A toggle is a switch that has two positions, either on or off. It can also be used to control other controls, such as switches on a radio or TV. It can even be used to turn a light on and off. In software, toggles are a way to disable unused features without impacting the user’s experience or changing the codebase.
Feature toggles are a great tool for allowing developers to experiment with new ideas and prototype features without needing to push them into production. It is important to keep in mind, however, that toggles should be used sparingly and with caution. Too many toggles can cause confusion and make it difficult for users to understand what state the system is in.
Toggles are not inherently accessible, and it is often challenging for people with disabilities to use them. For example, screen readers and other assistive technology cannot interpret the meaning of colors or text labels on a toggle. To address this, designers should ensure that toggles are clearly labeled and that they use a high contrast color to indicate their state. In addition, they should avoid relying on color alone as the primary means of communicating state to their users.
In addition, it is important to limit the number of toggles that are active at any given time. This will reduce the overall overhead of managing them and will allow for easier debugging should an error occur. It is also a good idea to make sure that all toggles are named in a meaningful manner and include some contextual information about what they do. This will help others on the team understand why the toggle is in its current state and how it can be changed.
A Permissioning Toggle is a specific type of Feature Toggle that can be used to manage access to features for different groups of users. For example, a company might create a toggle that allows their premium members to view more articles than non-premium members. This can be a useful tool for companies with large numbers of customers who want to manage the features that they are exposed to based on the specific demographics of their customer base.
The main advantage of using a Permissioning Toggle is that it provides for a much longer lifecycle than other types of Feature Toggles. This is because the toggling decision is made on a per-request basis rather than on a per-user basis. This can be a beneficial tool for companies that have multiple product teams and need to manage features at a large scale. Ideally, Permissioning Toggles should be created as soon as a business requirement for the feature is identified to reduce the risk of delays in deployment. A company should also consider adding a regular process for reviewing and pruning Permissioning Toggles that are no longer being used to avoid an accumulation of idle toggles in their codebase. This can be achieved by creating a backlog item for this purpose or building it into their management platform.
