Real World: The users ask "How do I login?" I tell them to look at the top of the left menu bar. "Oh!"

Its just as easy to have the login form there as the link to a page with a login form.

Access violations still take the user to a login screen. A popup would be nicer.

See screennshot

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Although your approach to make the login facility more visible serves it not being overseen but is contraproductive in terms of GUI simplicity aka information overflow. What if I already know how to login and I don't want to see the form again and again? Banner blindness follows.

• What if the site is resticted and you must login to visit anything but the home page?
  Hence you don't see it again and again.
• The 'old' arrangment has the link go away and the 'personal' appear. Same here. You don't see it on every page. -- AJA

In general, it is totally acceptable to be just one click away from the information you need. But no more! Therefore hiding the login dialog behind a login link is absolutely fine and toleratable. Especially if all things follow the one-click-distance principle: performing a "if you want to do this then click here".

• This approach seems to elminate 'how do I log in' questions form users who are used to seeing the log-in form "up front" at othersites. Why they don't notice the "Login or Register" as links rather than exhortations I can't tell you. -- AJA

Note further, that extra gear that you put around the main area becomes part of every page and distracts the visitor from the real content. If there's any way to hide stuff without blurring functionality beyond recognition.

I like an approach where the wikiness of a site is not obvious, but only when you demand it. That's why topic actions as well as the login facility should be there but not so multipresent.

IMO, popups are a GUI-no-no, especially when they pile up between you and the application. "No, please do it ... don't ask me for the same question again ... must I click on ok, cancel or ignore." GUIs feel better if they are made rock-solid without the need of modal dialogs.

MD

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If you're willing to use javascript you can have your cake and eat it too: the logon text is a link, but when you click it instead of taking you to a new page it expands the logon form. Drawback: the form would be sent with every page, adding to overall page bloat.

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If you're designing for an Intranet/extranet it makes sense to put the login prominent. For public websites I find it too distracting to put the login fields on each page.

The js (toggle) idea is neat but as said adds to the page - of not logged in viewers only.

Part of the neatness of the login on the page is lost because the page should be anyway after logging in (perhaps buttons are enabled then or made visible).

I don't see a bug in here (perhaps a cookbook entry) so I suggest to move discussions to Codev.

AC

Undeferred, post Dakar CC