Starting with [[Windows 10]], Windows[[Microsoft]] initially used the term "Windows app" to referdescribe to[[Universal aWindows Platform]] (UWP) appapps. AnyThese appwere [[applications]] that could be installed from the [[Microsoft Store (digital)|Microsoft Store]], (formerly Windows Store)which was initiallypreviously "Trustedknown Windowsas Storethe app"<ref>[[CortanaWindows (software)|CortanaStore]]. ''[[WindowsInitially, 10these 1511|Windowsapps 10were versioncalled 1511]]''."Trusted [[Microsoft]]Windows (2015).</ref>Store apps," and later they were referred to as "Trusted Microsoft Store apps."<ref>[[Cortana(software)|Cortana]].On ''[[Windowsthe 10other 1803|Windowshand, 10traditional versionprograms 1803]]''.designed [[Microsoft]]to (2018).</ref> Other [[computer program]]s runningrun on a desktop computercomputers arewere "desktopreferred apps."to Starting withas "[[WindowsDesktop 10app|desktop 1903apps]], Windows indiscriminately refers to all of them as "Apps."
With the release of [[Windows 10]] version 1903, there was a shift in the terminology. [[Microsoft]] began using the term "Apps" to refer to both UWP apps and desktop apps indiscriminately. This change aimed to unify the naming convention for all types of applications.
The terms "[[Universal Windows Platform]]" (or "UWP"), only appear on Microsoft documentation for its developers.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/uwp/get-started/universal-application-platform-guide |title=What's a Universal Windows Platform (UWP) app? |website=Docs |publisher=[[Microsoft]] |date=7 May 2018}}</ref> Microsoft started to retrospectively use "[[Windows Runtime]] app" to refer to the precursors of UWP apps, for which there was no unambiguous name before.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/previous-versions/windows/desktop/apps/dn726537(v=win.10) |title=How to develop a Windows Runtime app |website=Docs |publisher=[[Microsoft]] |date=15 May 2017}}</ref>
It's worth noting that the term "[[Universal Windows Platform]]" (UWP) is primarily used in [[Microsoft|Microsoft's]] developer documentation to specifically refer to the platform itself. Microsoft also introduced the term "Windows Runtime app" retrospectively to describe the precursors of UWP apps, as there was previously no clear and unambiguous name for them.
