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A Multiple Document Interface (MDI) is an application design that lets you work with several documents inside one main application window. In classic Win32 MDI, each document is shown in a child window contained within the application’s workspace.
How an MDI application is organized
Classic Win32 MDI uses three window levels:
- Frame window: The application’s main window.
- MDI client window: A special child window inside the frame that acts as the document workspace.
- MDI child windows: The individual document windows, each confined to the MDI client area.
This structure lets the application manage several open documents as windows within a single workspace. Microsoft describes the MDI client and child-window model in its Win32 MDI overview.
How users switch and arrange documents
Only one MDI child window is active at a time. The active document comes to the front and is highlighted; users can activate another child by selecting it or choosing it from the application’s Window menu. Depending on the application, users may also arrange child windows by tiling them without overlap or cascading them so title bars remain visible. These are behaviors described in Microsoft’s MDI implementation guidance.
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MDI vs. SDI: what changes?
Single Document Interface (SDI) is a contrasting application model, but the difference is not simply “many documents” versus “one document.” In MDI, document windows live inside an application’s MDI workspace and can be switched or arranged there. SDI applications use a different window and interaction model; the exact behavior depends on the application framework. Microsoft documents behavioral differences between MDI and SDI forms in its Windows Forms MDI documentation.
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When MDI is useful—and its usability trade-off
MDI can suit work that benefits from keeping related documents within one application workspace, especially when users need to switch among them or arrange them together. Its nested window structure and window-management commands can also make the interface harder to learn. Microsoft cautions: “Many new and intermediate users find it difficult to learn to use MDI applications. Therefore, you should consider other models for your user interface. However, you can use MDI for applications which do not easily fit into an existing model.” This guidance appears in Microsoft’s Multiple Document Interface documentation.
Quick Recap
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