Navigation redesign

This post details the iterative process of redesigning GitLab's UI navigation. It describes the initial attempt to integrate project navigation into the dashboard, which failed user testing due to increased confusion. The team then adopted a new approach, separating global navigation (dark, static left sidebar) from contextual navigation (dynamic header and content area). This new paradigm was first applied to profile and group pages, and later planned for project pages. Mobile improvements were also made by hiding the sidebar by default. The post highlights the importance of user feedback and iterative development in UI/UX design.