Toggle switch (widget)

{{About|the computer interface element|a class of electrical switches|Toggle switch}}

File:GtkSwitch.png's toggle switch widget.]]

A toggle switch is a graphical control element that allows the user to make a choice between two mutually exclusive states (such as on/off). Originally toggle switches were used primary in touchscreen-based user interfaces, but they have later become commonplace in desktop and web applications.

Toggle switches have a similar function as checkboxes, but unlike checkboxes, interacting with a toggle switch usually has an immediate effect on the application or system.

Usability

File:Toggle Switch Animation.gif

Early research on touchscreen interfaces has identified usability issues with toggle switches. A common problem is ambiguous state indication: for example does the label "on" indicate the current state of the switch or the resulting state after interacting with it. Communicating affordance can also be difficult: for example should the user tap or slide the switch to change its state.

References

{{Reflist|refs=

{{cite report

| last1 = Plaisant

| first1 = Catherine

| last2 = Wallace

| first2 = Daniel

| date = November 1990

| title = Touchscreen toggle switches: push or slide? Design issues and usability study

| url = http://www.cs.umd.edu/hcil/trs/90-08/90-08.pdf

| publisher = Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory, University of Maryland

| access-date = 2020-12-24

}}

{{cite web

| url = https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/uwp/design/controls-and-patterns/toggles

| date = 2017-05-19

| title = Toggle switches

| access-date = 2020-12-23

}}

}}