Re: [lmi] Should we allow the user to selectively hide columns in the new census view?

[Greg Chicares]

On 2019-09-14 13:12, Vadim Zeitlin wrote:
> 
>  When using wxGrid with the native header control under MSW (which we do,
> because the native header looks nicer and, well, more native), the user can
> right click the header and use the resulting popup menu to hide (or show
> back) the different columns (if you'd like to see how it looks, just right
> click the column header in Explorer view of, say, "Computer").
> 
>  As this is something that can't be done with the current, wxDVC-based,
> census editor, we initially decided to forbid doing it with the new editor

Let's forbid it.

> too. However now I'm starting to have second thoughts, because I wonder if
> this could potentially be actually useful? AFAIU the census editor shows
> the columns for all the fields differing between the cells, but wouldn't it
> be possible for the field to differ, but not be actually be interesting for
> the user? In such case, it could make sense to hide the uninteresting
> column, couldn't it?

Arguably, yes. But OTOH...

  File | New | Census
  Census | Edit case defaults
  [change "Issue age" to any different value]
  OK
  click "No" (do not apply to every cell)

That causes six columns to show:

  Cell
  Date of Birth
  Issue Age
  Solve Begin Age
  Solve End Year
  Solve Target Year

Today, we can explain that behavior: there are hundreds of input
fields, each of which is shown iff it varies across cells (including
the case- and class-default cells). Thus, because "Solve Begin Age"
is a field, and it varies, it is shown. If anyone wants to object
to that brutally simple logic, they need to propose something else.
But any alternative must be either less simple (in which case we
explain that our budget doesn't allow for bells and whistles), or
more brutal (e.g., never show "Solve Target Year"--in which case we
explain that some end users need that column).

To make it less simple (by allowing columns to be turned on and off)
is to open Pandora's box. If I can have a GUI that lets me turn some
columns off, then why can't I have a GUI that lets me save the set
of columns I've turned off, so that I never see them? And if I saved
such a setting but forgot that I did so, where are the columns that
I now find I need? Or...if I've picked an msw "theme" that lacks
this native feature, then why doesn't lmi provide it anyway?

As long as we maintain that the only allowable coating is whitewash,
there can be no discussion of what color to paint the bikeshed.