The auto-hiding sidebar: a cleaner screen in Project Zomboid
With the auto-hiding sidebar switched on, the icons down the left edge of the screen (inventory, health, crafting, build, furniture, search, zones, map and the rest) fade out while your mouse is somewhere else and fade back in the moment you move it near them. Whatever you hold in your hands stays on screen the whole time, so you always see your weapon and your off-hand item. It comes with ZA-Z's Essentials, so there is nothing to install. It is off until you switch it on in your options (see below).
#How do I get the sidebar back?
Move your mouse towards the left edge of the screen, over the top-left corner where the icons sit. They fade in within a quarter of a second at the normal speed and stay while your mouse is near them. Move away and they wait half a second, then fade out again.
The icons still work while they are faded: they are only see-through, never moved or removed. Hover first, then click, and you will see what you are clicking.
#What stays on screen?
| What | When you see it |
|---|---|
| The items in your hands | Always, as floating icons where the hand slots are |
| The hand slots | While you drag something you can hold, so you can drop it into a hand |
| The furniture button | While you are picking up, placing, rotating, scrapping or repairing furniture |
| The safety button | While your PvP safety is switching over after you press G, and through its cooldown |
| The safety button with the skull | The whole time you are inside a death zone |
| The war button | While a safehouse war is near you |
| The heart | When you get hurt, if you turn that option on (off unless you choose it) |
| The ZA-Z bulletin badge | While there are posts you have not read yet |
| Everything | For the first three seconds after you join, so you know where it all is |
#How do I turn it on?
Open Options, then Mods, then ZA-Z's Essentials, and scroll to Sidebar.
- Hide the sidebar while the mouse is away: off by default. Tick it and press Apply to turn the auto-hiding sidebar on; untick it for the normal, always-visible sidebar.
- Fade speed: Instant, Fast (about a tenth of a second), Normal (a quarter of a second) or Slow (half a second).
- Show the heart when you get hurt: the heart icon shakes into view for a couple of seconds each time you take damage. Off by default.
How smooth the fade looks follows UI Rendering FPS in the game's own display options: a higher number gives a smoother fade.
#Does it work with a controller and other mods?
Yes. With a controller there is no mouse to bring the icons back, so they stay faded except for the ones listed above; your held items still show. Buttons that other mods add to the sidebar fade with the rest. The sidebar size option still works: change it and the new size fades the same way.
#Related pages
- ZA-Z's Essentials: everything else the mod adds.
- Death Zones: why the safety button shows a skull in some places.
- PvP Danger Zones: how PvP safety works on ZA-Z.