How to Link HTML Navigation Items to JavaScript Array Content in a Slider

Other Questions JavaScript
1

I’m developing a content slider and I’d like guidance on how to link my HTML navigation items to particular elements within my JavaScript array. The goal is for a click on a navigation item to show the associated content from my array.

Here’s the HTML I am currently using:

<div id="contentSlider">
  <h3 id="mainTitle">Health Policy Summary</h3>
  <hr>
  <p id="description">The healthcare policies affect community health by various determinants including access, cost-efficiency, and quality, all of which contribute to the overall health status of the population.</p>
  <button class="moreInfo_btn">Learn More</button>
</div>

<nav class="navigation_bar">
  <ul>
    <li><a href="#">Health Policy Summary</a></li>
    <li><span>|</span></li>
    <li><a href="#">Data Insights</a></li>
    <li><span>|</span></li>
    <li><a href="#">Best Practices</a></li>
    <li><span>|</span></li>
    <li><a href="#">Guide to Implementation</a></li>
  </ul>
</nav>

And here is my corresponding JavaScript array:

var titlesList = [
  'Health Policy Summary',
  'Data Insights', 
  'Best Practices',
  'Guide to Implementation'
];

Can someone explain how I can ensure that each navigation link targets its respective array element? What would you recommend as the best method for implementing this feature?

2

The most straightforward solution is to use the navigation links’ text content to match against your array elements. You can attach a single event listener to the navigation container using event delegation, then extract the clicked link’s text and find the corresponding index in your titlesList array. Something like this works well: when a navigation link is clicked, use indexOf() to locate the title in your array, then update your slider content accordingly. This approach eliminates the need for additional markup or data attributes since you’re already storing the titles in your JavaScript array. The main advantage is that it keeps your HTML clean and maintains consistency between your navigation text and array content without requiring manual index management.

3

Another approach would be to create a more comprehensive content object instead of just using a titles array. I’ve found this method more maintainable when working with sliders that need to display multiple pieces of information. You could structure your data like this:

var contentData = [
  { title: 'Health Policy Summary', description: 'The healthcare policies affect...', id: 'policy' },
  { title: 'Data Insights', description: 'Statistical analysis shows...', id: 'data' },
  // etc
];

Then add corresponding IDs or classes to your navigation links and use querySelector to match them up. This way you can easily expand the content without having to manage separate arrays for titles, descriptions, and other properties. The key is establishing a clear relationship between your navigation structure and your data structure from the beginning.

4

you can simply add data-attributes to the nav items, like data-index="0", and use a click event to get the index. then update your content based on that index with something similar to navLink.addEventListener('click', (e) => { let index = e.target.dataset.index; updateSlider(index); }).