Exchange UX & Navigation

Exchange UX & Navigation

Exchange UX & Navigation v1 adds a consistent navigation layer to the interactive Exchange application without changing the underlying Q&A, authentication, or moderation data model.

Navigation model

Interactive Exchange pages provide direct access to:

• Questions
• Ask
• Profile
• Admin, when the current authenticated account is authorized as an Exchange administrator

The Exchange brand link returns to the Exchange overview.

Authentication-aware states

The navigation shell reads the existing Exchange session.

For anonymous visitors it exposes a Sign in action.

For authenticated members it exposes their display identity and a direct link to the Exchange profile.

Administrator navigation is not inferred from client-side data. The browser asks the lightweight /api/admin/access endpoint, which performs the same server-side administrator check used by the moderation APIs.

A missing Admin link is only a presentation choice. Server-side authorization remains the security boundary.

Responsive behavior

The navigation is designed to remain usable on narrow screens:

• the primary links form a horizontally scrollable row;
• account identity text can collapse while the Profile action remains available;
• active pages expose aria-current="page";
• the navigation uses a labeled <nav> landmark.

Failure behavior

Public navigation remains usable if session state cannot be loaded.

If the administrator capability probe fails for a reason other than an expected unauthenticated or unauthorized response, the shell keeps member navigation available and displays a small status message instead of failing the page.

Scope

This v1 intentionally does not add:

• voting;
• notifications;
• reputation;
• user menus with destructive actions;
• client-side role trust;
• new authentication mechanisms.

The purpose of the change is orientation and navigation, not additional community policy.