On C# winforms project, I have a small table, a filter box, an Add button and a Done button grouped together, and they all fit together within 250×250 pixels. I only need to show these elements to the user when they press a button. I figured this could be done using a pop up modal screen or by making room on the main screen until the user presses the Done button.
I know a disadvantage to modal screens is that they can cause problems for users when/if they lose track of the modal screen and then they think the program’s not responding.
The disadvantage I see for using a dynamic main screen is that the reshaping interferes with the overall layout. But maybe I could find a way to overcome that problem.
I’m new to all of this, so I wanted to ask opinions here. Thanks.
Put them all on a panel (or, even better, a custom control), style it to look nice, and then only show the panel on button click.