PRC (Palm Resource Code) is a
container format
A container format (informally, sometimes called a wrapper) or metafile is a file format that allows multiple data streams to be embedded into a single file, usually along with metadata for identifying and further detailing those streams. Not ...
for code
database
In computing, a database is an organized collection of data stored and accessed electronically. Small databases can be stored on a file system, while large databases are hosted on computer clusters or cloud storage. The design of databases spa ...
s in
Palm OS
Palm OS (also known as Garnet OS) was a mobile operating system initially developed by Palm, Inc., for personal digital assistants (PDAs) in 1996. Palm OS was designed for ease of use with a touchscreen-based graphical user interface. It is provi ...
,
Garnet OS
Palm OS (also known as Garnet OS) was a mobile operating system initially developed by Palm, Inc., for personal digital assistants (PDAs) in 1996. Palm OS was designed for ease of use with a touchscreen-based graphical user interface. It is provi ...
and
Access Linux Platform
The Access Linux Platform (ALP) is a discontinued open-source software based operating system, once referred to as a "next-generation version of the Palm OS," for mobile devices developed and marketed by Access Co., of Tokyo, Japan. The platform ...
. Its structure is similar to
PDB databases.
[N. Rhodes, J. McKeehan. Palm OS Programming, Second Edition, O'Reilly, 2001, .] Usually, a PRC file is a flat representation of a Palm OS application that is stored as forked database on the PDA.
PRC files are also used by the
Mobipocket
Mobipocket SA was a French company incorporated in March 2000 that created the .mobi e-book file format and produced the Mobipocket Reader software for mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDA) and desktop operating systems.
The Mobipoc ...
e-book
An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Al ...
-reader (here sometimes referred to as MOBI format
[MobileRead Wiki]
Reference for the MOBI format
/ref>). The AZW format of Amazon's Kindle reading device is in turn a DRM-restricted form of the Mobipocket format.
On Palm OS, PRC files are used for applications, localized resources (overlays) and shared libraries.
Structure of PRC file
In its essence, a PRC file is similar to a classic Mac OS
Mac OS (originally System Software; retronym: Classic Mac OS) is the series of operating systems developed for the Macintosh family of personal computers by Apple Computer from 1984 to 2001, starting with System 1 and ending with Mac OS 9. Th ...
application. It contains a PRC header, PRC resource headers and PRC resources.[Theodore Ts'o (2000]
The PRC Format.
Accessed on 2009-03-07
PRC Header
The PRC header is located at the beginning of the file and contains meta-information on the file:
PRC Resource Header
For every resource (specified by num_records), there is a resource header containing:
PRC Resources
Every application contains al least a Code #0 resource with size information and jump tables, a Code #1 resource with executable code and data resources containing pre-initialized values of global variables in compressed form.
References
{{Reflist
Computer file formats
Palm OS