Because there are architectural differences between Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, and Windows CE, each system implements some elements differently. These differences are relatively few, and are noted in the Platform SDK. Each paragraph that notes a platform difference is preceded by one of the following tags:
| Tag | Description |
|---|---|
| Windows NT: | The paragraph applies to Windows NT, but not Windows 95 or Windows 98. |
| Windows 95: | The paragraph applies to Windows 95, but not Windows 98 or Windows NT. |
| Windows 98: | The paragraph applies to Windows 98, but not Windows 95 or Windows NT. |
| Windows 95 and Windows 98: | The paragraph applies to Windows 95 and Windows 98, but not Windows NT. |
| Windows CE: | The paragraph applies to Windows CE only. |
There are also differences between different versions of the same operating system. Most of these are due to the introduction of new constants. The following examples illustrate a function return value that varies by operating system version.
Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0 and later: The return value is the resulting incremented value.
Windows 95, Windows NT 3.51 and earlier: If the result of the operation is zero, the return value is zero. If the result of the operation is less than zero, the return value is negative, but it is not necessarily equal to the result. If the result of the operation is greater than zero, the return value is positive, but it is not necessarily equal to the result.
There are also differences between localized versions of the operating system. The following example illustrates this type of tag.
Middle-Eastern Windows: The text is laid out in right to left reading order, as opposed to the default left to right order. This only applies when the font selected into the device context is either Hebrew or Arabic.