Need help in C language to access installed programs on the computer

[nattha]

Hi, I am new to C language. But I am now implementing java application using native method(C languague) to access the installed softwares on the computer in order to learn how to use the software commands and execute the software. I would like to know how to use C language to acquire a list of installed programs on our computers and to execute(or start) a software which is specified by the MIME-type(ex. "application/msword&quot. Moreover, is it possible to use C language to access others information about the installed software, like software's name,version, path, commands, etc.
Thank you for all the answers.

 

[nattha]

i have found that i can use functions in msi for Windows. But for other platform ex. unix, what libraries could I use? Anyone has any suggestion.