How to organize XIB files with many overlapping elements?

Question

I have some XIB files which are very difficult to edit because many of the subviews overlap each other completely. For example, if I position a popup volume slider where it will pop up, it covers some UILabels which become impossible to click. My only chance to be able to edit them is to double-click on them in the Document window tree, move them aside, edit, then move them back. Sometimes there are 3 or more widgets that occupy the same location in the XIB, even though only a few are visible at a time while the application is running.

How are conditionally-visible screen elements actually supposed to be organized?

I would like to be able to hide groups of views to reveal what's beneath them, but I don't see a way to do that in IB.

If I create UIViewControllers for every group, I can edit them in separate windows, but I can't see them in context, and I need a lot of view controllers...

Answer 1

Tip: Hold down shift while right clicking the location of the object you wish to select.

I don't think IB is able to hide groups of views during design-time, but there's no reason you couldn't add that behavior yourself using an IB plugin.