Vivoactive6 simulator: menu key not working

I think it might be time for me to reconsider the navigation structure in my app.

In my mental model, I use onPreviousPage and onNextPage to move between views on the same level. onSelect is used to dive into subordinate views - those slide in from the right. Conversely, onBack brings the user back up a level, with the view sliding in from the left. Then there’s onMenu, which I treat as something a bit outside of this two-dimensional structure - it opens up additional information related to whatever is currently on display.

Of course, this isn’t a universal rule. For example, on my Epix 2 Pro, some native apps show an indicator for onMenu in the left-center, which in my opinion still interferes less with my two-dimensional navigation model than the approach of the Vivoactive 6.

So, for my app, onActionMenu is closer in spirit to onSelect, and that’s how I plan to implement it.

This isn't meant as criticism of the changes being introduced, but rather as a reflection on the broader challenge of adapting an app to the differing UI paradigms across watches. And that, as a developer, it’s tough to fully understand the navigation principles of a device you don’t personally own.

I think it might be time for me to reconsider the navigation structure in my app.

In my mental model, I use onPreviousPage and onNextPage to move between views on the same level. onSelect is used to dive into subordinate views - those slide in from the right. Conversely, onBack brings the user back up a level, with the view sliding in from the left. Then there’s onMenu, which I treat as something a bit outside of this two-dimensional structure - it opens up additional information related to whatever is currently on display.

Of course, this isn’t a universal rule. For example, on my Epix 2 Pro, some native apps show an indicator for onMenu in the left-center, which in my opinion still interferes less with my two-dimensional navigation model than the approach of the Vivoactive 6.

So, for my app, onActionMenu is closer in spirit to onSelect, and that’s how I plan to implement it.

This isn't meant as criticism of the changes being introduced, but rather as a reflection on the broader challenge of adapting an app to the differing UI paradigms across watches. And that, as a developer, it’s tough to fully understand the navigation principles of a device you don’t personally own.

PS: also I think the View.setActionMenuIndicator is a cool step into the direction of having easily accessible indicators for behaviors (instead of inputs), that are also in line with the native UI of the watch. Would be great to have something like that for other behaviors as well, and also a view loop that just visually aligns with however native view loops work for the device.