The most apparent distinguishing characteristic of Motif is its 3-dimensional appearance. The 3-dimensional appearance is achieved through the use of shading, which makes the edges of Motif visual components appear as if they were beveled. Figure 1-2 depicts a typical Motif display.
Figure 2. A Typical Motif Display.
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In addition to its 3-D appearance, Motif is characterized by its rich set of user-interface components, called widgets. Motif widgets provide functionality for the following visual components:
These components and your interaction with them are described in Chapter 3.
Motif allows you to modify the appearance and behavior of Motif applications. For example, you can change the colors and fonts of your own client applications, add menus to the Motif Window Manager, and select the initial window layout at startup. Chapters 4 through 7 describe how to modify the appearance and behavior of your Motif environment.
This guide explains Motif applications, including mwm, in terms of their compliance with the guidelines described in the Motif Style Guide. This approach allows you to be comfortable with using any Motif Style Guide compliant application.