A better clarity to adding menu links to the Nav block

[paaljoachim]

What problem does this address?

If one compares the Appearance -> Menus to the Navigation block.

The biggest difference as I see it is the Add menu items section.

Comparing "Add menu items" to the one we see in the Nav block.

The Nav block has this to add links.

Adding links in the Nav block.

• I assume the most recently 3 posts/pages are seen. One can not scroll to look at additional Posts/Pages/Categories etc.
• No logical way to add only pages, posts or categories.
• Adds additional information such as Open in new tab and Transform which I do not need at this stage where I am just wanting to add various pages/post or categories.

What is your proposed solution?

(A rough sketch) Nav settings should show options based on context. Change depending on the stage one is at.
Clicking Add link or the + icon seen inside a black square could instead open the Block sidebar (if closed) showing something like this:

Here is a video I made.
https://youtu.be/6ViGzqkMNC8

@getdave @javierarce

[getdave]

@paaljoachim I know that @javierarce has been thinking about this so I'll allow him to respond here.

I've added to the Tracking Issue.

[javierarce]

Yes, I've been exploring several ideas to add content to navigation menus, with the goal to add the missing bulk insertion feature (original issue).

My first impulse was to offer this functionality through a modal (here are a couple of prototypes and here's a design breakdown with some notes), but after sharing my designs and seeing the work of @SaxonF here I thought of exploring a different avenue and follow his lead.

Similar to what you proposed, @paaljoachim, we could use a popover to add content. The main difference is that my version uses a modified LinkControl component with a filtering functionality inside the search bar.

The other important distinction (which comes directly from @SaxonF's proposal), is the inclusion of the navigation menu in the sidebar, making it very easy to modify the navigation or switch to a different menu.

These designs are still WIP, and I'm working on them here.

PS: Would it make sense to move this conversation over to #42257? The goal and ideas of this one seem to be very aligned with the other.

[paaljoachim]

I have in the back of my mind the Appearance -> Menus.
Having the popover one can scroll through to see all of the pages/posts/categories/etc will be very helpful.
Also having the navigation in the sidebar will also be of help.

It is totally fine to move for instance your comment @javierarce directly to #42257 and close this issue, and just mention this issue. Btw the video I also mentioned having contextual sidebar settings based on where one is in the flow of things.