Toggle is a digital trade magazine highlighting the vital role technology plays in companies across the spectrum of industries—and the men and women who make it work. We aim to showcase the challenges and nuances of these leadership roles, from data privacy and cybersecurity to cloud solutions and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning.

The word toggle is also used to describe a pin, bolt or rod that is placed transversely through an eye, loop or eyelet on a chain or rope so as to bind it temporarily. It is also used to refer to a toggle joint, or an ornamental rod-shaped button for inserting into a large buttonhole, loop or frog.

In software development, a toggle is a Boolean variable that can be flipped to either on or off by a user interface action. Toggles are commonly employed in the UI of web and mobile applications to control the visibility or activation of navigation menus, sidebars, widgets and other elements. Toggles are also commonly used to provide users with options for customization such as theme, font size and color and to change settings such as brush size, drop-off or opacity.

When it comes to feature toggles, there are best practices to follow. For example, it is a good idea to name toggles in such a way that someone who looks at them will be able to tell who wrote them and what they do. This helps with the consistency of test cases, and it also gives context to a developer when looking at an error message where a toggle has been called (especially for those who may not have written them). Additionally, many teams perform some tests with all of the toggles they expect to release flipped On. This is similar to the practice of performing a Canary Release under more traditional waterfall development models and allows teams to see the effect of changing a codepath on real users before it goes live.