Have you ever used a graphical drawing program on your computer? The palette of drawing tools you
use is an example of the use of modes. When you select the draw tool, you are in the draw mode. Your
mouse movement, mouse button presses, and keyboard keystrokes will all produce some type of
drawing actions. Then select the text tool, and the same mouse and keyboard actions produce text and
text functions. Modes are a necessary part of many software interfaces. You probably can’t avoid using
modes altogether, but use them only when needed. A common example of a familiar and unavoidable
mode can be found in any word processor. When you are typing text, you are always in a mode—
either insert mode or replace mode.