Looking over National Instruments' Measurement Studio reinforced the possibility that there really isn't anything particularly special about what I want to do for a computer front-end to control my electronics projects. I am confident that whatever I want to do in such a piece of software, I can put it in a Windows application.

The only question is what kind of trade-offs are involved for different approaches, because there is certainly no shortage of options. There have been many application frameworks over the long history of Windows. I criticised LabWindows for faithfully following the style of an older generation of Windows applications and failed to keep updated since. So if I'm so keen on the latest flashy gizmo, I might as well look over the latest in Windows application development: the Universal Windows Platform.

People not familiar with Microsoft platform branding might get unduly excited about "Universal" in the name, as it would be amazing if Microsoft released a platform that worked across all operating systems. The next word dispelled that fantasy: "Universal Windows" just meant across multiple Microsoft platforms: PC, Xbox, and Hololens. UWP was also going to cover phone as well, but well, you know...

Given the reduction in scope and the lack of adoption, some critics are calling UWP a dead end. History will show if they are right or not. However that shakes out, I do like Fluent Design that was launched alongside UWP. A similar but competitive offering to Google's Material Design, I think they both have potential for building some really good user interactivity.

Given the graphical capabilities, I'm not worried about displaying my own data visualizations. But given UWP's intent to be compatible across different Windows hardware platforms, I am worried about my ability to communicate with my own custom built hardware. If something was difficult to rationalize a standard API across PC, Xbox, and Hololens, it might not be supported entirely.

Fortunately that worry is unfounded. There is a UWP section of the API for serial communication which I expect to work for USB-to-serial converters. Surprisingly, it actually went beyond that: there's also an API for general USB communication even with devices lacking standard Windows USB support. If this is flexible enough to interface arbitrary USB hardware other than USB-to-serial converters, it has a great deal of potential.

The downside, of course, is that UWP would be limited to Windows PCs and exclude Apple Macintosh and Linux computers. If the objective is to build a graphically rich and dynamically adaptable user interface across multiple desktop application platforms (not just Windows) we have to use something else.