diff --git a/include/vg_skin.h b/include/vg_skin.h
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..0628888d9
--- /dev/null
+++ b/include/vg_skin.h
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+// "vg_skin.h" was renamed to "tool.h";  this is for backward compatibility 
+// with old external tools.
+#include "tool.h"