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I am writing user documentation (an SOP) that involves third party programs that I am trying to describe well. One such program is a server that offers little indication of it's startup besides a graphic that shows during its initialization/startup routine.

As a developer, I have used this window as a quick status indicator and I would like to convey this to my audience (operators/engineers), but I have no idea what it is called. My first question is whether there is a formal or widely accepted name for a graphic shown at startup (examples below). Second, what is a preferable way to refer to this that will convey the idea quickly (and without graphics) to my audience?

Examples

Example 1 | Example 2

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rtmh
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    You could size down the images a little bit if you want. No need for them being that size to convey the idea. – Tulains Córdova Aug 09 '16 at 17:14
  • what software does the first splash screen belong?, It doesn't load in my side. – Tulains Córdova Aug 09 '16 at 17:23
  • @TulainsCórdova PyCharm, however the examples are only illustrative in general terms. Additionally, is there a preferred format for images on SE that might avoid your issue? – rtmh Aug 09 '16 at 17:25
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    You are linking them directly from a image hosting service (you can tell because when you hover over them you see a link to the original hosted image), they would load faster if you download them to your PC, resize them, and them upload them to your question ("drag and drop here" box). First image continues to be huge in its hosting, only showed as if it was smaller but takes a load to show in slower connections. – Tulains Córdova Aug 09 '16 at 17:30
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    Do you think you users will know the terminology if you, as a developer, doesn't know it ? I would refer to this as "startup screen" or something related to the moment it pops up. – Etsitpab Nioliv Aug 10 '16 at 07:56
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    @TulainsCórdova resizing images on your computer is totally unnecessary, imgur does it automatically. See this post on another meta: http://meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/252370/editing-a-question-to-change-links-to-inline-images/252376#252376 – A.L Aug 10 '16 at 09:01
  • @BaptisteViloin I'd say that, like the "save" icon, this is something steadily being lost to time. I remember "splash screen" appearing in paper instruction manuals back in the late 90s/early 2000s. – Izkata Aug 10 '16 at 14:42
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    @BaptisteViloin If it were an obscure, technical term, I would agree with you, but "splash screen" is a *very* maintstream term. (That more begs the question of why this post got so highly upvoted to me...) The meaning comes up immediately when entering the term on Google, and it's reasonable to expect mildly computer literate users will be familiar with users not udnerstanding. If the OP is still concerned about it, including a screenshot will make it obvious. Given the OP's description of what they're doing, I'd say including a screenshot is a good idea, anyway. – jpmc26 Aug 10 '16 at 16:21
  • @jpmc26 Thank you for your input, but I'm afraid I can't concede your point that the term is "*very* mainstream". I have no recollection of hearing the term myself, nor is the topic discussed frequently, much less in proper terms. Moreover, the operators in question are not primarily computer users, thus necessitating clear, universal descriptions. – rtmh Aug 10 '16 at 16:45
  • @jpmc26 As for your point about finding a definition easily, that is the exact opposite of my question. Reversing that process is much harder, as my research discovered and which lead me here. Finally, my screenshot restriction is to accommodate versions of the documentation that may need to be more compact than a screenshot would allow. – rtmh Aug 10 '16 at 16:45
  • @jpmc26 "Hot Network Questions", though I couldn't say why it got there in the first place – Izkata Aug 10 '16 at 18:45
  • "program startup screen synonym" turns up "Splash Screen" Wikipedia entry as the 2nd result, and 3rd, 4th and 5th results all contain the words "splash screen" for me. but whatever. – Mathieu Guindon Aug 10 '16 at 19:42

3 Answers3

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Those are usually called Splash Screens.

A splash screen is a graphical control element consisting of window containing an image, a logo and the current version of the software. A splash screen usually appears while a game or program is launching.

Splash screens are typically used by particularly large applications to notify the user that the program is in the process of loading. They provide feedback that a lengthy process is underway. Occasionally, a progress bar within the splash screen indicates the loading progress. A splash screen disappears when the application's main window appears.

Source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Splash_screen

It seems that another term, loading screen, is only used in the case of video games.

In the case of a whole operating system, they're called bootsplash or bootscreen.

EDIT:

Whence the term "splash screen"?

Here's a question about the etymology in our sister site english.stackexchange.com.

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Tulains Córdova
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    The difference is that the loading screen is shown while the program or game is already running. For example, loading a new level in a game. Splash screen is only shown when you first click the icon to start. – Davor Ždralo Aug 10 '16 at 05:25
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    +1 for the answer, but _please be responsible_ in using them. Don't intentionally delay loading merely to display the splash, and above all _don't allow the splash to steal focus_ (in case the user is already doing something else while your app is loading)! – KlaymenDK Aug 10 '16 at 09:04
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    @KlaymenDK I'd rather have the splash "steal" focus (since in principle launch-to-splash is immediate and can be treated as synchronous, so it's no worse than any other launched application getting focus) at than have the main application steal focus (when the splash _wasn't_ focused) when done loading. – Random832 Aug 10 '16 at 16:00
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    @Random832 If the splash screen is immediately displayed, it will be *given* the focus, it doesn't need to take it. When the main window then gets created, the splash screen can again *give* the focus to the main window. Neither needs to steal focus. There are times when stealing focus is appropriate, but this isn't one of them. – hvd Aug 10 '16 at 20:12
  • +1 for the answer. Most widely used term. Though I'd rather use "Launch Screen" (last answer) because is self explained and also accepted. – Shirley Temple May 27 '17 at 18:07
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Abovementioned name splash screen is used also as official term, for example on .NET platform:

In the first sentence there you can also find synonym startup screen explaining the slang term in plain English.

miroxlav
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  • this doesn't seem to offer anything substantial over points made and explained in [top answer](http://programmers.stackexchange.com/a/327995/31260) several hours ago – gnat Aug 10 '16 at 08:49
  • @gnat – Thanks for adding the feedback to the DV. For me, the substantial point is: if you (as developer, what the OP is) are interested in splash screens, then besides seeking for proper term also check whether there is an out-of-the-box splash screen implementation you can benefit from. I mean creating splash screen as regular form vs. built-in feature is a big difference I pointed to. This should be also a tip for future readers thinking about adding splash screens. – miroxlav Aug 10 '16 at 08:58
  • @miroxlav "I am writing user documentation (an SOP) that involves third party programs that I am trying to describe well." This describes the context and extent of my question. You make a great point about implementation, but that is somewhat out of scope, given my question. – rtmh Aug 10 '16 at 12:36
  • @gnat, rtmh – OK, I have removed technical information and added a piece of information from documentation viewpoint. – miroxlav Aug 10 '16 at 14:14
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    I think this answer would have been better off as a comment to the accepted answer. – Diti Aug 11 '16 at 09:07
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    @Diti – the answer had somewhat longer history, just peek into revisions. – miroxlav Aug 11 '16 at 09:20
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Definitely, "Launch Screen" is the one used in most of the environments as far as I know. Example: https://developer.apple.com/ios/human-interface-guidelines/graphics/launch-screen/

Santi Pérez
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