Physical Layouts and Logical Hierarchies

Article Overview

The following article describes the Navigator section.

Overview

(See Figure 1)

Each time a component is added to the canvas, a corresponding data item is automatically created in the navigator. Data items are used for conditions and validations. There are six types of data items:

• Object:
  • Page
  • Container
  • Array
• String:
  • Text Area
  • Text Field
  • Date Input
  • Radio Group
  • Dropdown
• Boolean - Checkbox
• File - File Upload
• Signature - Signature
• Other:
  • Primary/Secondary Button
  • Text
  • Mirror
  • Grid

The navigator displays a structured list of data items, organized based on the Webflow's physical layout and a logical hierarchy.

Figure 1: Navigator Example

Physical Layout

When building a Webflow, the Page, the Container, and the Array are Object-type components that hold other components.

• A Page can hold:
  • A Container
  • An Array
  • A Grid
  • All other components
• A Container can hold:
  • An Array
  • A Grid
  • All other components
• An Array can hold:
  • A Container
  • A Grid
  • All other components

The exception is the Grid which is not an Object-type component but can also hold other components:

• A Container
• An Array
• All other components

Logical Hierarchy

The following sections provide examples of logical hierarchies displayed in the navigator based on different physical layouts.

Example 1

Figure 2 displays the following physical layout:

• The Page holds the Container
• The Container contains a Grid
• The Grid holds four Text Field components

Figure 2: Physical Structure

Figure 3 displays the logical hierarchy that will be displayed in the navigator according to the described physical layout:

• The Page nests the Container
• The Container nests the Grid
• The Grid nests four Text Field components

Figure 3: Logical Structure and Hierarchy

Example 2

Figure 4 displays a Page that holds the following components:

• Static Text
• Checkbox component
• Signature

Figure 4: Physical Structure 

Figure 5 displays the navigator's logical hierarchy in which the Page nests all other components.

Figure 5: Logical Structure and Hierarchy

Example 3

The Navigator of a Webflow with multiple pages will display logical hierarchies according to the number of pages (see Figure 6).

Figure 6: Multiple Pages 

Naming Convention 

(See Figure 7 to Figure 9)

When first adding components to the canvas, their corresponding data items appear in the navigator with a unique icon and a default name comprised of the component's name and a sequence number, for example: 

Figure 7: Default Naming Convention

You can edit a data item's name by changing a component's Label property in the Design tab.

Figure 8: Editing Names From the Design Tab

The following components do not have a Label property so the names of their data items can only be edited directly from the navigator: 

• Text
• Container
• Grid
• Array

Figure 9: Editing Names From the Navigator

Physical Structure, Hierarchy, and Conditions

Building accurate physical layouts and logical hierarchies is very important when setting and implementing behavioral conditions for two main reasons:

• Inheritance - when you apply a behavioral condition to an Object-type component (Page, Container, and Array), all nested components will automatically inherit that condition.
• The path of nested components must be accurate when used with behavioral conditions.