Total Commander

Sometimes a button (or even buttons) on a buttonbar get useless and only take place. But the user knows that after a specific time (weeks, months, hardly years) they definitely (or probably) will be useful again. Now there are two solutions:
1) Create some text file with button images (TOTALCMD#BAR#DATA...) and save all images there, until they get necessary. But the more numerous they are, the harder is to find some specific button;
2) Create some waste.bar and cut/paste buttons there from working (active) buttonbar. It's rather easy with one button and causes troubles with several (even using script).

I use solution 2 and my waste bar counts 98 buttons. This solution seems better because the user can either load the bar and look at icons, or open the *.bar file and find the text. But when number of buttons grows, both ways get time consuming...

My suggestion is to add checkbox "Hidden" in the button bar edit dialog (cm_ButtonConfig).
If the "Hidden" (or "Disable") checkbox is checked, this button is not visible on buttonbar in "click mode", but is definitely visible in "edit mode" (cm_ButtonConfig). More, in edit dialog the hidden button can be dimmed, crossed out, or marked some other visual way, beside the checkbox

Support ++
I also use your method 2 and would like such hidden attribut

Vochomurka: I use a 3rd workaround : Just clear the icon entry at button and it is nearly hidden.

2sqa_wizard
Yes, but it would be hard to find a corresponding icon when the button will be re-used.

There is another somewhat perverted solution:
1) Move the button to the very end of the button bar;
2) Open the corresponding *.bar file;
3) Reduce the "Buttoncount" key value by 1

Sure some other solutions can be found. I just suggest to add a simple feature to TC that makes all of them useless

You can use a secondary button bar, and then just use cut+paste to move the rarely used buttons there. I have a single row main bar, plus a two row secondary bar for rarely used functions.

ghisler(Author) wrote:I have a single row main bar, plus a two row secondary bar for rarely used functions

Lucky you: I have 219 bars with 3486 buttons in total . To be honest, 30 bars are not used anymore...
As you've seen, there are many (at least 4) solutions to hide a button. But all of them are not handy, especially if you need to hide several buttons. If adding the "Hide" checkbox is not difficult, please do it. One who does need this option will never use it.
Thank you anyway

I think checkbox for such thing is too much, it would be much easier to hide button if e.g. its icon path starts with a hyphen "-". However I don't know how you will find all hidden buttons within all bars then.

ts icon path starts with a hyphen "-"

In such case button gets empty rather than hidden

I know, so I suggest to hide button instead in such case.