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Define the word look and feel

look and feel
     
         The appearance and function of a program's
        user interface.  The term is most often applied to
        graphical user interfaces (GUI) but might also be used by
        extension for a textual command language used to control a
        program.
     
        Look and feel includes such things as the icons used to
        represent certain functions such as opening and closing files,
        directories and application programs and changing the size
        and position of windows; conventions for the meaning of
        different buttons on a mouse and keys on the keyboard; and
        the appearance and operation of menus.
     
        A user interface with a consistent look and feel is
        considered by many to be an important factor in the ease of
        use of a computer system.  The success of the Macintosh user interface was partly due to its consistency.
     
        Because of the perceived importance of look and feel, there
        have been several legal actions claiming breech of copyright
        on the look and feel of user interfaces, most notably by
        Apple Computer against Microsoft and Hewlett-Packard (which Apple
        lost) and, later, by Xerox against Apple Computer.  Such legal
        action attempts to force suppliers to make their interfaces
        inconsistent with those of other vendors' products.  This can
        only be bad for users and the industry as a whole.
     
        (1995-03-03)