Single-document interface

In computer science, a single document interface (sometimes called SDI) is a way to organize graphical applications into individual windows that are handled separately by the operating system's window manager. That usually means that each window is displayed as an individual entry in the operating system's task bar or task manager; and that the window does not have a "background" or "parent" window that contains its menu or toolbar, but that each window has its own menu/toolbar. Applications that can edit more than one document at a time (like word processors) may therefore give the user the impression that more than one program is running.

Some task managers summarize windows of the same application in the taskbar. Most task-managers handles these windows on a separate taskbar, necessitating the use of "tabs" or an application-specific taskbar to accomplish this. Mac OS X uses a feature called Exposé which allows the user to temporarily see all windows belonging to a particular application.

See also

• Multiple document interface
• Tabbed document interface or GUI