Abstract: Imagine an old-style typewriter where the typist's actions affect a fixed focal area, with the paper scrolling through this region. This invention presents a similar interface for content editing where the primary window is split into three panes stacked on top of each other. The center or focus pane uses a widget-based approach such that plenty of room is available for large lists, edit areas, calendar controls, and other useful information manipulation widgets. The other two panes, one above and one below the focus pane use the layout-based approach. This maintains the user's context during data entry; layouts above and below indicate the user's position within the data structure but while the user's attention can remain focused at the central position on the screen where data editing occurs.