What is a graphical user interface?

Once controlling computers used to involve inputting commands through a command line interface. It was hardly a user-friendly undertaking, particularly as getting to grips with such commands meant scaling a steep learning curve.

But that started to change with the introduction of graphical user interfaces (GUIs). In basic terms, a GUI is simply a way to present information to a computer user in a fashion that’s easy to understand and interact with through performing actions by clicking, tapping or navigating to visual indicators and icons.

Without GUIs the major operating systems of Windows and Mac, along with masses upon massed of familiar software we use on a day-to-day basis, would be very complicated to navigate and lack all the intuitiveness they currently present.

GUIs were initially designed to work with a mouse and keyboard, but with the advent of touchscreens , everything from smartphones to ATMs and even smart fridges now have some form of GUI.

And that is a very good thing, as GUIs make interacting with computers, software and other devices an order of magnitude more intuitive than command line interfaces, meaning they can be easily understood by beginners and bypass the need to learn and then memorise swathes of commands to complete simply tasks.

There was no single inventor of the GUI and its history is linked with some of the most famous names in computing, most notably Apple who first implemented it into its Lisa and Macintosh computers.

GUI’s have evolved dramatically over the years and continues with the rise in speech recognition and natural language processing technology which controls many devices through voice assistants

What are the benefits of a graphical user interface?

The major benefit of a GUI is that systems using one are accessible to people of all levels of knowledge, from an absolute beginner to an advanced developer or other tech-savvy individuals. They make it simple for anyone to open menus, move files, launch programs or search the internet without having to tell the computer via the command line to carry out a function.

GUIs also provide instant feedback. Clicking an icon will open it up, for example, and this can be seen in real-time. Using a command line interface, you won’t know whether it’s a valid entry until you hit return; if it’s not valid, nothing will happen.

What are the disadvantages of using a graphical user interface?

Because the elements are graphics rather than text, GUIs can use a lot more processing power compared to a standard text-based UI.

Additionally, advanced users can find GUIs frustrating, because often a chain of actions will have to happen (such as opening up a menu, navigating to the file you want to open, clicking it) before the process is complete. With a text or command-line UI, one single line can be inputted and it will be actioned.

The history of graphical user interfaces

The first graphical user interface was developed in 1981 at Xerox PARC by Alan Kay, Douglas Engelbart alongside other researchers who realised that having a graphical representation of an operating system would make it more accessible to the masses.

The first commercial use of a GUI was in the Apple Lisa computer in 1983. Before this, computers such as MS-DOS and Linux used command-line UIs, as their usage was limited to advanced business users rather than consumers.

A year later, the Apple Macintosh became the most popular commercial computer with a GUI. Microsoft’s followed suit in 1985 with Windows 1.0, although Windows 2.0 was a significant improvement when it was launched in 1997. It wasn’t until 1995 and the launch of Windows 95 that Microsoft caught up with Apple’s commercial success in the world of GUI systems.

What could a graphical user interface be used for?

GUIs are used for the majority of computer operating systems, mobile operating systems and software in existence. Although some operating systems, such as Linux, still use command-line interfaces, this makes them less mainstream because they are only suitable for those who have an in-depth knowledge of commands.