Forum Discussion
Drop down menus
Yes. See the attached for a demonstration,
What happens in your three-levels example if Level 2 Labels can be duplicated across different Level 1's.
Imagine;
Level 1: Spiders; Snakes; Scorpions
Level 2 for Spiders: Venomous; Non-Venomous; Hairy; Non-Hairy
Level 2 for Snakes: Venomous; Non-Venomous; Long; Short
Level 2 for Scorpions: Venomous; Non-Venomous; Desert; Other Locations
Level 3 examples for these groups (not relevant for the case): King Cobra, Rusell's Viper, Rat Snake, Black Widow Spider, Cellar Spider, Deathstalker Scorpion, Emperor Scorpion...
One could always change and set Level 2 categories/labels to Level 1 in case they are all equal and there is no other unique level 2 label but imagine it is not possible for the end user logic.
Would the traditional offsetting formulation be more accurate?
Interesting question. There are probably several ways to address such a situation. To stay with your example, assuming it doesn't get a lot more complicated, I think I'd simplify it by something like this:
Level 1: Venemous Spiders, Non-venomous Spiders, Venomous Snakes, Non-Venomous Snakes, ....
In other words, what you're acknowledging "one could always" do....
but in essence, I do think it boils down to a question of what logically works in terms of the taxonomy or categories of the entities that are being chosen.
I have a three level set of budget categories, for example, in a spreadsheet I've created to track expenses. And from time to time, I find myself re-thinking the combinations and distinctions at level 2. The highest level has only two entries: Income and Expenses (aka Outflow). Every once in a while, there'll be an income item that is the refund or an expense item (something returned to the vendor, for example)....so the third level will be identical, even though the top two levels are different. It works.
Short answer: play with the categories and levels to find something that works for the user.