Invite Destination Selector — Step 1: Solution Assessment

Problem statement

On the invites page, destination entry should appear only when opted in and offer a typeable choice of recently used internal locations.

Option A — Browser-local recent destinations

• Use an editable dropdown populated from destinations successfully used by that browser, plus the current location supplied when the invite flow opens.

• Pros:

  • Small, isolated change to the existing invites page and its client-side script.

  • No account data, API, schema, or cross-device tracking.

  • Preserves free-form entry and the existing server-side internal-path validation.

• Cons:

  • Suggestions are limited to one browser and can disappear when browser storage is cleared.

  • Does not expose the browser's general history, which browsers intentionally do not permit sites to read.

Option B — Account-backed recent destinations

• Store recent invite destinations for each approved member and return them to the page as suggestions.

• Pros:

  • Suggestions follow the member across browsers and devices.

  • Can support central retention and moderation policies.

• Cons:

  • Requires new persistence, API, access-control, and privacy decisions.

  • Materially expands a small form improvement and retains members' navigation choices server-side.

Option C — Curated location shortcuts

• Provide a fixed list of common internal destinations alongside editable text entry.

• Pros:

  • Predictable and requires no user-location retention.

  • Useful for known high-value destinations.

• Cons:

  • Does not meet the requested “recent locations” behavior.

  • Needs ongoing curation and can become stale.

Option D — Browser-local recents with curated shortcuts

• Use one editable dropdown containing browser-local recent destinations and a small fixed set of useful internal shortcuts.

• Pros:

  • Gives first-time users useful choices while recents are empty.

  • Becomes more personal over time without server-side tracking.

  • Retains free-form entry and existing server-side validation.

• Cons:

  • The shortcut set needs lightweight maintenance.

  • Recent destinations remain browser-local.

Recommendation

Choose Option D, combining A and C. Make the destination field group hidden and disabled until its checkbox is checked, then use a native editable dropdown with both valid browser-local recents and curated internal shortcuts. This gives immediate guidance, improves repeat use, and avoids expanding the invitation model or collecting cross-device navigation data.