Moving Resources Between the Mac and PC
Whether residing on a Mac or PC, it is important to remember that a Palm OS resource file is really a Mac OS resource. A single Mac file has a data fork and resource fork. For better or worse, there is no such concept on the PC. Therefore, it is best to exchange files using PC-formatted removable media, such as a floppy or zip disk, and let Apple's File Exchange resolve the platform differences.
When copying ec.rsrc from a Mac to a PC, Apple's File Exchange flattens the file, producing A:\ec.rsrc and A:\RESOURCE.FRK\ec.rsrc. The former file represents the data fork but is really a 0-byte placeholder. The latter file represents the resource fork and actually contains resource information. If the filename extension in the RESOURCE.FRK directory was truncated to fit into three characters, you should rename it so it matches the name of the 0-byte file. When copying from the floppy to your PC, keep these two components and their relative locations together. Even though the data fork component is 0 bytes, the Metrowerks Constructor requires both components to successfully open the resource file.
When copying ec.rsrc from a PC to a Mac, copy both the \RESOURCE.FRK\ subdirectory as well as the 0-byte data fork file to the root directory of a PC formatted floppy. When viewing the components from a Mac environment, you'll see only a single file -- ec.rsrc.
A bug in the Constructor makes things slightly more complicated. Bitmaps transferred from the Mac to the PC get corrupted, although other resources, such as icons, transfer intact. Until a fix is made, there is a partial way around the problem. On a Mac, if your bitmap is no larger than an icon, copy and paste the bitmap into an icon. Once the resource file is transferred to a PC, delete the corrupted bitmap and create a new bitmap by copying from the icon. Bitmaps going in the other direction, from PC to Mac, present no problem.
-- M.Y.
DDJ
