We incorporated the concept of software-definable, task-specific panel 
layout into our controls because Mike thought it a logical way of simplifying 
designs that would otherwise have been nightmarishly complex. The basic 
idea is that the panels automatically reconfigure themselves to suit the 
specific task at hand. A side benefit we discovered is this gave our actors 
much more freedom in hitting controls to accomplish various tasks. (Even 
though our cast tries to get things right, there are numerous occasions when 
a particular shot will require an actor to hit a button on a specific area of a 
panel, which may not reflect our original design for that panel.) Variable-
layout control panels mean that the button that fires phasers this week is not 
necessarily the same button that fires them next week.