Win32 API Books

Multithreading Applications in Win32: The Complete Guide to Threads (Addison-Wesley Microsoft Technology Series)

Jim Beveridge, Robert Wiener

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 22 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

This material is still relevent, even when using .NET 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.

This material is still relevent, even when using .NET. The discussion of Win32 multithreading transcends any particular development environment used with a Windows 32 bit environment.

The key idea behind this book is getting correct, reproducible results with windows multithreaded applications. Multithreaded applications are very hard to get right and even harder to properly test. The author explains the many sources of problems and how to avoid them.

In order to understand this book's code samples, you will have to understand the Win32 API and code written in Visual C++ for Windows NT. It is important to see examples of these concepts in code.

Editorial Review:

Multithreading--dividing an application into multiple independent streams of execution--is a powerful but potentially intimidating programming technique. Multithreading Applications in Win32: The Complete Guide to Threads teaches you how to build multithreaded applications step by step, starting with simple examples and gradually introducing complicating factors and the Win32 APIs you'll need to deal with them. After you've mastered the basic concepts, you'll learn exactly how to implement multithreading applications using C, C++, and MFC, plus specific applications of multithreading on the Win32 platform. The entire book maintains a conversational tone that helps make potentially complex topics understandable.

Dan Appleman's Visual Basic Programmer's Guide to the Win32 API (Other Sams)

Dan Appleman

List Price: $59.99 By: Sams Amazon Marketplace: 13 new & used starting at $8.54

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 44 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

dan appleman is the API god 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 8 people found this review helpful.

it works well as a desktop reference but it also takes a little time to explain some of the more hardcore concepts. i recommend this book to ANYONE wanting to start and sucessfully finish an API project.
from this book it is apparent that mr Appleman believes VB can do ANYTHING by using a little API and, after owning it for a few months, you'll know it's true and you'll know how to make it happen too. a must-have for any self-respecting vb programmer

It's the Bible 5 out of 5 stars.
8 of 11 people found this review helpful.

For as long as there's been an API for VB developers, Dan has been THE source for reference on how to use it. He is the definitive authority. (How many people can earn that title about anything?)

Use this book FIRST. Then check with other sources of you need to.

Editorial Review:

Quickly harness the full power of the Windows(R) 32-bit operating system using Visual Basic. This best-selling guide covers every key element of the core Win32 API--from Windows management and drawing operations to advanced process control and interprocess communication techniques. Dan Applemen shows you how to translate C and C++ based Win32 documentation to Visual Basic, how to port 16-bit applications to 32-bits, and how to design applications to run on different versions of Windows.

Python Programming On Win32: Help for Windows Programmers

Mark Hammond, Andy Robinson

List Price: $34.95 By: O'Reilly Media, Inc. Amazon Marketplace: 10 new & used starting at $48.38

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Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Python Programming on Win32 zeroes in on the strengths of the Python programming language for the Windows platform. If you would like to use Python on Windows with Office 2000, this book is a perfect choice for getting started. While it's not an introduction to Python programming itself, the book does present some basic Python examples. (The authors do provide an impressive list of real-world projects that have used Python successfully, including an application at NASA and a major Web search engine.)

In lieu of a general language tour, this book centers on practical tips and examples for using Python on Windows, beginning with downloading and installing the free Python package. The most useful examples here present a Python library for general accounting objects. You'll learn how to write COM servers in Python and then how to script them in Visual Basic (used here to build user interfaces) and how to control Word and Excel with OLE Automation in Python. One standout example looks at building and printing accounting reports in Office 2000 using Python as the script language.

Later sections look at other possibilities, including how to use Python's support for MFC to build user interfaces. A notable section here looks at Windows NT system administration in Python. Because of its built-in support for dictionaries, Python is a natural fit for working with users, groups, permissions, and the like.

While Python's initial habitat may be Unix, Python Programming on Win32 shows that this powerful and increasingly popular object-oriented language may find its next home on Windows. Provided you have some previous exposure to the language, this book is an excellent resource for using Python in a Windows setting. --Richard Dragan

Topics covered: Python programming quick-start, Windows Python basics, Python support for COM/DCOM, the Pythonwin editor, Office 2000 scripting, Windows NT administration and system programming, Python MFC programming, and Active Scripting.

Win32 Programming (Addison-Wesley Advanced Windows Series)

Brent E. Rector, Joseph M. Newcomer

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 27 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Win32 Programming, by Brent E. Rector and John M. Newcomer is a massive, 1,500-page guide to Win32 C programming, something of a lost art these days. Although even the authors admit they use C++ and MFC in their own work, this text, as a one volume document of the powerful Win32 API programming, is truly comprehensive and can replace any number of texts on a programmer's bookshelf. Win32 Programming examines the basics of programming in Windows: from a minimal skeleton program to aspects of the Win32 API, from graphics, menus, user interface components (including the Windows 95 common controls) to more advanced topics like memory management, multithreaded programming, and synchronization objects. (These last topics are useful in that system programmers--or those who write device drivers--may need access to the C API directly.) In addition to presenting reference material (including all the API calls themselves), the authors explain the ideas of how to program in a clearly written style. Though some of the material feels dated (from 16-bit Windows 3.x programming), by and large, the authors do a good job of updating this to Windows 95 and Windows NT. Sections and tips that apply only to one API or operating system are clearly marked. The CD-ROM also includes over 140,000 lines of source code to experiment with, truly a historical treasure trove for the Win32 C programmer. Developers who need to use C calls, or prefer to have printed documentation instead of online help in their compiler, should consider making space on the bookshelf for this enormous title.

Win32 API Programming with Visual Basic

Steven Roman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Packed with useful information 5 out of 5 stars.
10 of 10 people found this review helpful.

This is an excellent book to learn about Windows from a developer's perspective. It has the most lucid explanations I've read on the Windows operating system, covering topics such as processes, threads, synchronization, memory architecture, Windows messages, DLL injection and device contexts. There is a whole chapter dedicated to strings where the author cleary explains ALL types of strings used in Windows (there are very few books that include this important topic). For those who complain about not enough coverage of the Win32 API, *READ THE PREFACE!*. The author states very clearly that the book is "...not intended to be an encyclopedia for the Win32 API...", the goal is to present "...enough information to get an overall feel for the Windows OS and the Win32 API...". I think he went beyond the stated goal. As for the reviewers complaining about the book heavy slant towards C, it escapes me how anyone would want to read about the Win32 API without expecting to find C all over the place. This is not a book to learn VB syntax or VB tricks, it's about how to interact with the Win32 API from VB, so it's important to learn the details about the API, not about VB. Last but not least, do not expect this to be a hardcore guide to Win32 programming, that's something you just can't do with VB.

Added Dec 12, 2001: After studying the new .NET platform I realize that this book is sadly outdated. You can still use the Win32 API in VB.NET, but there's no good reason to do that anymore because the .NET framework provides equivalents for just about every API call you can think of, and more.

Editorial Review:

The Win32 API, or Application Programming Interface, allows Visual Basic programmers far greater access to the inner workings of the Windows operating system without having to suffer through the steep learning curve associated with Visual C++ style Windows programming. The book is designed for users with an intermediate-level (or higher) knowledge of Visual Basic version 4 or later and a desire to stretch VB into the realm of Windows system programming. Users do not need to have any background in Visual C++, nor do they need to have any previous experience with the Win32 API. This book helps VB programmers eliminate the trial and error process that is usually associated with calling the Win32 API from Visual Basic.

.NET Framework Solutions: In Search of the Lost Win32 API

John Paul Mueller

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Great book overall. 4 out of 5 stars.
5 of 5 people found this review helpful.

This is a great book for developers seeking to understand how to translate C++ datatypes in the Win32 API functions into C# and VB.NET. It's not in-depth like Dan Appleman's VB's Guide to the Win32 API in past years, but it's the first of its' kind for .NET. My only wish is that the author not have spent so much time on DirectX and instead provided more general examples of other API calls. DirectX coverage should have been left for another book aimed specifically at that technology.

Editorial Review:

With Microsoft's release of Visual Studio .NET, the old Win32 API has been replaced by the new .NET Framework, which supplies all of the libraries that programmers need to do common operations, such as drawing elements on the screen, providing security to applications, and so forth. However, the Framework does not provide every operation that was available in the Win32 API. John Mueller's unique book is filled with largely undocumented tips and techniques for accessing lost functionality from the .NET Framework. You learn how to use DirectX in your .NET applications, how to use certain data structures not available in the Framework, how to program security other than role-based security, and many other techniques. You can use the book whether you are a VB or a C# programmer. The companion CD has all the book's source code in both languages, plus the .NET Framework SDK and helpful third-party .NET utilities.

Programming Win32 Under the API (With CD-ROM)

Pat Villani

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 2.0 of 5

Unbelievable 2 out of 5 stars.
16 of 19 people found this review helpful.

I skimmed through the book in a bookstore. What's unbelievalbe is that Appendix A of the book contains complete listing of exported functions from Windows 95 (yes 95) KERNEL32.DLL, in about 20 pages.

Come on, this is year 2001, not 1995 or 1996.

Don't buy this book 1 out of 5 stars.
11 of 15 people found this review helpful.

The final chapter of this book describes a program that is supposed to work like the Windows command-line interpreter. When I compiled the example, I got page after page of warnings. I renamed all the source files to .cpp and recompiled and now I got several errors; for example, passing the address of the address of a string, when the function was expecting just the address. After fixing all errors and warnings, I ran the program and gave it the name of another program to invoke. It promptly stopped in the debugger. The wrong function was being called to release a handle.

In order to review the code, I removed the CD rom. So I can't return the book. But it was a waste of money.

Editorial Review:

The Windows API is an abstraction layer that hides important differences between the Windows operating systems. Author Pat Villani cuts through the overwhelming detail of function calls to show how the Windows operating systems work - then demonstrates ho

Harness the Win 32 API to create robust multitasking applications! The author has deconstructed the API functions to demonstrate comparative implementations. Includes methods for synchronizing concurrent tasks and interprocess communications for multitasking in Windows.

Dan Appleman's Win32 API Puzzle Book and Tutorial for Visual Basic Programmers

Dan Appleman

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Dan Appleman's Win32 API Puzzle Book and Tutorial for Visual Basic Programmers provides 32 challenging programming "puzzles" that will test the skills of any intermediate or advanced Visual Basic programmer.

The problems start simply enough, with puzzles that look at the basics of Win32 API C API calls, such as retrieving error messages and graphics. However, the book quickly approaches tougher terrain, offering a series of problems on the Windows Registry. Other problem topics include programming with Remote Access Services (RAS), networked drives, and the DEVMODE structure (for polling printers and other devices). Finally, the toughest problems involve ActiveX programming and cover how to work with Global Universal Identifiers (GUIDs) and drag-and-drop file operations.

The back of the book contains hints for each puzzle, as well as complete solutions and comments. The author provides a tutorial on various aspects of VB Win32 C API programming, including C to VB data types, parameter passing (by value and by pointer) and some excellent material on how the call stack works for Windows DLLs. Two final sections discuss the Win32 Service API (for starting and stopping Win32 services) and how to access the Windows NT Event Log.

In all, this book provides expert knowledge on getting the most out of VB Win32 C API calls in a format that is always challenging and often entertaining. --Richard Dragan

Win32 Multithreaded Programming

Aaron Cohen, Mike Woodring

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Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Many Windows developers still write code as if their application is a single entity that, while it is running, has complete control of all system resources. This legacy from the days of DOS means that developers frequently fail to take advantage of Win32's support of multiple threads of execution to improve their application's performance or to enhance its functionality. For instance, a main thread can handle interactions with the user, while a background "worker" thread can handle repainting the application window or performing some background calculations. But multithreaded programming means more than adding threads; it also requires that the code be thread-safe.

Win32 Multithread Programming explains the concepts of multithreaded programs, thus providing the developer with the knowledge necessary to skillfully construct efficient and complex applications. From basic thread synchronization using mutexes and semaphores, to advanced topics like creating reusable thread pools or implementing a deferred processing queue, the book uses real-world applications and carefully constructed examples to illustrate the principles of multithreaded programming. Some of the topics include:

• How the Windows operating systems handle threads
• Multithreading primitives in the Win32 API
• Techniques for generating thread-safe dynamic link libraries
• Advanced techniques for thread synchronization
• Basic scenarios for synchronizing threads
• Common designs for building multithreaded user interfaces

The CD-ROM accompanying the book features Mcl, the authors' C++ class library for multithreaded programming, which both wraps multithreaded API functions and easily supports more complex multithreaded scenarios. For programmers using MFC, an additional library, Mcl4Mfc, is included for MFC compatibility.

Win32 Multithread Programming is an essential resource for any developer interested in learning about Win32 multithreaded programming in order to create high-performance, effective applications.

Windows Graphics Programming: Win32 GDI and DirectDraw (Hewlett-Packard Professional Books)

Feng Yuan

List Price: $59.99 By: Prentice Hall PTR Amazon Marketplace: 4 new & used starting at $49.95

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 14 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

To deliver high-performance Windows applications, developers need an in-depth understanding of the Win32 GDI and DirectDraw -- but until now, it's been virtually impossible to discover what's going on "behind" Microsoft's API calls. This book rips away the veil, giving experienced Windows programmers the information and techniques they need to maximize performance, efficiency, and reliability -- and to make the best use of Windows graphics APIs and the important new graphics features provided in Windows 2000. Readers will gain a clear, concrete understanding of how GDI and DirectDraw are implemented internally; their limitations, resource requirements, and performance impact; and keys to implementing features and troubleshooting problems. This book is filled with high quality, original, system-level tools, kernal mode drivers, sample programs, and generic C++ classes for Windows programming without MFC. Readers can find out how to build API spys and hooks, detect GDI resource leaks, build image processing software, and more. Part 1 goes behind the scenes to uncover the Windows system architecture and graphics system internal data structure, and provides techniques for spying on the components of the graphics system. Part 2 provides detailed coverage of the Win32 GDI and Direct Draw API, based on the solid foundation built in Part 1. It covers device context, coordinate space and transformation, pixels, lines, and curves, area fills, various types of bitmaps, image processing, fonts, text, enhanced metafiles, and printing.