This is a type of API that gives access to features that are usually found in a GUI or graphical user interface. These features include things like onscreen fonts, scroll bars, pull-down menus and windows. Rather than stand-alone software, these APIs are usually part of larger projects or programs, like for example the operating system of a computer.
Technipages Explains Windowing Environment
API is short of application program interface, and windowing environments are a type of that. They let the program, whatever it is, interact with other elements. OS like Windows or MacOS all support the use of programs in other programs – such as executing Microsoft Office in a Windows Vista environment.
In both of these cases, the vanilla API is presented with a desktop environment – the location we see when no other programs are open, the background picture of the PC.
At their core, windowing systems manage different parts of the screen as separate sections. Different windows can exist next to each other, on top of each other, at the same time or one after the other. Either way, the windowing system makes sure they each have their space and the resources necessary to run in it.
Windowing systems also add additional interaction tools, such as functions to close, mini- or maximise windows, or even the task manager that can force a task closed if the regular controls stop working.
Common Uses of Windowing Environment
- Windowing environments are APIs that function also as GUIs.
- Operating systems like Windows are one example of windowing environments.
- Although not always referred to as windows, having multiple tasks share a screen means that a windowing environment is present.
Common Misuses of Windowing Environment
- A windowing environment specifically refers to the surroundings of a program window, such as the Desktop.
