Navigation menu position

It is often argued that for SEO purposes the content of a website is better placed above the navigation menu. However, navigation menus are traditionally placed on the left side of websites, which usually leads to the menu code being placed above the content.

First of all, to what extent do you think it would be advised to indeed take this into account when designing a website and make sure content is (relatively) on top? In other words, does Google value navigation menus placed on the left different from menus placed on the right?

Second, if this is advised, what do you think about the effect of applying a construction like for instance described on http://www.apromotionguide.com/tabletrick.html? Would this lead to better (Google) rankings? Wouldn't Google be smart enough to detect such a simple 'trick'?


edit: typo

This was an issue but Google has said due to the fact that CSS can be used to place the navigation at the bottom in the code and position at the top to the user that it's algo now doesn't use this as a factor.

However I still use it as this gets all my content to the top and and navigation to the bottom. This just means Google hits all my relevant content first, and all the crap goes to the bottom.

Google looks for natural structure such as navigation keeping it in one place helps. But don't relie on it for an extra ranking boost. CSS recked that.

Could anyone please confirm that navigation menu position is indeed irrelevant? Or maybe someone has got a link to Google's particular press release?

Thanks a lot in advance!

google is a very very VERY smart machine.
If you and me can identify a navigation menu, google can do it too.
If they would lower the ranking of a site that uses a navigation menu at the top, they would do a stupid thing and loose some very good results.
If I know it, they know it.
I'm absolutely sure that a navigation menu at the top or left side of your site can not do anything bad to your ranking.