title: UX: Reducing clutter and visual overload
body: <p>I am working on this project (web-based) where users can login and see a list of tasks assigned to them. Right now there are only a few columns and the presentation is somewhat clear and uncluttered. </p>
  
  <pre><code>Task     |    Assigned to      |   Due Date    |  etc .... |   Actions
  Do this  |    Jane Doe         |   Tomorrow    |  ....     |   Complete
  Do that  |    John Smith       |   Aug 26th    |  ....     |   Review
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Unfortunately the client has requested a whole bunch of information they want to visualize at a glance. The table is almost completely spanning the screen horizontally. Here are a few ideas:</p>
  
  <ul>
  <li><p>Add a [+] button that expands the row vertically. More information can be put into this new vertical space. The problem is this new information will not correspond to the table headings (Task, Assigned to, etc.)</p></li>
  <li><p>Add the ability to collapse columns. This will require significantly more work, and I can't think of way to present collapsed or hidden columns in a way that's intuitive. The target audience will need something very intuitive.</p></li>
  <li><p>Use tooltips that appear on mouseover. The obvious disadvantage of this method is you can't see that information at a glance.</p></li>
  </ul>
  
  <p>Does anyone have ideas on this? </p>