I have been facing trouble in rendering image from Static Resource. Could any one help with the same?
The error is:
The linked image can not be displayed. The file may have been moved,
renamed or deleted. Verify that the link points to the correct file
and location
The Static Resource is 'Public'
If you want to store it as a static resource its your choice but storing it in Documents/ Contents or any other Doc management space makes more sense to store data. Personally I store all the EV variables and code related settings in the static resources
IF you choose static resource go to the resource and right click on the file and see the location of the file on server and use it in the code below
<apex:page >
<apex:form >
<apex:outputLink value="/puttheurlofthefile">download_Excel_File</apex:outputLink>
</apex:form>
</apex:page>
UPDATE:
I do not have too much experience around managed package, but I believe that you can add your static resource to managed package and use it as
<apex:page >
<apex:form >
<apex:outputLink value="{!URLFOR($Resource.Excel_file)}">download_Excel_File</apex:outputLink>
</apex:form>
</apex:page>
Edit
(re: comments, I've misread the "I currently have a VF Page...")
Help for custom objects won't let you put a static resource there but you could try to make-do with "action" parameter?
<apex:page readonly="true" action="{!$Resource.resource_name}">
</apex:page>
This should redirect immediately.
Original
http://www.salesforce.com/us/developer/docs/pages/Content/pages_compref_sectionHeader.htm
help
The URL for the page's help file. When this value is specified, a Help for this Page link automatically appears on the right side of the colored title bar. The URL must be a fully-qualified, absolute, or relative URL; JavaScript URLs aren't permitted. Invalid URLs display a warning icon instead of the help link.
So if any link can be used in the "help" attribute and it can even point to external website (absolute URL):
<apex:sectionHeader title="..." subtitle="..." help="{!$Resource.resource_name}"/>
Best Answer
"public" means accessible from outside over an authenticated connection. So any request needs to include a session id (obtained by the login process) and a request originating from Excel will not have this.
You can provide unauthenticated access to a static resource by setting up a Site and using a URL that starts with the Site domain. Or you can provide access to the image by making it an externally available image Document which is simpler.