View; column names: rename "ungroup" and set a switch instead
If you enable "Group" in a column of a View, the name "Group" in that context menu changes to "Ungroup".
-- That's not a good style. A user who is not so familiar with that behavior and want to switch that feature off again, would look through the context menu, looking for "Group" and easily overlook the "Ungroup".
Suggestion:
Better let the name of the entry always be "Group" in both states and add an on/off switch right from it.
And btw.: The whole context menu should get a frame around it, as well as a slightly grey background, to make it easier to differentiate the context menu from the things underneath it (in the background).
3 Comments
Sign in to comment
·2 days agoThanks for the detailed suggestion — the discoverability problem with "Ungroup" is real, and the mock-up makes the intent clear.
A couple of quick clarifications to help us nail this:
- Toggle placement — in your sketch, is the switch positioned inside the menu item itself (to the right of "Group"), or would you prefer it as a separate row? The inline version is more compact, but we want to make sure it feels natural alongside other column options.
- Behavior confirmation — when a user clicks the toggle to turn grouping off, should the menu close immediately, or stay open so they can adjust other settings in the same go?
- Visual style — for the context menu frame + background you mentioned: are you thinking a subtle border + light grey fill (like a card), or something more pronounced? Any existing UI pattern in the app you'd want us to match?
Once we have those details locked, this moves straight to the design queue.
We actually did the opposite. Originally it was 'group' but it seemed confusing to perform an action with the opposite effect in the name, hence why it's changed to ungroup. Considering the user used the group function in the first place, I don't see why they would overlook ungroup. This is also how other apps do it.
(Unbelievable) -- If I look into such a menu, I look for:
"What am I able to activate here, and what is already activated what I could switch off?"
If I see in the table that the "Group" feature is obviously "on" aka "activated", then I scan the menu for the option to switch that feature off again.
Therefore, I scan for "Group" (and for the related switch).
The mindset is, to switch the function off.
But there is no switch and there is no "Group". -- Reaction: "wtf?? Where is it?"
-- I would never dream that the text off a menu entry has changed!
We talk here about a binary function; something where switches was made for!
Also consider:
Maybe the actual choice you team guys did here, works in English.
"Group" vs. "Ungroup".
But in other languages there may exists multiple ways to express the opposite of something.
In German:
"Gruppieren" is the opposite to:
1. "Ungruppieren"
2. "Entgruppieren"
3. "Gruppierung auflösen"
4. "Gruppierung deaktivieren"
5. "Gruppengliederung deaktivieren"
6. ... and some other ways to express that opposite.
-- That causes mental stress for the one who simply wants to switch off the "Gruppierung".
For what should he scan the list? He can't know how it's expressed. Therefore he needs to read everything.