Moving the filter menu
December 20, 2014
Continuing our series of user interface changes, we have moved the filter menu closer to the actual search results. The positioning of the filters has long been a challenge for us. On one hand, we want the filters to be prominent enough that users will notice them. To that end, we have tried out highlighting the most common options by showing them on the search results page (without needing any clicks). On other hand, we don't want the overwhelm the user with too many choices. Earlier this year, we hid the most common options with menus and moved the filters to a menu bar just underneath the header. User testing showed that some users were unaware of the feature. As a result, we've now moved the filter bar further away from the header to make it more distinct, and to make it easier for users to associate it with the search results below.
We still have some more changes on the search results page, and we hope to overhaul the profile page in 2015. Let us know if you have any suggestions.