We explain what an interface is in computing, its types and the characteristics of the user interface and the graphical interface.
What is an interface?
In computing, the word interface is used to refer to the physical and logical dynamics of interconnection between two independent devices or systems or between a computer system and its human user. This term is a loanword from English interfaceunderstood as a “contact surface” between two entities, and became popular through computer technology.
The interfaces serve to regulate and facilitate the exchange of information. They can be of different types, depending on the specific area in which they take place and the strategies they use to carry out their task, as in the case of:
- User interfaces when they serve to communicate the user of a computer system with the latter. For example: a keyboard and a mouse constitute a user interface between a PC and its user.
- Physical interfaces when they serve to physically (that is, electronically) connect two devices. For example, USB ports on computers and consoles.
- Logical interfaces when they allow communication between two programs or pieces of software, as in the case of computer protocols. For example, the API and the DOM.
So, at their core, interfaces are at the same time a space, a tool and a dynamic of data exchange.
User interface
In the specific case of user interfaces, we refer to the space or environment in which interactions between machine and user occur, designed to facilitate communication between both. They are generally intuitive, user-friendly spaces that, through different dynamics, allow the user to manage the complex processes of the computer system.
Thus, user interfaces cover three different levels of interaction between human and machine, which are:
- Hardware interfaces which refer only to the physical and electronic components of the system that allow the user to enter and extract information from the system. This is the case of keyboards, mice, touch screens and/or displays, etc.
- Software interfaces which refer to the specific functioning of computer programs and virtual information that “occurs” or “takes place” within the computer. Such is the case of the applications that we use daily in our work with computers.
- Software-hardware interfaces which are dedicated to establishing a bridge between machine and user, to “translate” human instructions into the language of the system and allow it to carry them out exactly, and at the same time “translate” the system's responses from binary code to a language recognizable by the user.
At the same time, according to their way of interacting with the user, interfaces can be classified into:
- Command line interfaces (CLI), when they consist of sequences of alphanumeric characters, that is, text only. For example, MS-DOS.
- Graphical user interfaces (GUI), when they reproduce a simulated (virtual) visual environment whose logic allows communication with the user. For example, Microsoft Windows.
- Natural user interfaces (NUI), when they use “natural” human dynamics, such as speech or touch (using touch screens) to communicate directly with the user. For example, personal service AI programs (such as Sirifrom Apple).
Graphic interface
In general, graphical user interfaces (GUI) are computer programs dedicated to mediating between the user and a computer system. provide a visual environment with images, animations and graphic objects that represent information of the system and the possible actions to be taken. Its main use is as an Operating System, such as Microsoft Windows, iOS, Mac OS, Linux, Android, etc.
This type of interfaces propose to the user an interactive graphic language, composed of icons, signals, movements and other dynamics that represent the actions of the computer system. They provide a much friendlier work environment than a black screen with a line of command text, or worse yet, a set of algebraic operations.
The first graphical user interfaces emerged in the 1970s as part of the first personal computers to be offered commercially. They used the metaphor of the office desk as a motif for the graphic environment, since computers were initially intended as work tools, exclusively.
Subsequently, the arrival of the first Apple and Microsoft products brought with it an important leap forward in this matter, so much so that today interaction with a computer system is unthinkable without this type of virtual (or natural) tools at our disposal.
Continue with: Peripheral devices
References
- “Interface” in Wikipedia.
- “User interface” on Wikipedia.
- “What is an interface?” in Digital Guide.
- “Interface” in the Dictionary of the language of the Royal Spanish Academy.
