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plannotator__effective-html/site/content/docs/wireframes.mdx
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---
title: Wireframes
description: Explore structure without letting polish dominate the review.
---
Wireframes test the organization of an interface before visual finish makes
changes feel expensive.
<GuideChapterEvidence chapter="wireframes" />
## Use them for
- content hierarchy and information density;
- navigation and page structure;
- responsive reflow;
- alternative layouts;
- the order and grouping of controls;
- the boundary between primary and supporting actions.
## Keep them intentionally unfinished
A useful wireframe looks deliberate without looking final. Use a restrained
palette, clear type hierarchy, visible boundaries, and realistic content.
Avoid branded polish that causes reviewers to debate the surface instead of
the structure.
## Make alternatives genuinely different
Changing only padding or card order does not produce a meaningful alternative.
Explore different organizing ideas: an index versus a guided path, a split view
versus a focused canvas, or a persistent control rail versus contextual
actions.
## Review questions
- Can a person tell what the page is for within seconds?
- Is the primary action obvious without being isolated from its context?
- Does the hierarchy survive at narrow widths?
- What can be removed before more detail is added?
- Are the alternatives testing different structural hypotheses?
<GuideHandoff
artifactHref="/examples/release-readiness/wireframe.html"
artifactLabel="Open the wireframe"
artifactDescription="Inspect the standalone artifact at real viewport widths."
sourceHref="https://github.com/plannotator/effective-html/tree/main/examples/release-readiness"
skillHref="https://github.com/plannotator/effective-html/blob/main/skills/html-wireframe/SKILL.md"
skillLabel="Use the wireframe skill"
skillDescription="Turn a structural question into a bounded HTML wireframe."
/>
<GuideNext
href="/docs/prototypes"
title="Test behavior next"
description="Build a prototype when static structure cannot answer the question."
/>