Interface

In general usage, an interface is the point, area, or surface along which two substances or other qualitatively different things meet; it is also used metaphorically for the juncture between items. The word interface is sometimes (usually in technical disciplines) shortened to "i/f".

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The verb to interface means to interconnect two or more entities at a common point or shared boundary, or to prepare either entity for that purpose.

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The word interface also has the following specialized meanings:

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• The user interface is the functional and sensorial attributes of a system (appliance, software, vehicle, etc.) that are relevant to its operation by users.
• In electronics and computer engineering, an interface may be
• The physical boundary between two subsystems or devices.
• A part or circuit in some subsystem that sends or receives signals to or from other subsystems: network interface, video interface, network card.
• A standard specifying a set of functional characteristics, common physical interconnection characteristics, and signal characteristics for the exchange of data or signals: USB interface, SCSI interface.
• In telecommunications, a point of interconnection between user terminal equipment and commercial communications facilities.
• In software engineering, it is a specification of those properties of a software component that other components may rely upon: see interface (computer science).
• In chemistry, it is the surface between two distinct phases in a heterogeneous mixture.
• In geology, it may be a surface or anomalous layer between two distincive geological epochs or rock types.
• In linguistics, it is the interaction between two or more components of the grammar, such as phonology and syntax.
• In oil pipelines, it is the mixture of two adjacent products being transported in sequence in a multi-product pipeline.
 
Interface: See also ►