Windows USER is a component of the Microsoft Windows operating system that provides core functionality for building simple user interfaces . The component has existed in all versions of Windows, and includes functionality for window management , message passing , input processing and standard controls .
6-429: Windows USER provides a large part of the core user experience for Microsoft Windows. Historically, it was responsible for: Gradually, as Windows has become larger and better factored, Windows USER has cooperated with other components to provide this functionality: Windows USER implements abstractions that are used to build Windows applications. These include The HWND is the basic unit of visual display and input in
12-529: Is provided by having a modified version of user.exe also present. In 64-bit versions of Windows, the 64-bit implementation of Windows USER is called user32.dll and is located in the System32 directory, while a modified 32-bit version (also called user32.dll) is present in the SysWOW64 directory. Misnomer A misnomer is a name that is incorrectly or unsuitably applied. Misnomers often arise because something
18-411: Is provided in the C header file winuser.h. In 16-bit versions of Windows, Windows USER was implemented as a file called user.exe. The file extension here was a misnomer , as Windows USER was in fact always a dynamic link library . In 32-bit versions of Windows, the 32-bit version of Windows USER is called user32.dll and is located in the System32 directory, while compatibility with 16-bit applications
24-614: The Windows developer platform. All visual elements either have their own HWNDs or live as part of a larger HWND . Many functions in Windows USER manipulate properties on HWNDs such as size, position and title. Each HWND also has a communication channel ( WNDPROC - Window Procedure) for delivery of messages. Windows are managed as a tree, with the desktop window at the root of the hierarchy. Child windows are usually (but not always) visually contained within their parents. Applications and
30-477: The operating system communicate with HWNDs using messages. A window message is the combination of a target HWND , a message code, and other details such as mouse position. By combining calls to Windows USER in the right way, a Windows application processes messages. The core Windows message loop (including calls to GetMessage , TranslateMessage and DispatchMessage ) is at the core of any Windows application. Developer functionality related to Windows USER
36-404: Was named long before its correct nature was known, or because an earlier form of something has been replaced by a later form to which the name no longer suitably applies. A misnomer may also be a word that is used incorrectly or misleadingly. The word "misnomer" does not mean " misunderstanding " or " popular misconception ", and a number of misnomers remain in common usage — which is to say that
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