Executive Summary
With large tab group sets, and/or large sets of tabs which are ungrouped, ways of traversing the tabs and tab groups are needed.
With very large sets of tabs and/or tab groups some sub set of the tabs/tab groups become unreachable with limits of current 28/04/2024 vertical tab group functionality.
Rationale
Inability to access tabs or tab groups similar issues. That is of tabs or tab groups or open tab groups extending above the top of the vertical tab frame or extending below the bottom of the vertical tab frame. With a very large set of tabs/tab groups central, the middle of the tabs/tab group stack, portions are difficult or impossible to access/reach.
For example, 28/04/2024, the user has a tab group with many tabs. When the user opens the tab group the group opens but stretches below the bottom of the frame. However the bottom most tabs in the tab group can no longer be reached.
The user then selects + New Tab at the bottom of the vertical tabs feature. A new tab is created at the bottom of all the tab groups. However the user can longer access/reach the topmost tab groups. Same issue with ‘Ctrl T’ .
Use Case: Navigating vertical tab strip
Description: Manipulation and curation of vertical tab strip contents.
Actors: knowledge worker, specialist, any user
Use Case Realisation: go to bottom of tabs/tab groups set
Use Case Realisation: go to the top of tabs/tab groups set
< other use case realisations to list >
Background
Vertical tabs are an important innovation in browser functionality which greatly improves resource categorisation in many use cases. For example in knowledge work and information gathering and problem solving.
Objectives
Improve usability of vertical tab strip.
Scope
Collapse a single tab group.
Collapse all tab groups.
Implies binary opposite to expand.
Traverse tabs and tab groups - climb/descend.
Move tab group up or down tab group list.
Export tabs/tab groups to file.
Implies binary opposite to import.
Constraints
Cost.
Time.
Feature backlog.
Assumptions
Necessary to remove de facto tab limits.
Deliverables
Functionality to improve vertical tab strip usability.
Requirements
R01. A ‘button’ to collapse all tab groups. At the top of the vertical tabs next to the Minimise/Maximise tab button. A scroll bar appears automatically if the tabs or tab groups extend below the frame.
R02. Right click on, with the mouse cursor icon, the tab group strip at the left hand side of the tab group. Display tab menu. Select a new menu item ‘collapse tab group’. Alternately select a new menu item ‘collapse all tab groups’.
R03. Double click on, with the mouse cursor icon, the tab group strip at the left hand side of the tab group. The tab group collapses. Implies binary opposite to expand.
R04. Select a tab near the bottom or top of the frame. Use the ‘Ctrl’ button on the keyboard and the ‘page up’ or ‘page down’ arrows on the key board to move to the next tab in the tab group. Descending, going down frame, if the last tab in tab group N is reached go to the first tab in next downward tab group N+1, if group N+1 is collapsed open it. Climbing, going up frame, if the first tab in the tab group N is reached go last tab in next upward tab group N-1, if group N-1 is collapsed open it. ‘Ctrl’ ‘home’ goes to the first tab/tab group at the top of the frame. ‘Ctrl’ ‘end’ goes to the last tab/tab group at the bottom of the frame. While the mouse cursor icon remains over, maintains focus on, the vertical tab frame.
R05. A scroll bar appears automatically if the tabs or tab groups extend below the frame. By some means the user creates a new tab group or tab. This causes the contents of the vertical tab frame, tabs & tabs groups, to go below the bottom of the frame.
R06. Reserve left click on, with the mouse cursor icon, the tab group strip at the left hand side of the tab group. This should be used for drag and drop of the tab group to position it up or down the tab groups set. The tab group does not expand.
R07. Export one or more tabs or one o more tab groups as JSON or XML. To better enable tabs/tab group sharing. To better enable tabs/tab group backup to physical external file. To better enable tabs/tab group to integrate with source control systems. Implies binary opposite import.
R08. Export all browser configuration to JSON or XML. Consider also export of all browser state information as flat file likely a more complex and therefore separate feature. See R07, . Implies binary opposite import.
Defect 1 - The upper most tag groups can no longer be accessed.
The tab group stretches below the bottom of the vertical tab view. The bottom most tabs can no longer be reached in the tab group.
New Tab example 1, but the user can no longer reach the topmost tab groups.
New Tab example 2, but can no longer reach topmost tab groups.
Work around 1 to defect 1
- Disable vertical tabs. In the vertical tabs view. Select a tab by right clicking on it to display the tab menu. Deselect, untick, the ‘Use vertical tabs’ menu option.
- Enable vertical tabs. In the horizontal tabs view. Select a tab by right clicking on it to display the tab menu. Select, tick, the ‘Use vertical tabs’ menu option.
Upside quick and dirty fix. Returns the de facto top of list of tabs/tab groups of the vertical tab frame.
Downside unintended deletion of tabs in the horizontal view, while right clicking for tab menu, by accidentally pressing x tab delete .
Work around 2 to defect 1
Use the experimental feature ‘Show scroll bar on vertical tab strip’ . But there is a rendering defect, defect 2, when this feature is disabled once first enabled. See below.
Experiments
This worked, after relaunch
Relaunch the browser for experimental feature to function.
But return to no scroll bar does not work, after relaunch
Relaunch the browser for the experimental feature to not function. As per relaunch image above.
Defect 2 - The scroll bar has not been removed. However the scroll bar functionality does not work.
Work around 3 to defect 1
Constantly maintain curation of tabs and tab groups so as not to exceed frame boundary limits.
Upside of this de facto limit is that the contents of the tab groups are regularly reviewed.
Downside of this de facto limit is that the content of the tab groups are limited. In complex problem solving this is a constraint that limits productivity. This limits information discovery and problem space mapping and solution space mapping.
Work around 4 to defect 1
Use the + New Tab feature to reach tabs/tab groups below the bottom of the vertical tab frame. But this is a one way trip.
Note there is no similar work around to reach tabs/tab groups above the top of the vertical tab frame.
Related requests
Vertical tab strip navigation
Side / Vertical Tabs , Brave Community
Separate management of tab collapse by window , Shanki
Collapsible Tab Group , unamochi, Jan 2023
Add ability to collapse grouped tabs , RGB1, Jan 2021
Brave should look into a similar feature to Chrome’s new Tab Groups Collapse option, mk7z, May 2020
Hide/Show tabs in a tab group , dddiam, Jul 2023
Grouping tabs with hide and expend features , JackRK, Sep 2022
Tab group style look and feel
Change in the new tab group Feature , Mar 2021
Parameters configuration, browser state,
Cannot preserve settings for Brave search , SonofFred
How to import brave paramters from another brave already installed in a different partition? , michhf
Tab Groups Not Saving , Sayles, Oct 2023
< others to list >