Resistive touch technology consists of a glass or like panel that is coated with electrically conductive and resistive layers. The thin layers are separated by invisible separator dots. While turned on, an electrical current moves through the screen casting a sort of net across the monitor face. When you touch the screen (creating pressure) the layers are pressed together, causing a change in the electrical current and a touch command to be registered. Reliability is impressive because resistive touch screens do not have to be recalibrated when environmental conditions change. Resistive-type touch screens are usually the most practical. Resistive screens are extremely durable and can withstand the harshest of environments. Resistive technology is the "work horse" of touch technologies.
This type of screen is recommended for point of sale systems-kiosks (POS), restaurant registers, control or automation systems, medical use, hospitality kiosks, grocery/convenience, standard kiosks and others.

A Capacitive Touch screen consists of a glass panel with a capacitive (charge storing) material coating its surface. Circuits located at corners of the screen measure the capacitance of a person touching the overlay. Frequency changes are measured to determine the X and Y coordinates of the touch command.

Capacitive type touch screens are very durable and have high clarity. They are used in a wide range of applications, from restaurant and point of sale (POS) use, to industrial controls and information kiosks.

While there is a programming API available, the easiest is just to use the touch screen's mouse emulation, if your program uses a mouse, it already works with touch!