In Symbian mobile application development, resource files are used for defining user interface components and visible text. The advantage of using resource files include:
making source code shorter and simpler
saving memory, because text is loaded only when needed
making it easier to implement localization to different language groups
A key example of the use of resource files is found in the implementation of AVKON components. AVKON UI components consist of data structures that are defined in the resource files Start: SDL_PRODUCT=SDL_NOKIA_Internal{ resouce files }End: SDL_PRODUCT=SDL_NOKIA_Internal, and then are called from the classes controlling the UI implementation. When UI component implementation is split into these two approaches, it means that resources can be recompiled, for example for new languages, without having to recompile the application code.
For more information on managing resource files, see: