In computing, a toggle is any switch that has two outcomes, on and off. These are usually found in options menus, and are commonly used in software applications for switching between functions.
Togle Labels
A toggle label should make sense to the user and be written clearly. This includes ensuring that it’s not neutral or ambiguous, but should also include words like “on” and “off.”
Color for Toggling State Change
When designing toggles, always use high contrast colors to signal on and off. This helps ensure that users know what’s happening when the toggle is on or off, and it also helps avoid confusion among cultural groups.
Toggle Configuration
Many teams move their toggle configuration out of static files and into some form of centralized store, typically an existing application database. This allows system operators, testers and product managers to easily view and modify toggle configuration at a glance.
Test Toggle Configurations
One of the most important things a team can do to improve the quality of their release is to test their toggle configurations. This is especially true for a release that will feature toggles in both an On and Off state.
Toggle Configuration can be hard to manage at scale when using a file-based approach, and it can become quite fiddly and confusing to maintain if your toggles have many different states. This is particularly the case when you’re trying to re-configure your toggles at runtime in a shared environment.
