When to Use | When to Avoid | |---------|-------------|---------------| | **Top navigation bar** | 5-7 primary sections, marketing/content sites | Deep hierarchies with 20+ sections | | **Side navigation** | Complex apps with many sections, admin dashboards | Simple sites with few pages | | **Breadcrumbs** | Deep hierarchies, e-commerce categories | Flat site structures | | **Command palette** (Cmd+K) | Power user tools, developer-facing apps | Consumer apps targeting non-technical users | | **Tab bar** (mobile) | 3-5 primary destinations | More than 5 destinations | | **Hamburger menu** | Secondary navigation, mobile space constraints | Primary navigation users need frequently | | **Mega menu** | Large sites with categorized content | Simple sites, mobile interfaces |

**Navigation must answer three questions**: Where am I? Where can I go? How do I get back?

Key principles: consistent placement across all pages | highlight current location | limit primary nav to 5-7 items (Hick's Law) | provide search as alternative for content-heavy apps

Form Design

Layout

• Labels above input fields (highest completion rates in eye-tracking studies)
• One column layouts outperform multi-column for most forms
• Group related fields with visual proximity and clear section headings
• Primary action buttons left-aligned with form fields

Validation: Reward Early, Punish Late

• Validate on blur (when user leaves field), not while typing
• Remove error messages immediately when user corrects the field
• Show success indicators only when helpful (e.g., password strength)
• Validation summary at top for longer forms, plus inline errors

Error Messages Must Include

1. What went wrong (plain language) | 2. Where the error is (highlight field) | 3. How to fix it (specific guidance, not "invalid input")

Progressive Forms

• Split long forms across multiple steps (one-thing-per-page pattern)
• Show progress indicators for multi-step forms
• Allow saving progress and returning later
• Reduce fields through smart defaults and progressive disclosure

Data Display Patterns

| Pattern | Best For | Key Considerations | |---------|----------|-------------------| | **Tables** | Structured data with multiple attributes, comparison | Sortable columns, fixed headers, responsive collapse | | **Cards** | Browsable collections with images/summaries | Consistent sizes, clear click targets, max 3-4 per row | | **Lists** | Sequential items, search results, feeds | Clear boundaries, scannable titles, secondary info on right | | **Dashboards** | KPI monitoring, status overviews | Important metrics top-left, max 7 widgets, allow customization |

Pagination vs Infinite Scroll

• **Pagination**: Goal-directed tasks (search, admin panels) -- gives position and control
• **Infinite scroll**: Discovery browsing (social media, galleries) -- reduces friction

Responsive Design

Mobile-First Approach

Design mobile layout first, then enhance for larger screens. Ensures core content and functionality are prioritized.

Breakpoints (starting points)

360-480px: Mobile | 768px: Tablet | 1024-1280px: Small desktop | 1440px+: Large desktop

Key Techniques

• **Fluid typography**: `clamp()` for smooth scaling; `rem`/`em` over `px` for accessible sizing
• **Container queries**: Components respond to container size (not viewport), enabling reusable components
• **Responsive images**: Serve appropriate sizes; use `srcset` and `picture` elements

Component Patterns

| Component | Use For | Anti-pattern | |-----------|---------|-------------| | **Modal dialog** | Decisions requiring immediate attention; blocks until resolved | Information not requiring action; stacking modals | | **Toast/snackbar** | Non-critical confirmation ("Item saved") | Critical errors or info users must not miss | | **Drawer/sheet** | Supplementary content or filters alongside main view | Primary content or complex multi-step forms | | **Popover/tooltip** | Contextual help or previews on hover/focus | Critical info or complex interactions | | **Command palette** | Quick action access via keyboard | Only navigation method (need visual alternatives) |

Motion and Micro-interactions

When Motion Helps

Showing cause and effect (button press ripple) | Guiding attention to changes (new item slides in) | Providing feedback (spinners, progress bars) | Explaining spatial relationships (drawer slides from side) | Maintaining context during transitions (shared element transitions)

When Motion Distracts

Decorative animations with no function | Animations delaying task completion | Rapid/large-scale motion (respect `prefers-reduced-motion`) | Looping animations that cannot be paused

**Duration guidelines**: 100-200ms for simple state changes | 200-500ms for complex transitions | never exceed 500ms for functional animations

Design System Guidance

When to Use Existing vs Custom

| Situation | Recommendation | |-----------|---------------| | Internal tools, admin dashboards | Use existing system (Material UI, Ant Design, Radix) | | Consumer product with strong brand | Custom system on headless library (Radix, Headless UI) | | MVP or prototype | Use existing system; customize later | | Platform with strict brand guidelines | Custom system, adopt token architecture from established systems |

**Established systems to evaluate**: Material Design (Google) | Fluent Design (Microsoft) | Carbon (IBM) | Polaris (Shopify) | Primer (GitHub) | Lightning (Salesforce)

Design Toke