Chapter 40. Resource Files

Developers often overlook the humble XML resource file, as it is often hidden by Visual Studio 2008 so as not to clutter the solution. Because its most common use is as a backing file for forms or web pages, you can write large applications without interacting directly with resource files. However, resource files are an important tool that developers need to be able to use in order to write applications that can be easily maintained and translated into other languages. The first part of this chapter explains why resource files are important and describes the features that enable developers to work with them. The remainder of the chapter explains how resource files are used to localize an application for different languages and cultures.