Pushdown automata for user interface management
Dan R. Olsen · ACM Transactions on Graphics · 1984
An interactive pushdown automaton is defined as a model for user interface management dialogue control.The relationships between dialogue control and device handling are defined in terms of acquiring, releasing, enabling, and disabling of devices.Input modes are defined by sets of acquired devices and input states are defined by sets of enabled devices.A specified automaton describes the dialogue.Semantic controls of parse transitions, as well as pervasive transitions for exceptional conditions, are supported in the automaton.Algorithms are given to convert a specified automaton into an executable automaton.For the executable automaton an interpretation algorithm, which incorporates the control of input modes and states, is given.Examples are given for how various features present in other user interface management systems are modeled using the IPDA.