LCARS

LCARS
LCARS screens, as seen in Star Trek Nemesis
Plot element from the Star Trek franchise
First appearance	Star Trek: The Next Generation
Created by	Michael Okuda
Genre	Science fiction
In-story information
Type	Computer operating system

In the Star Trek fictional universe, LCARS (/ˈɛlkɑːrz/; an acronym for Library Computer Access/Retrieval System) is a computer operating system. Within Star Trek chronology, the term was first used in Star Trek: The Next Generation and in subsequent shows. In a real-world context, "LCARS" is frequently used to describe the style of the computer displays of the LCARS system, especially the screens from The Next Generation and Voyager.

The LCARS graphical user interface was designed by scenic art supervisor and technical consultant Michael Okuda. The original design concept was influenced by a request from Gene Roddenberry that the instrument panels not have a great deal of activity on them. This minimalized look was designed to give a sense that the technology was much more advanced than in the original Star Trek. The early display panels were made out of colored Plexiglas with light behind them, a technique that can produce complex-looking displays cheaply. As the show progressed, use of animations increased. Most were displayed on video equipment built into the sets.

On Star Trek: The Next Generation, many of the buttons were labeled with the initials of members of the production crew, and were referred to as "Okudagrams."

When Michael Okuda was asked about the design of the LCARS display, he responded "I came up with the LCARS style in part because of Gene Roddenberry's directive that he wanted his new Enterprise to be so advanced that it looked simple and clean. The other part of the LCARS style was that it had to be something that could be manufactured quickly and easily on a television budget."