state machine
A state machine is a model of behavior in which a system is in one of a set of states and moves to another state in response to inputs or events.
A state machine describes a system by its states, the transitions between them and the conditions that trigger each transition. One with a fixed number of states is called a finite-state machine, and the model is widely used in computer science, software design, communication protocols and game development.
In user interfaces and animation, a state machine defines the states an element can be in, such as idle, hovered or pressed, and which animation plays as input moves it from one state to another.
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