Programming Windows®, Fifth Edition (Developer Reference) 5th Edition

by Charles Petzold (Author)

121 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-1572319950

ISBN-10: 157231995X

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Programming Windows: Writing Windows 8 Apps With C# and XAML (Developer Reference)
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“Look it up in Petzold” remains the decisive last word in answering questions about Windows development. And in PROGRAMMING WINDOWS, FIFTH EDITION, the esteemed Windows Pioneer Award winner revises his classic text with authoritative coverage of the latest versions of the Windows operating system—once again drilling down to the essential API heart of Win32 programming. Topics include:

The basics—input, output, dialog boxes
An introduction to Unicode
Graphics—drawing, text and fonts, bitmaps and metafiles
The kernel and the printer
Sound and music
Dynamic-link libraries
Multitasking and multithreading
The Multiple-Document Interface
Programming for the Internet and intranets

Packed as always with definitive examples, this newest Petzold delivers the ultimate sourcebook and tutorial for Windows programmers at all levels working with Microsoft® Windows 95, Windows 98, or Microsoft Windows NT®. No aspiring or experienced developer can afford to be without it.

An electronic version of this book is available on the companion CD.

A Note Regarding the CD or DVD

The print version of this book ships with a CD or DVD. For those customers purchasing one of the digital formats in which this book is available, we are pleased to offer the CD/DVD content as a free download via O'Reilly Media's Digital Distribution services. To download this content, please visit O'Reilly's web site, search for the title of this book to find its catalog page, and click on the link below the cover image (Examples, Companion Content, or Practice Files). Note that while we provide as much of the media content as we are able via free download, we are sometimes limited by licensing restrictions. Please direct any questions or concerns to booktech@oreilly.com.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Charles Petzold has been writing about programming for Windows-based operating systems for 24 years. A Microsoft MVP for Client Application Development and a Windows Pioneer Award winner, Petzold is author of the classic Programming Windows, currently in its fifth edition and one of the best-known programming books of all time; the widely acclaimed Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software; and more than a dozen other books.

Series: Developer Reference
Hardcover: 1100 pages
Publisher: Microsoft Press; 5th edition (December 2, 1998)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 157231995X
ISBN-13: 978-1572319950
Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 2.8 x 9.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.3 pounds
Average Customer Review: 121 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #147,554 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #52 in Books > Computers & Technology > Networking & Cloud Computing > Data in the Enterprise > Client-Server Systems
- #76 in Books > Computers & Technology > Programming > Microsoft Programming > C & C++ Windows Programming
- #115 in Books > Computers & Technology > Operating Systems > Windows > Windows Desktop

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Top customer reviews

2015 and it is still great!

Byandy_lon August 28, 2015

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

It is a priceless book on Win32 API! It obviously lacks lots of new features appeared since the time of publishing (almost 20 years ago!); it doesn’t even touch MFC or any other popular programming tool (if you are interested in it); it is written in plain old C (no classes, etc.); but it explains all the basics of Windows programming, all principal Windows elements and how they work together. The language is very good; the samples are simple and thoughtful. And they work even now! I’ve got executables from the original CD that comes with the book: built in 1998, both Debug and Release versions, and they run like a snap – amazing! The CD also contains a help file that covers the whole book – pretty handy, considering the thickness and weight of the hardcopy.

0Comment 6 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Useful for Cross Platform Development as Well

ByMichael Gautieron September 15, 2013

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

About 2 years ago, I read this book and learned much more than I had previously about traditional Microsoft Windows API GUI programs. Most of my professional experience with programming languages consisted of 11 years with C#. Some of the concepts in the book were not new to me like message pumps and the general way they work under Microsoft Windows. The deep details of message pumps and how they work were new to me and this book went far to teach me the ground level concepts needed to properly set up a visual desktop program under Microsoft Windows using the native Windows API.

When I examined how these things are done in other platforms, I was surprised to find that they are sometimes done the same way. If you are using something like .NET, Windows Runtime, or Java Swing, you might not ever encounter these things. However, if your software is defined in a native implementation language, perhaps for the purposes of incorporating DirectX or OpenGL at a native level, you might see such things more often. A book like this make a huge difference in successfully grasping the concepts you need to apply in order to better use such things.

0Comment 3 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

It's 2014, and it's still relevant !!

ByDaniel Widyantoon May 15, 2014

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I'm a firmware engineer, and spent a lot of time with RTOS device driver / app programming in C. This book so far is the best book that I've ever bought to program in desktop environment.

This book explains Windows application programming using simple C programming (and it's still working for Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 Desktop app using free Visual Studio Express 2013. I heard you could still use it for Metro programming as well). The code examples are built up gradually from simple to difficult. The explanation is brief but to the point (I can always get the exact details from MSDN). It's enjoyable book to read (specially who likes to read source code, rather than long detail explanation on how each API works). Jargon free, plain English book, perfect for beginners after passing their C programming =)

In term of comparison, I couldn't even find other book that explains WIN32 from the bottom layer. Most books focus in middle layer functionality (.NET, XAML, etc).

0Comment 2 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

This is a great reference for programmers who want to move away from ...

ByMMCLon September 19, 2016

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This is a great reference for programmers who want to move away from console programming. It is very comprehensive and covers a lot of ground. Everything from scroll bars and keyboard/mouse input to graphics, mutimedia files and mutithreading are discussed in detail. All of the source code is on the accompanying CD and the author's website so you can customize the programs instead of having to start from scratch.

0Comment One person found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

This is what you are looking for.

ByA. Scudieroon July 18, 2001

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This is an absolutely golden book. Don't be intimidated by the page count or the title - this book is actually a very easy to use ground up tutorial in Win32 programming. He starts out talking about the basics and then slowly moves into more advanced topics.
As always it's important to know what a book is NOT. This book is not a tutorial for writing windows applications, nor does it discuss MFC or most of the common methods used today for rapidly producing computer programs. This is not REALLY a reference book on win32 either.
Instead it provides a tutorial-style documentation for the monstrous win32 API at its most fundamental levels. This book sets the standard for all other code written for any modern version of windows. It addresses real world issues and real world solutions to those problems (such as the chapter dedicated to making unicode friendly programs), as well as some historical issues (the difference between wParam and lParam).
No manual is without its flaws. This book is a bit too braod spectrum in the detail levels. There are places in the book where he will delve into details that you could care less about, and there are points that he will put in two or three sentences and assume you understand, although you may not.
Despite this, this book is essential to everyone writing code for Microsoft Windows (ANY version). You needn't read it cover to cover, but readiny section I (about 1/3 of the book) is essential. My one wish is that this book came in three volumes, if you haul it between home and school/office it gets to be buronsome. That's about all I can really complain about with this book.

0Comment 25 people found this helpful. Was this review helpful to you?YesNo

Still the best reference

ByT. Jensenon November 29, 2007

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I bought this book because MS keeps trying to hide information about how to make basic Windows apps in favor of pushing flavor of the day technologies like MFC and .Net. I remembered that this is the huge tome that all the Windows programmers from the 90s used to lug around so I bought one. I didn't want a book that would allow me to write "hello world" and then leave me stranded. I wanted to be able to port games (or applications) from other platforms in a way that will work across the entire Windows family. I also wanted to be able to make Windows code that could compile with GCC.

If you want to make a simple Windows app, or port a basic app from Linux or Mac to Windows, this book is a key component to doing it quickly, with a minimum of fuss. If you want to make a Windows app using Dev C++ or another open source development kit for Windows, this book is a must have!