Theme Toggle Animation and Navigation Polish - October 11

2025-10-11 - Theme Toggle Animation and Navigation Polish

TL;DR: Added smooth Circle Blur animation to theme switching using the View Transitions API, creating a delightful circular reveal effect from your click position. Enhanced navigation visual design with rounded containers, updated announcement banner styling, and refined mega-menu dropdown for improved aesthetics and user experience.

What Changed

Elevated the visual polish of core UI elements with modern animations and refined styling. The theme toggle now features a smooth circular blur expansion animation that follows your cursor, making dark/light mode switching feel magical. Navigation components received styling updates for better visual hierarchy and consistency.

Added

• Circle Blur Theme Animation

  • Smooth circular reveal animation when switching between light and dark themes
  • Animation expands from exact click position with blur fade effect
  • Progressive enhancement: Full animation in Chrome/Edge 111+, instant transition in Firefox/Safari
  • 500ms ease-out timing for natural, polished feel
  • View Transitions API integration with automatic feature detection
  • Reusable useViewTransition hook for future animations

• View Transitions Infrastructure

  • TypeScript type declarations for View Transitions API (src/types/view-transitions.d.ts)
  • Reusable hook with browser support detection (src/hooks/use-view-transition.ts)
  • Progressive enhancement pattern with graceful fallback
  • Click position tracking for animation origin
  • Keyboard accessibility (animation from element center)

Changed

• Theme Toggle Component (src/components/layout/theme-toggle.tsx)

  • Enhanced with View Transitions API for smooth theme switching
  • Click position tracking for natural animation flow
  • Maintains localStorage persistence and accessibility
  • Works seamlessly with existing Switch component

• Navigation Visual Design (src/components/layout/navigation.tsx)

  • Added rounded containers with border styling
  • Enhanced spacing and padding for better visual balance
  • Refined mega-menu dropdown with improved grouping
  • Updated announcement banner styling for consistency

• Announcement Banner (src/components/layout/announcement-banner.tsx)

  • Refined styling to match rounded navigation design
  • Improved visual hierarchy and spacing
  • Enhanced dismissal button positioning

User Experience

When you toggle between light and dark themes, you'll notice:

• A smooth circular expansion that follows your cursor
• Subtle blur effect that creates depth during transition
• Natural, polished animation that feels responsive and delightful
• Zero disruption if your browser doesn't support the animation

The navigation now has a more cohesive, modern appearance with refined spacing and rounded corners that complement the overall design system.

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