Event Loop - Alternative Designs

Alternative Designs

This approach is in contrast to a number of other alternatives:

• Traditionally, a program simply ran once then terminated. This type of program was very common in the early days of computing, and lacked any form of user interactivity. This is still used frequently, particularly in the form of command line driven programs. Any parameters are set up in advance and passed in one go when the program starts.
• Menu-driven designs. These still may feature a main loop but are not usually thought of as event driven in the usual sense. Instead, the user is presented with an ever-narrowing set of options until the task they wish to carry out is the only option available. Limited interactivity through the menus is available.