This chapter describes how to use the Palm OS resource tools.
- "Resource File Overview"
- "Using the Resource Tools with the Workbench"
- "Using the Resource Tools Independently"
Resource File Overview
The source code for Palm OS resources are stored in a platform-independent, XML text file format. This file format is called an XML resource description file, or XRD file.
This XRD file is an XML implementation for defining application resources. For more information on the format of XRD files and XML tag descriptions, see the book Palm OS Resource File Formats.
Importing a Resource File
If you have an exiting PRC or RSRC file that you want to add to a project in Palm OS Developer Suite as an XRD file, use the Palm OS Resource File import wizard.
- Select File > Import to open the Import dialog box.
- Select Palm OS Resource File. Follow the wizard steps to select the PRC or RSRC file, to select the project into which you want to import the resource file, and to set other options.
The import wizard calls the GenerateXRD
tool to create an XRD file from your resource file.
Creating an XRD File
To add a new XRD file to a project:
- First select the project.
- Then select File > New > XRD File to create an empty XRD file in the selected project.
You can then edit the XRD file using Palm OS Resource Editor. For more information on Palm OS Resource Editor, see the book Palm OS Resource Editor Guide.
Using the Resource Tools with the Workbench
The Palm OS resource tools for building applications are fully integrated with the Workbench (described in Chapter 2, "Eclipse Workbench Integration,").
When you use the development environment's menu to build your solution configuration, the Palm OS resource tools are called to compile your XML resource definition file and merge the output with your code and data resources to produce a Palm OS application.
NOTE: The Palm OS resource tools
PalmRC
and PRCMerge
are used to build your application both for Device configurations and for Simulator configurations.
Setting Resource Compiler (PalmRC) Options
- To set the default resource compiler options in the development environment, you use the Eclipse Workbench's Preferences dialog box. Select Window > Preferences to open the Preferences dialog box, shown in Figure 3.1. Then select Palm OS Resources to open the page shown in Figure 4.1.
Figure 4.1 Palm OS Resource Preferences

- To set the specific resource compiler options for a single project, you use the project's properties dialog box. Select the project, then select Project > Properties to open the Properties dialog box, shown in Figure 4.2. Select the C/C++ Build group in the left pane, and then select Palm OS Resource Compiler in the Configuration settings list.
Figure 4.2 PalmRC Properties dialog box

For more information about the PalmRC
and the Resource Compiler options, see the book Palm OS Resource Tools Guide.
Setting Resource Linker (PRCMerge) Options
- To set the default
PRCMerge
options in the development environment, you use the Eclipse Workbench's Preferences dialog box. Select Window > Preferences to open the Preferences dialog box, shown in Figure 3.1. Then select Palm OS Resources to open the page shown in Figure 4.1. Then select Resource Linker to display the page shown in Figure 4.3.

- To set the specific resource linker options for a single project, you use the project's properties dialog box. Select the project, then select Project > Properties to open the Properties dialog box, shown in Figure 4.4. Select the C/C++ Build group in the left pane, and then select Palm OS Resource File Linker in the Configuration settings list.
Figure 4.4 PRCMerge Properties dialog box

For more information about PRCMerge
and PRCMerge
options, see the book Palm OS Resource Tools Guide.
Using the Resource Tools Independently
Palm OS resource tools fall into the following categories:
PalmSource's toolset provides resource tools in each of these categories, as described in the following descriptions.
Figure 4.5 Basic Resource Tools

GenerateXRD: Resource Migration Tool
GenerateXRD
provides a way to conversion from existing resource files to the new resource file format. If you currently have resources in Macintosh RSRC files, you can convert them to the new XRD format without loss of information. You can also "de-compile" resources from PRC files into the new XRD resource file format.
Palm OS Resource Editor: Resource Editing Tool
Palm OS Resource Editor allows you to create and edit the new XML resource definition (XRD) files. With Palm OS Resource Editor, you can edit XML tags directly, or you can use a graphical form editor, dragging and dropping user interface controls from a catalog of user interface elements.
PalmRC and PRCMerge: Resource Building Tools
Build tools are resource file compilers and linkers that build resources into Palm OS applications (PRC files). The resource file compiler is called PalmRC
; the linker is called PRCMerge
.
PRCCompare: Resource Utility Tool
PRCCompare
is a utility tool that shows you the difference between two Palm OS binary resource database files.
hOverlay: Application Localization Tool
Localization tools allow you to create locale-specific versions of your Palm OS application. hoverlay
is a tool that helps you create overlay PRCs with national language strings that work with your original base PRC.
PRCSign and PRCCert: Application Security Tools
Security tools provide a way for securing and authenticating a Palm OS application. PRCSign
and PRCCert
allow you to create and embed a digital signature and associated certificates in your Palm OS application (PRC file).
Getting More Information
The Palm OS Resource Tools are described in detail in the book Palm OS Resource Tools Guide.