A toggle is a switch that has two positions, on and off. It is often found in everyday technology such as phones and tablets. In programming a toggle is typically a variable that can be set to a specific value and is usually a Boolean (True or False) variable. A toggle can have a default value which can be set when the toggle is created or it can be set by another code element in the program such as a function call. The toggle can then be used to determine a specific action in the program depending on its state.
When implementing a toggle in your world it is important to consider the impact of the toggle on the overall look and feel of your world. The toggle should be clear and consistent with other content in your world. Toggle states should be recognizable with high contrast colors and it is important to evaluate the societal and cultural implications of the color choice when determining what state to use for your toggle.
Keeping a low inventory of toggles is also a good practice. It is tempting to put large swaths of your product under the control of a series of complex toggles but this can lead to confusing code for the rest of your team and a nightmare to debug weeks or months down the road when it fails.
Finally, it is best to name each feature toggle clearly and consistently in your source code so that everyone on the team knows what a toggle does and its purpose. This also helps when debugging and gives context to developers when the toggle is called in error messages.
