Source : Free On-Line Dictionary of Computing

Windows CE
     
         /C E/ A version of the {Microsoft Windows}
        {operating system} that is being used in a variety of
        {embedded} products, from {handheld} PCs to specialised
        industrial {controllers} and consumer electronic devices.
        Programming for Windows CE is similar to programming for other
        {Win32} {platforms}.
     
        Windows CE was developed to be a customisable operating system
        for embedded {applications}.  Its {kernel} borrows much from
        other Microsoft {32-bit} operating systems, while eliminating
        (or replacing) those operating system features that are not
        needed for typical Windows CE-based applications.  For
        example, as on {Windows NT}, all applications running on
        Windows CE run in a fully {preemptive multitasking}
        environment, in fully {protected memory} spaces.
     
        The {Win32} (API) for Windows CE is smaller than the Win32 API
        for the other 32-bit Windows operating systems.  It includes
        approximately half the interface methods of the Windows NT
        version of the API.  But the Win32 API for Windows CE also
        includes features found in no other Microsoft operating
        system.  The notification API, for example, makes it possible
        to handle user or application notification events (such as
        timer events) at the operating-system level, rather than in a
        running application.  The {touch screen} API and the built-in
        support for the Windows CE {database} are not found in other
        Windows operating systems.  The touch screen API makes it easy
        to manage screen calibration and user interactions for
        {touch-sensitive displays}, while the database API provides
        access to a data storage facility.
     
        {(http://channels.microsoft.com/windowsce/developer/default.htm)}.
     
       
     {(http://channels.microsoft.com/windowsce/developer/technical/default.htm)}.
     
        (1997-12-20)