Q:

What is the difference between GTK and Win32 Native API in C?

I'm a beginner in C programming. I read about some tutorials and forums about creating GUI application in C. I encountered some terms like GTK, Win32 native API. They say that GTK is one of the library to use in creating GUI application. I also tried the code that create a simple window using Win32 API.  What are the difference between them?
Thanks.

A:

GTK is multi-platform tool kit for creating graphical user interfaces(GUI).
In short they provide a framework which you can use as an library for developing your UI applications.
Win32 API is Microsoft's core set of application programming interfaces (APIs) available in the Microsoft Windows operating systems. These are restricted only for windows platform.      
The language rules for c/c++ are governed by ISO standards which define what functionality every standard c/c++ implementation has to provide.Note that both of above provide some functionality that is over and above what the standard libraries provide.Basically, they provide you boiler plate framework for easy usage instead of reinventing wheels for your project.

