Lateral or Left hand nav bar running out of space

need fresh ideas

[henry0]

Here is my dilemma
Left hand nav bar is specialized in one genre and I cannot mix it with other links to site section or pages

Lateral nav is too busy, however I need to spell out each links (to make them visible at first glance instead of relying on sub links)

The result works as far as working is concerned
But aesthetic is trashed

Any input? What would you suggest?
How can I manage so many links that need to be visible

Thanks

Regards

Henry

[rogerd]

Henry0, look at really busy sites like portals, news sites, etc. for some layout options for lots of linked content.

By having a ton of links, of course, you are making things more difficult for your visitors to find what they are looking for. One more radical option would be to structure the navigation in a more hiearchical manner to simplify the layouts.

[henry0]

rogerd
Thanks,
My site is portal alike; I depict it as a news site that is business oriented; it offers daily news from many sources including my own chief editor news, and its many membership advantages from posting position to fill, used equipment for sale,
Book of lists with 2k members ref, their own set of web pages with CMS
Plus I am becoming the repository for 14 economic development centers etc.. etc..
It really not is the simple thing around :) and if you add on top of the core site many other services for the larger community.....
But I have to find a way around!
Cheers

[Sinner_G]

Does it really have to be visible at first glance or can it just be made visible without having to click? If it can, you might try mouse over effects with layers. I.e. you group some of these links (say red widgets, blue widgets and yellow widgets) under a general name (coloured widgets). When a user hovers over the general name, the rest appears just next to it.

[henry0]

Sinner_G
yes I like that possibility
I am not a layer specialist
would you please show an example
thanks you
regards
HEnry

[Sinner_G]

Hope it's ok to post the link. Henry, check out this page on internet.com [javascript.internet.com] (the layer appears on the left of the screen). In that case, the layer visibility is handled through a link, but you can just change it into a onMouseover event.

<added>Should have known to search WebmasterWorld first ;), This thread [webmasterworld.com] has what you are looking for, courtesy of BlobFisk and Macrost.</added>

[henry0]

I thank you both very much
hmmmm did not think about searching :)
Henry