Determining what type of project you are creating should be a key
step in the analysis and design phase of the application development
process. There are a number of application types that can be developed
for the Symbian platform. Two common types are .exe and .dll.
During implementation, you need to specify the application type
in the TARGET and TARGETTYPE keywords of your application mmp file. For
more information, see the Build Configuration
Files topic.
An exe project creates
a binary executable for your application with the extension exe. Examples of possible exe application
projects include:
GUI-based applications
server applications
exe projects may also be associated with
compiled resource files and dlls.
A dll project creates a dynamic
link library for use with other applications.
The Symbian platform supports two types of dlls:
static interface dlls - represent an interface which is defined in its clients by one or more headers for use at compile time, and an import library for use at link time.
polymorphic interface dlls - contains an interface defined by a gate function and an abstract class with at least one virtual function.
Examples of polymorphic dlls include general engine dlls, ECom plug-ins, device drivers and Front End Processors (FEPs).
Some dlls have different extension names that indicate their function.