Motif 2.1 Programmer's Guide Chapter 7. Dialogs Dialogs are container widgets that provide a means of communicating between the user and the application. A dialog widget usually asks a question or presents some information to the user. In some cases, the application is suspended until the user provides a response.
Dialogs are similar to menus.
Both seek input from the user. Like PopupMenus and PulldownMenus, dialogs appear in top-level windows and are more or less transient. Making a selection typically unposts a PopupMenu or PulldownMenu and often pops down a dialog. Dialogs can be either modal or modeless . In a modeless dialog, the user can interact with other parts of the application before returning to the dialog.