The Visible column in the Layers palette controls which layers display at any given time. When the Visible icon appears in the Visible column, a layer is visible.

• To show or hide a layer, click in the Visible column to the left of that layer’s name. You can also double-click a layer to display its Attributes dialog box, check or uncheck Visible in the dialog box, and then click OK.
• To show or hide all the layers in a layout at once, select a layer name and choose Show All Layers or Hide All Layers from the Layers palette context menu.
• To hide all layers except the active layer, select the name of the layer that you want to be active and then choose Hide Other Layers from the Layers palette context menu. Alternatively, you can press Control/Ctrl while clicking the Visible icon of the layer you want to display; all other layers will be hidden.
• To display all layers except the active layer, choose Show Other Layers from the Layers palette context menu.

When you use the Find/Change feature, QuarkXPress searches hidden layers as well as visible layers. If a match is found on a hidden layer, QuarkXPress temporarily displays the hidden text box or text path.

When you check the spelling in a layout or story, QuarkXPress searches all layers in the layout or story. If questionable spelling is encountered on a hidden layer, QuarkXPress temporarily displays the hidden text box or text path.

When a layer is hidden, that layer displays unchecked by default in the Layers pane of the Print dialog box, and consequently that layer will not print (unless you click to check the layer manually in the Print dialog box).

When you create an item on a hidden layer, that item remains visible until you deselect the item.