Forgot to attach autogenerated sample files

From: Marc Piulachs [mailto:marc.piulachs@codexchange.net]
Sent: Friday, November 09, 2007 7:24 PM
To: 'ReactOS Development List'
Subject: rbuild auto generated resources

From all changes introduced on my rbuild branch auto generated resources seems to be the most controversial by far so I will try to explain here the design decision behind it

One of my particular obsessions is trying to optimize and automate the maxium ammout of things, if something can be reasonably created automatically why do it by hand?

CURRENT SITUATION

=================

Currently the version common defines REACTOS_STR_FILE_DESCRIPTION , REACTOS_STR_INTERNAL_NAME and REACTOS_STR_ORIGINAL_FILENAME , localized resources and theme manifest are added to [modulename].rc , rsrc.rc or splitted between both.

Problems:

- Theme manifests files "manifest.xml" are architecture dependent (X86)

- Duplicated content, we will have hundreds of identical manifest files for every aplication

- No way to compile an aplication without manifest

- No way to compile an aplication with only specified localizations

- Duplicated work, rbuild has all the information required to automatically generate the defines

- If we decide to rename or introduce a new define in the future we will have to edit all resources by hand.

- Resource localizations are compiled with any control , the only way to check if they are included is by hand.

Advantatges to my proposal:

- It solve all the above problems.

- Reduce man work

- Allows future changes in the format (editing the resource generator source code (1 file) vs all resources files on SVN)

- It's the base to other future enchancments , when a new feature is added to rbuild we have just to modify it and all modules will automatically inherit it.

An most important of all , it represents a change of the model to a metadata oriented build process. You describe the content (source code , resources ...) rather than the build , rbuild uses that information to generate the apropiate image (as always) but this information can also be used for multiple other things, analitics , reports , web ....

How does it work?

=================

First of all IT'S OPTIONAL , you can decide to use it or not, your choice.

We will use the eventvwr.rbuild as sample:

<?xml version="1.0"?>

...

<automanifest>manifest.xml</automanifest>

<developer>mpiulachs</developer>

<translator>cfinck</translator>

<translator>fireball</translator>

<translator>mpiulachs</translator>

</module>

to turn auto resources on we have to add the <autoresource> element with the name of the resource that will be created in the INTERMEDIATE folder in this case it will be named "auto.rc".

It will also automatically create the apropiate manifest.xml file for the architecture being build (x86 or PPC) and will reference it in "auto.rc"

Also it will validate and include the localizations, even it has localizations for 5 languages it will only compile those specified on languages.rbuild

See attached files for autogenerated content

I tried to explain the motivation behind my changes and why I think they are positive , of course I'm open to your questions , ideas or comments but please be contructive and argument your point of view , "I don't like it , we won't use it" as someone said is not an expected opinion.

/Marc