You can work with resources that were not developed in Visual C++'s development environment or are not part of your current project. For example, you can:
You can open the types of files shown in the following table and edit the resources they contain.
Filename | Description |
.rc | 16- and 32-bit resource script files |
.res | 16- and 32-bit resource files |
.exe | 16- and 32-bit executable files |
.dll | 16- and 32-bit dynamic link library files |
.bmp, .dib, .ico, and .cur | Bitmap, icon, and cursor files |
You can save your resources as shown in the following table.
Open file as | Save file as |
.rc | .rc or 32-bit .res |
16-bit .res | .rc or 16-bit .res |
32-bit .res | .rc or 32-bit .res |
16-bit .exe | 16-bit .exe, .rc, or 16-bit .res |
32-bit .exe | 32-bit .exe, .rc, or 32-bit .res |
16-bit .dll | 16-bit .dll, .rc, or 16-bit .res |
32-bit .dll | 32-bit .dll, .rc, or 32-bit .res |
.bmp or .dib | .bmp or .dib |
.ico | .ico |
.cur | .cur |
Note Resource script files (.rc) are distinguished as being 16- or 32-bit by whether they contain 32-bit resource keywords (such as LANGUAGE, EXSTYLE, or DIALOGEX), not by their underlying file structure. You create a 32-bit .rc file only by adding 32-bit keywords to it.
The environment also works with the files shown in the following table during your resource editing session.
Filename | Description |
Resource.h | Header file generated by the development environment; contains symbol definitions. |
filename.aps | Binary version of the current resource script file; used for quick loading. |
projectname.clw | File containing information about the current project; used by ClassWizard in Visual C++. |
projectname.mak | File containing project build instructions. |
projectname.vcp | Project configuration file. |