Editing Modal window (section)

{{Short description|Subordinate user interface element}}
{{distinguish|Dialog box}}
In [[user interface]] design, a '''modal window''' is a [[Graphical control element (software)|graphical control element]] subordinate to an application's [[main window]].

A modal window creates a [[Mode (user interface)|mode]] that disables user interaction with the main window but keeps it visible, with the modal window as a [[Window (computing)#Properties|child window]] in front of it. Users ''must'' interact with the modal window before they can return to the [[Tree (data structure)#Terminology|parent]] window. This avoids interrupting the [[workflow]] on the main window. Modal windows are sometimes called '''heavy windows''' or '''modal dialogs''' because they often display a [[dialog box]].

User interfaces typically use modal windows to command user awareness and to display emergency states, though [[interaction designer]]s argue they are ineffective for that use.<ref name="undo"/> Modal windows are prone to [[mode error]]s.<ref name="undo">{{Cite web|title = Never Use a Warning When you Mean Undo|url = http://alistapart.com/article/neveruseawarning|website = alistapart.com|access-date = 2015-10-09}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title = The Humane Interface|last = Raskin|first = Jef|publisher = Addison Wesley|year = 2000|isbn = 0-201-37937-6|location = United States|url = https://archive.org/details/humaneinterfacen00rask}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title = Nitpicker / The Humane Interface|url = http://nitpicker.pbworks.com/w/page/12451253/The%2520Humane%2520Interface|website = nitpicker.pbworks.com|access-date = 2015-10-09|at = Rule 1a.}}</ref>

On the Web, they often show images in detail, such as those implemented by [[Lightbox (JavaScript)|Lightbox]] library, or are used for [[Hover ad|hover ads]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Modal Panel|author=Quince UX patterns explorer|url=http://quince.infragistics.com/Patterns/Modal%20Panel.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100227095647/http://quince.infragistics.com/Patterns/Modal%20Panel.html|archive-date=2010-02-27}} The popular Lightbox JavaScript library uses a modal panel approach for showing the images</ref><ref name="useit"/>

The opposite of modal is '''[[modeless]]'''. Modeless windows don't block the main window, so the user can switch their [[user focus|focus]] between them, treating them as [[palette window]]s.