[wp-trac] [WordPress Trac] #40432: Customizer: Should we stop contextually hiding features?

[WordPress Trac]

#40432: Customizer: Should we stop contextually hiding features?
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 Reporter:  melchoyce    |       Owner:
     Type:  enhancement  |      Status:  new
 Priority:  normal       |   Milestone:  Awaiting Review
Component:  Customize    |     Version:
 Severity:  normal       |  Resolution:
 Keywords:               |     Focuses:
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Comment (by ahortin):

 I've been saying this for
 [https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/39087#comment:19 months] and
 [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/how-do-i-stop-the-customizer-from-
 automatically-hiding-panels/ months]. The Customizer shouldn't be hiding
 panels from users. It's bad usability and makes using the Customizer even
 more confusing. You're making things harder for the end user by hiding
 options and making them search for them, which in turn is going to force
 them to navigate to multiple pages just to find where the widget is so
 that they can edit it.

 As I've mentioned in other tickets about this very issue, to quote a
 leading usability expert, "Interfaces that temporarily hide the UI
 elements to emphasize content often increase the interaction cost,
 cognitive load, and the number of attention switches." - Nielsen Norman
 Group (https://www.nngroup.com/articles/zen-mode/)

 I even bought this up as an issue on the
 [https://wordpress.org/support/topic/twenty-seventeen-theme-options-menu-
 disappears/ Alpha/Beta forum for 4.7]. Not in relation to widgets per se,
 but the Twenty Seventeen Theme Options do exactly the same type of thing,
 hiding options from users when you weren't on a specific page.

 It's clear from other peoples comments above, that this is already causing
 confusion for people.

 Option 1 from @JoshuaWold above is what I suggested on another trac
 ticket. Instead of hiding the sidebars (and showing a notification when
 the preview isn't showing), show ALL the sidebars ALL the time, and simply
 show a notification advising people when a sidebar wont be displayed on
 the currently previewed page.

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Ticket URL: <https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/40432#comment:21>
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