Hey anyone out there good at themeing some things, got any ideas on what i (a TOTAL 100% Noob) would have to do to edit some of the things in sense 5? possibly create a theme?
I dont need like a super long drawn out tutorial on EVERYTHING id have to do, unless youd be so kind as to provide one.
Just general bits and pieces and ill put together something from a collab of information given here ive been thinking about making a theme for a while but TOTALLY lack the skills lol
any information you can give as to what might work, what worked in sense 4.5, and what will very likely work in sense 5.0 id love to hear it. Even if its just somethin small my ears and eyes are WIDE open.
Ok so luckily for you skins have been removed in Sense 5, so the theming process is a bit easier (no need to extract m10 files and such). Basically though, you'd take the apk you want to edit, and decompile (extract) it. This can be done using apktool. To get that working, use these tools and this guide. Once your done editing your apk file, recompile (compress) it using "apktool b decompiled_folder_name" (or by reading the guide). Once it has successfully been compiled, sign it with this (copy the PPC Geeks folder to the /Program Files directory on your c: drive, and create a shortcut of the .exe file on your desktop) or you can alternitavely use this tool, which includes an option to zipalign (optimize?) the apk as well as sign it. However, if you use the latter, make sure to sign with test, not private keys.
Also I should mention that the majority of the images you will be editing within the apks are located in /res/drawable-xxhdpi, and the color of most of the text in the apk will probably be located in either /res/values/colors.xml, or /res/values/styles.xml. You may stumble upon a few ".9" images, which are special images that will only stretch along the places that are overlapped by the 1px tall border surrounding them. I recommend using this program to create your own .9 images, or you can edit pre-existing .9s in an image editor progam like photoshop or gimp, just make sure that you do not touch the black 1px border (9patch).
That's all! Good luck, have fun, and you're welcome
ssojyeti2 said:
Ok so luckily for you skins have been removed in Sense 5, so the theming process is a bit easier (no need to extract m10 files and such). Basically though, you'd take the apk you want to edit, and decompile (extract) it. This can be done using apktool. To get that working, use these tools and this guide. Once your done editing your apk file, recompile (compress) it using "apktool b decompiled_folder_name" (or by reading the guide). Once it has successfully been compiled, sign it with this (copy the PPC Geeks folder to the /Program Files directory on your c: drive, and create a shortcut of the .exe file on your desktop) or you can alternitavely use this tool, which includes an option to zipalign (optimize?) the apk as well as sign it. However, if you use the latter, make sure to sign with test, not private keys.
Also I should mention that the majority of the images you will be editing within the apks are located in /res/drawable-xxhdpi, and the color of most of the text in the apk will probably be located in either /res/values/colors.xml, or /res/values/styles.xml. You may stumble upon a few ".9" images, which are special images that will only stretch along the places that are overlapped by the 1px tall border surrounding them. I recommend using this program to create your own .9 images, or you can edit pre-existing .9s in an image editor progam like photoshop or gimp, just make sure that you do not touch the black 1px border (9patch).
That's all! Good luck, have fun, and you're welcome
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Click to collapse
Hey thanks alot i will definitly check this out, looking to add some transparency throughout the rom. Does anyone know what blinkfeeds apk is named o.o
Prizm something
Sent From My Sweet Ass EVO LTE
dased14 said:
Prizm something
Sent From My Sweet Ass EVO LTE
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guys if i wasnt outta thanks today id throw you both one (EDIT: Aparantly xda thinks that the middle of the day is the time for renewing thanks -_-) thanks a bunch. Not too sure how to edit XML files now, all im trying to do at the moment is make blinkfeed's background transparent, however i am lost as to how to even read XML files at the moment, dont have a program on my computer that displays it correctly.. I found how to do the new weatherclock, and steal25 is working on the App drawer, and Sysui pull down.
Well theres vts(can decompile and recompile)and has a notepad++ type thing built in and notepad++ is a must for any themer to read xmls, smali (but need apktool, or something like it to decompile and recompile)
Sent From My Sweet Ass EVO LTE
dased14 said:
Well theres vts(can decompile and recompile)and has a notepad++ type thing built in and notepad++ is a must for any themer to read xmls, smali (but need apktool, or something like it to decompile and recompile)
Sent From My Sweet Ass EVO LTE
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What he said Notepad++ is the best.
And Prism.apk is what you're looking for.
Gumby63 said:
What he said Notepad++ is the best.
And Prism.apk is what you're looking for.
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Click to collapse
Downloading it now, thanks for the responses guys i really appreciate it especially coming from all of you recognized themers with 1000+ thanks. Wow i feel like im going to do good here.
and yeah i found the prism, and the XML file i need to edit for blinkfeed to be transparent, and i actually got some config from someone in the general thread too! ill try to have blinkfeed and some other stuff transparent by the end of the day tomorrow. (like thats gonna happen right?)
igotlostintampa said:
Downloading it now, thanks for the responses guys i really appreciate it especially coming from all of you recognized themers with 1000+ thanks. Wow i feel like im going to do good here.
and yeah i found the prism, and the XML file i need to edit for blinkfeed to be transparent, and i actually got some config from someone in the general thread too! ill try to have blinkfeed and some other stuff transparent by the end of the day tomorrow. (like thats gonna happen right?)
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Click to collapse
Keep in mind that when you're editing colors, the first two digits in the hex code control transparency...also don't be surprised if edits need to be made in multiple places...sometimes both an image and a color need to be set to transparent
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
ssojyeti2 said:
Keep in mind that when you're editing colors, the first two digits in the hex code control transparency...also don't be surprised if edits need to be made in multiple places...sometimes both an image and a color need to be set to transparent
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
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Oh man, if i started off thinking it was going to be easy for me, i would think you guys have it easy, and i dont. I knew this would be a difficult task when i jumped ship on this transparency thing and hope i can get it out soon because sense 5.0 is amazing as it is now, and i wanna add that touch of beauty its missing.
Feel free though guys, if anyone wants to get this going without me go for it. Ill be on it for like 3-4 days (possibly straight) figuring this stuff out before i have a even possibly close version of this looking right is my guess.
igotlostintampa said:
Oh man, if i started off thinking it was going to be easy for me, i would think you guys have it easy, and i dont. I knew this would be a difficult task when i jumped ship on this transparency thing and hope i can get it out soon because sense 5.0 is amazing as it is now, and i wanna add that touch of beauty its missing.
Feel free though guys, if anyone wants to get this going without me go for it. Ill be on it for like 3-4 days (possibly straight) figuring this stuff out before i have a even possibly close version of this looking right is my guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Would love to help but pc crashed about a week ago so im sidelined until i save enough for new one, but good luck
Sent from my Xoom using Tapatalk HD
igotlostintampa said:
Oh man, if i started off thinking it was going to be easy for me, i would think you guys have it easy, and i dont. I knew this would be a difficult task when i jumped ship on this transparency thing and hope i can get it out soon because sense 5.0 is amazing as it is now, and i wanna add that touch of beauty its missing.
Feel free though guys, if anyone wants to get this going without me go for it. Ill be on it for like 3-4 days (possibly straight) figuring this stuff out before i have a even possibly close version of this looking right is my guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat as you. I want to get into learning this stuff too. Hopefully after this week is over, I will have a little more free time to learn.
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Its so good to see people want to learn. Keep it up bro. We need all the contributors we can get.
Only if everyone was like this
Thumbs up
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
igotlostintampa said:
Feel free though guys, if anyone wants to get this going without me go for it. Ill be on it for like 3-4 days (possibly straight) figuring this stuff out before i have a even possibly close version of this looking right is my guess.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well if you need any help just ask away
Actually I haven't been able to start just yet as I've been a bit busy with errands and when I get on xda the forum is packed with things I needs throw in the sense 5.0 q/a thread. I'll start working on it soon and if I need any help I'll definitely post back here. Thanks a lot for your help and support guys
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
igotlostintampa said:
Actually I haven't been able to start just yet as I've been a bit busy with errands and when I get on xda the forum is packed with things I needs throw in the sense 5.0 q/a thread. I'll start working on it soon and if I need any help I'll definitely post back here. Thanks a lot for your help and support guys
Sent from my EVO using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The intro to themeing thread in evo 3d themes and apps is a great place to start.
Sent from my EVO using Tapatalk 2
Related
Cannot figure out which png it is in framework ( I think its in here) for when you are installing or downloading something. Its the solid one, not the stripped one. Anyone? Thanks in advance.
umm it is in the drawable as three seperate png i just cant think of what they are called right now
wait I think it is actually called Progressbar_intermediate1.png 2 and 3 under res/drawable-mdpi
PimpShit420 said:
wait I think it is actually called Progressbar_intermediate1.png 2 and 3 under res/drawable-mdpi
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those I already know about. I meant the one that is a solid color for when installing something or downloading. you see it moving along. its a solid orange by default
That is controlled in the resource.arsc file. I haven't figured out how to edit it yet but the color is Def in that file, if I just switch that file only with one I got from an in credible. Theme, it changes
Sent from my Eris using XDA App
PimpShit420 said:
That is controlled in the resource.arsc file. I haven't figured out how to edit it yet but the color is Def in that file, if I just switch that file only with one I got from an in credible. Theme, it changes
Sent from my Eris using XDA App
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Click to collapse
would you mind sharing this file? And where is it located? And if I copy the file over that you give, what else changes?
yea there is only one problem with using this file that I have come across so far and its kind of big. The text color on all buttons is white so it cant be seen. The file itself is located in the framework-res.apk. I was using a program called winmerge to go through and the whole file is completley different but I havent figured out how to edit it nor how to read exactly what is says. I just formatted my laptop and put Ubuntu on it so as of right now I cant get the file to you, You can either search for Indigo_Blue Theme for CM6 here on XDA or blackle(google). The theme is in all hdpi but still has some good looking pngs you can use in your theme. I have resized all of them as well for mdpi but for some reason I get errors when trying to apply them all. If you cant find it I will send it to you here in a little bit though. I have been doing alot of reading and messing my phone up trying to figure out the best way to theme. For one I want to take the spinner out of the nfl program and put it in my theme but Im a long way from that. If you like I can send you over my notes as I come up with more discoveries of what it controlled where and how to edit its defaults to what I want.
PimpShit420 said:
yea there is only one problem with using this file that I have come across so far and its kind of big. The text color on all buttons is white so it cant be seen. The file itself is located in the framework-res.apk. I was using a program called winmerge to go through and the whole file is completley different but I havent figured out how to edit it nor how to read exactly what is says. I just formatted my laptop and put Ubuntu on it so as of right now I cant get the file to you, You can either search for Indigo_Blue Theme for CM6 here on XDA or blackle(google). The theme is in all hdpi but still has some good looking pngs you can use in your theme. I have resized all of them as well for mdpi but for some reason I get errors when trying to apply them all. If you cant find it I will send it to you here in a little bit though. I have been doing alot of reading and messing my phone up trying to figure out the best way to theme. For one I want to take the spinner out of the nfl program and put it in my theme but Im a long way from that. If you like I can send you over my notes as I come up with more discoveries of what it controlled where and how to edit its defaults to what I want.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sure, if ya dont mind. I am not going to get into heavy themeing as you can see from my theme, but this is one of the things that bugs me as i want to change it and cant figure it out, lol.
can someone make me pink status bar? would like pink everything as well as animations. I'm sorry if this is not the right place to put this
Sent from my Pink Iced Out Glacier
no one? no one would like to attempt this for me and make a nice donation???
Hey, dont kno if you have this one already, but on the thread below you can grab the pink android battery icon, its a start!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=852013
Just open pack's battery mod in 7zip and go to /framework/ then double click the framework-res.apk. Then click through /res/drawrable-hdpi-v4/ . This will bring you to a bunch of pngs. Extract them all. These are all the files you need to theme your phone. You can go through and edit each one, then drag and drop them back onto the 7zip window showing all the pngs. Then just close it out. It'll ask if you want to update the original archive. Say "Yes", and then just flash like normal. There are a couple of things to remember. All image sizes have to be the same. If the status bar background is 480x86 then that's the size it has to be. Also remember to keep the file names the same. Don't change any of the xml files. And always do a Nandroid before flashing. I've done this before to change my status bar and notification drawer background. But you can never be too careful. Hope this helps!
Hey i want this for my wife but it sounds hard!! Can u make it simple?
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
There really isn't any way to make this super simple. It really isn't that difficult, on a scale of 1-5 it's a 3. The only thing that makes it suck is the time it takes to alter all the files. That's why I don't just do it myself and upload it. The key to making this work is time! As long as you sit down with an afternoon of free time you shouldn't have any troubles getting this to work.
lol i knew i should of posted this... thanks guys for suggesting my mods but she wants something a little more in depth... im workin on it now
@Iriscience thanks for always looking out Ive seen you help out on my threads a lot so I just wanted to say thanks for that... just a tip though when exchanging files like your were saying to do. You need to make sure the new file is that exact same properties as the old. Different name, size, ect will lead to either boot loops or mass force closes when the device boots
Anytime pack! You do so much for this community! The least my broke ass can do is give some advice here and there. And good call on the name and size. I knew the name would cause problems, but I didn't know the size would too. That is good to know. Especially since I'm going to try a personal theme for CM7.
What program would you recommend to edit these?
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
Photoshop or equivalent
@pack, I tried to pm u but u have pm's blocked, place contact me asap or I will have to go thru PayPal for refund. This is the only way I can contact u sorry
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App
Sooooo basically I've never actually gotten all technical with the the theming on android. Nothing legit like you guys. But isn't it just a series of file replacements? Im an artist and have spent all my life drawing n such, and if someone would show me what to replace and how to safely do it I would give then whatever they need to release a flashable theme if anyone likes It. Im a very picky person. I like change on my phone baaddddd. If shown how; expect to see new themes like every other week if possible (depending on how difficult it is). Along with wallpapers that I usually spend hours trying to find.
Any takers?
Use search. I found some great links in this forum alone on theme creation.
Sent from my DROID X2 using xda premium
I'm new to theming, but for my theme, UOT Kitchen helped me out! The only downside is that you can't do status bar, boot animation, or lock screen. There's a thread for UOT Kitchen some where around this forum. But your right, just file replacements. Look under the systemUI.apk and framework-res drawable-hdpi files with 7zip (or something similar). You can edit the images without unzipping the file!
I started with a UOT Kitchen file and added/changed stuff in the file. If you can't find an image or need help with changing something, try asking the ROM creator, the would probably know where the stuff is in the ROM.
If you fail, try and try again! I epically failed my first time and SBF a couple times because I was an idiot. Then I asked some questions and got started the right way. But make sure you do a back up before you flash a new file. I learned the hard way. A file can look fine to the phone at first, then it deletes everything it should, and then starts to copy files over like normal until a part of the file is bad. Then you have to SBF or restore.
Backing up is easy, just go into recovery and go to advanced, then back up, and choose to put the back up file under internal or external SD card. I do external, just my preference.
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
A lot of it is file replacement. However to change some of the colors such as text and the color of the volume indicator (those are the only ones that I can think of right now) will involve replacing the color hex values in XML files. In order to get the xml files in a readable/editable format you'll need to use apkmanager or apktool. Those are used to decompile the apk packages. You can then edit what you need to (including images) then re-compile the package. Search around in this themes forum for Navenedrobs post about android tools. He includes a download for apkmanager, apktool and some other necessary tools. I use apkmanager myself.
I also use 7zip for some small edits as mentioned in the last post but I prefer to decompile then edit. Apkmanager makes it easy to then optimize the images prior to recompile.
Oh another that required xml edits for colors is AOSP calendar. Not too many images in there but lots of colors are defined.
Here's a link to naven's android tools post.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1261198
Theming is time consuming... its not quite as easy as simple image replacement especially on stretchable images also known as 9 pngs ... also if u want to start creating your own images that too could get tricky as u will need to use a program like gimp or another photo editing program.. gimp is the best in my opinion... sometimes it is necessary to add layers when creating your own images.... Hedwig... do use draw 9 patch for your. 9 pngs.... if not how do u edit those... I use apk manager to decompile and recompile each apk.. just curious if u know of a better tool for editing the. 9 pngs .. neways the way I started theming is with 7 zip... I went in and changed the images regular pngs and then tested it out uot kitchen is a good start but u r limited as far as how much u can theme
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
Kevin3328 said:
Hedwig... do use draw 9 patch for your. 9 pngs.... if not how do u edit those... I use apk manager to decompile and recompile each apk.. just curious if u know of a better tool for editing the. 9 pngs ..
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Click to collapse
If you decompile the apk the 9.png images gain the one pixel border where the patch is drawn. I'm just careful not to edit any of the black pixels around the edges. When you re-compile the border is lost (values of those are stored). So, no, I don't use draw 9 patch at all. If you're making new images that you plan to compile into the apk the you can just draw the patches in gimp, photoshop, or whatever you use. Just remember to add a one pixel border all around to the size of your new image.
So, XGrinder911. Any of this discussion helping out or are we all just blah, blah, blah?
Well I was considering Adobe Illustrator? Might that program work to create images? And so I get this apk manager, it decompiles and whatnot then I edit the files. Recompiles and voila theme? I get using apk manager on like the calendar cause its an actuall app but what about things like the status bar n notification pull down? they are in serious need of a make over.
And I tried using the kitchen. Didn't work out for me. Got my loving boot loops. Even when replacing the framework res apk.
Ooohhhh! Is It that? That's the apk?
PS- Hedwig your my new best friend.
IDMA.DROID.X2 said:
I'm new to theming, but for my theme, UOT Kitchen helped me out! The only downside is that you can't do status bar, boot animation, or lock screen. There's a thread for UOT Kitchen some where around this forum. But your right, just file replacements. Look under the systemUI.apk and framework-res drawable-hdpi files with 7zip (or something similar). You can edit the images without unzipping the file!
I started with a UOT Kitchen file and added/changed stuff in the file. If you can't find an image or need help with changing something, try asking the ROM creator, the would probably know where the stuff is in the ROM.
If you fail, try and try again! I epically failed my first time and SBF a couple times because I was an idiot. Then I asked some questions and got started the right way. But make sure you do a back up before you flash a new file. I learned the hard way. A file can look fine to the phone at first, then it deletes everything it should, and then starts to copy files over like normal until a part of the file is bad. Then you have to SBF or restore.
Backing up is easy, just go into recovery and go to advanced, then back up, and choose to put the back up file under internal or external SD card. I do external, just my preference.
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just want to say you DO NOT go to advanced for backup(nandroid)
You go to backup/restore
just clarifying
Good luck OP....hope to see some awesome theme soon....don't give up PLEASE! !!
ashclepdia said:
Just want to say you DO NOT go to advanced for backup(nandroid)
You go to backup/restore
just clarifying
Good luck OP....hope to see some awesome theme soon....don't give up PLEASE! !!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh yeah! Your right! Sorry about that!
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
Wasn't trying to "get on your case"
just wanted to clarify
Haha didn't even notice it. I make a backup everydayyyy (flashaholic).
Question: is there anything I can do about those lil lines that separate lists like in messaging and settings? I hate them and we all know on this phone's screen they basically become invisible while scrolling anyway. Get them out of here.
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
I used UOT Kitchen to color. Not sure what file you would change to take them away. Ain't no shame in being a flashaholic! I bootlooped my phone on purpose when I for bored
Ash, no worries. Glad you clarified. Don't know what I was thinking with the advanced haha
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
To "take them away" can't u just make em the same color as the menu
XGrinder911 said:
Haha didn't even notice it. I make a backup everydayyyy (flashaholic).
Question: is there anything I can do about those lil lines that separate lists like in messaging and settings? I hate them and we all know on this phone's screen they basically become invisible while scrolling anyway. Get them out of here.
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The file is in framework-res.apk
framework-res.apk\res\drawable-hdpi\dark_header.9.png
Do what ashclepdia said and change the color in the bottom of that image to match the top. You'll see what I mean when you look at the image.
(Or light_header.9.png if you're working with a light framework.)
hedwig34 said:
The file is in framework-res.apk
framework-res.apk\res\drawable-hdpi\dark_header.9.png
Do what ashclepdia said and change the color in the bottom of that image to match the top. You'll see what I mean when you look at the image.
(Or light_header.9.png if you're working with a light framework.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What is this exactly? All I see is a long rectangle with a hint of blue at the bottom.
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
XGrinder911 said:
What is this exactly? All I see is a long rectangle with a hint of blue at the bottom.
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That image is streatched across the width of the screen. Creating the menu item that has the blue line at the bottom.
Think of it as that image repeating over and over again side by side.
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
hedwig34 said:
That image is streatched across the width of the screen. Creating the menu item that has the blue line at the bottom.
Think of it as that image repeating over and over again side by side.
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wait so where exactly is this rectangle?
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
Its a vertical rectangle repeated over and over again to make a skinny little horizontal line?? Wow, that's deep.
DX2 Eclipse 1.3
I have a question too. How do you devs mod the build.prop? Is that mostly the difference between ROMs?
(Thought it would be better here instead if a new thread. Don't mean to thread jack)
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
IDMA.DROID.X2 said:
I have a question too. How do you devs mod the build.prop? Is that mostly the difference between ROMs?
(Thought it would be better here instead if a new thread. Don't mean to thread jack)
Sent from my DROID X2 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No the differences between roms isn't mostly the build.prop
the build.prop can easily(usually) be modified using root explorer or similar.(I am having trouble editing the additions that kejar has made to build.prop tho. Never had this problem before. But its just the extra entries at bottom I can't change.
The biggest differences in roms come from the UI and system frameworks and scripts inside init.d
There are a few performance tweaks and edits u can make inside build.prop but ur.choices are kinda limited in what can be.done. even the line in eclipse build.prop that mentions raising the touch points recognized by the screen to 5 requires changes elsewhere in the "framework" to allow it to actually recognize that amount.
I have tried UOT Kitchen before, always was unlucky at having flashing errors.
My question is this... If I take a flashable theme, with permission from the creator, I should be able to use the scripts that they include for flashing? I am savvy with un-APKing zipping, signing and what not, is that all I would have to do to recreate a theme using my own images?
Thanks to everyone here!
Yes, the script you see other themes using can be changed out with your own, as well as the content. You can also just use the UOT Kitchen script. Credit given where credit is due, of course, but the script itself (IMHO) is not something you really need permission for.
Another tip, this from firsthand experience, when you're zipping everything up getting ready to flash, make sure you're zipping the contents of the theme folder (/META-INF/ & /system/) vs zipping the theme folder.
It sounds really stupid, but it took me forever to figure out why everything I did in UOT Kitchen perfectly but everything I did, using the same damn script, just froze. But ya gotta learn somewhere, right?
Remember when using the kitchen make sure u click amend scripting in the area where u load the apks... x2 uses 2. Something recovery.. if u don't click that there will be errors everytime
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Thank you, I think I've tried UOT 5 times but never had success.
Kevin, I tried the amend scripting, it solo didn't work.
I would much rather use my own images then those offered in uot kitchen.
I'm going to try to put a theme together this weekend, I haven't modded anything since BF2 wake island air show
Dee Ex Two - See Em Seven
Ok, how much do you know about themeing? Because if you are wanting to edit just the images(.pngs) you will need some info first...
You can "simply" take the framework-res.apk and systemUI.apk and go to the HDPI folder(or wherever the images are) and "drag n drop" to your desktop and edit those... OR you can take a .png that you wanna use(say one from another theme) and just drag n drop in the HDPI folder. And then, simply make a flashable .zip and your good to go.
.9s !!!
These are a PAIN if you dont know what you are doing.
If you are going to try and get into themeing, download APKManager and decompile the framework-res.apk ... go to a .9 image(i think its .png.9 or something of the like). When you load the image(say in GIMP) you will see black squares on the OUTSIDE of the image(like near the edges of the ACTUAL picture edge)... DONT TOUCH THOSE!!!! leave them there and make edits how you choose to the rest of the image. Once you are finished, just recompile(DONT SIGN AND YES! THESE ARE SYSTEM APPS!). Put in a flashable .zip and your set.
NOW Please note:
When you are doing the drag and drop method, make sure you are REPLACING an image and not ADDING more images.. catch the drift?
this is quick how to, hope it helps and good luck. let me know if you need anything else.
All the themes rock! I have poor eye sight (far sight) so my main concern always is status bar and the battery icon. I love being able to see the percentage, but some themes use smaller battery percentage text.
.9 seem like the stretchable area I'm beautiful widget... I understand that
Thanks Peperm1nt
Dee Ex Two - See Em Seven
I was thinking of trying out theming. That is until I looked at the crap load of images just thrown into one directory. lol. It may not be as hard as it looks but I havent looked any further than that yet. I still want to try something out though. Is there an easy way of figuring out what image does what on the phone? Like if I want to change some things, I have to know the name of the image. Well, to me, it looks like they aren't named plain and simple. Plus when they are just thrown into one directory its kinda hard to distinguish what is what. It was so much easier theming for webOS. lol
Js if u really look at the framework u will see all the images in the drawable hdpi folder are really a lot of the presses..tabs. status bar icons... over scroll glow theming takes a lot of time to build straight from scratch... any .9 PNG can be edited when it is decompiled in apk manager or apk multi tool just don't edit the black patch as peppermint said or u will not compile...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Kevin3328 said:
Js if u really look at the framework u will see all the images in the drawable hdpi folder are really a lot of the presses..tabs. status bar icons... over scroll glow theming takes a lot of time to build straight from scratch... any .9 PNG can be edited when it is decompiled in apk manager or apk multi tool just don't edit the black patch as peppermint said or u will not compile...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
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Click to collapse
Yeah, one of these days ill download the tools and play with it. I've always enjoyed theming.
Sent from my MB870 using Tapatalk
I'm just trying to figure out the script to flash, is it the one in the google folder?
Dee Ex Two - See Em Seven
@js I know what you are saying about the desire to do it but the system isn't really what I would say themer friendly! Admittedly I am not the sharpest tool in the shade when it comes to some things (like the Android OS), so I would imagine that plays a big role in my intimidation of the whole thing.
What got me was the De-Compiling and Recompiling of everything just to change something. Not to mention the signatures and etc... perhaps one day someone will write a piece of software (be it windows based or Android in a shell on a PC) that will make it all pretty simple on that part. Till then I will prob. just enjoy and appreciate the work of others.
GL, Slim!
SlimMan said:
@js I know what you are saying about the desire to do it but the system isn't really what I would say themer friendly! Admittedly I am not the sharpest tool in the shade when it comes to some things (like the Android OS), so I would imagine that plays a big role in my intimidation of the whole thing.
What got me was the De-Compiling and Recompiling of everything just to change something. Not to mention the signatures and etc... perhaps one day someone will write a piece of software (be it windows based or Android in a shell on a PC) that will make it all pretty simple on that part. Till then I will prob. just enjoy and appreciate the work of others.
GL, Slim!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I agree about the decompiling and recompiling thing. When I had a webOS phone I created my own theme just by simply replacing the images and restarting the phone. With android, it seems you have to take the whole framework out, theme it and recompile the package file and flash it to the phone. Just seems a bit overwhelming.
Sent from my MB870 using Tapatalk
It's not that bad if you are just changing the images... Just timely. I suggest gimp to do the work. Another tip, some of the images are indexed. In gimp change from indexed to rgb...back to indexed, then rgb. Reason being that you are now able to add any color and doing it twice clears the pixelation...
What gets hard is smali editing and .xml editing. Let me know if you need help there.
Tapin' the Talk on the xSquared
Send a PM to "KTT16" on the Motorola Photon Forums, he is a great themer, let him know what you need help with, tell him you are running stock on the X2, he'll ask you for whatever files he needs, and he will help out.
By the way, if you are at all interested in a signature image, I can create one for you, just PM me, and I'll get on it.
Peperm1nt said:
It's not that bad if you are just changing the images... Just timely. I suggest gimp to do the work. Another tip, some of the images are indexed. In gimp change from indexed to rgb...back to indexed, then rgb. Reason being that you are now able to add any color and doing it twice clears the pixelation...
What gets hard is smali editing and .xml editing. Let me know if you need help there.
Tapin' the Talk on the xSquared
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Click to collapse
I can batch process in PS.....and what is this bout clearing the pixelation...lol
Thanks I'll check it out
Dee Ex Two - See Em Seven
When you find a indexed image going to rgb pixelates the image...going back to indexed and then to rgb fixes this.
Tapin' the Talk on the xSquared
Peperm1nt said:
When you find a indexed image going to rgb pixelates the image...going back to indexed and then to rgb fixes this.
Tapin' the Talk on the xSquared
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Click to collapse
I was p playing with you, all my online gaming and forum names have always had pixel, pixelated, pixelation, pixelized or any variety of pixel
Edit: swyponese
Dee Ex Two - See Em Seven
I am trying this out for the 1st time. My main goal is to create a transparent status bar for CM7. Will this make that "patch" I need for this?
Kevin3328 said:
Js if u really look at the framework u will see all the images in the drawable hdpi folder are really a lot of the presses..tabs. status bar icons... over scroll glow theming takes a lot of time to build straight from scratch... any .9 PNG can be edited when it is decompiled in apk manager or apk multi tool just don't edit the black patch as peppermint said or u will not compile...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
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Click to collapse
i seem to be a complete idiot lol
im sitting here trying to use apk manager and have no clue how to go about it
i cant get it to friggin pull files, i have no clue what im doing tho lol
i been trying to find info on how to use it with the x2 but cant find jack that is actually useful.
time to go eat, clear my head, and get back to researching, im probably just missing something extremely easy i knoow, but hey, i havent had a working computer in years so yea, im kinda learning on the fly here, lol
Lol @ash
In apkm select the apk you want, then decompile... Make edits, recompile.
Tapin' the Talk on the xSquared
Good day ladies and gentlemen.
If I may ask, does any person presently reading this post know of a method to alter the images contained within SystemUI.apk? I would be grateful to anybody who could resolve my conundrum. I must also present some background information; I have unsuccessfully recompiled the apk file and I have also attempted to edit the files whilst not extracting said apk which also resulted in disappointing failure. However, I have not attempted to create a flashable zip file due to the fact that I lack this information. If this can be confirmed working, then I require no more assistance as I would not want to burden anybody with the simple task of using Google. Once again, I kindly request any assistance from any persons reading this if you would so choose to help a fellow XDA user.
Thank you for reading and/or responding to my post. I wish you all a happy week.
jdeoxys said:
Good day ladies and gentlemen.
If I may ask, does any person presently reading this post know of a method to alter the images contained within SystemUI.apk? I would be grateful to anybody who could resolve my conundrum. I must also present some background information; I have unsuccessfully recompiled the apk file and I have also attempted to edit the files whilst not extracting said apk which also resulted in disappointing failure. However, I have not attempted to create a flashable zip file due to the fact that I lack this information. If this can be confirmed working, then I require no more assistance as I would not want to burden anybody with the simple task of using Google. Once again, I kindly request any assistance from any persons reading this if you would so choose to help a fellow XDA user.
Thank you for reading and/or responding to my post. I wish you all a happy week.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea it can be done. IDK what ROM you're running or if you're rooted,but I was going to make my own nav buttons before I switched ROMS. The Dev of the Icylicious ROM has made a few mod packs (flashable systemUI.apks) of the nav buttons for his ROM. I asked him a question about doing my own images and this is what he said...
I like the stock buttons myself...the stock icy buttons. I would like to do a few of my own images, but is it as simple as overwriting your images and rezipping? Anything in particular I should know/do? I'd really appreciate your help with that aspect...as far as images, I've been using Photoshop for years so I'm good there. Thanks
system/app/SystemUI.apk/res/drawable-mdpi
you'll find the buttons in that directory. No need to unzip. Just open the ROM in Winrar, navigate to that directory, pull out just the files you want to modify, and drag and drop them back in. What I do is just pull the systemui out, and open the apk in winrar (winrar treats it just like a rar or zip file), modify the file in Photoshop, and when you're done, just replace the systemui.apk in one of the zips I have in the "Mods" post with yours and flash it.
It really is that simple.
Hope that helps..
jaycustom said:
Yea it can be done. IDK what ROM you're running or if you're rooted,but I was going to make my own nav buttons before I switched ROMS. The Dev of the Icylicious ROM has made a few mod packs (flashable systemUI.apks) of the nav buttons for his ROM. I asked him a question about doing my own images and this is what he said...
I like the stock buttons myself...the stock icy buttons. I would like to do a few of my own images, but is it as simple as overwriting your images and rezipping? Anything in particular I should know/do? I'd really appreciate your help with that aspect...as far as images, I've been using Photoshop for years so I'm good there. Thanks
system/app/SystemUI.apk/res/drawable-mdpi
you'll find the buttons in that directory. No need to unzip. Just open the ROM in Winrar, navigate to that directory, pull out just the files you want to modify, and drag and drop them back in. What I do is just pull the systemui out, and open the apk in winrar (winrar treats it just like a rar or zip file), modify the file in Photoshop, and when you're done, just replace the systemui.apk in one of the zips I have in the "Mods" post with yours and flash it.
It really is that simple.
Hope that helps..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As long a you don't alter the .9.png a they need to be decompiled, then recompiled. I've been taught to use APK Manager to unzip/edit the systemui.apk I it's easy to use one you get the hang of it. Do yourself a favor and dl Gimp, it's a great image editing tool.
I have a thread in Droid X2/Theme + Apps / Theme Creation....
Good luck, enjoy
This ISN'T my Transformer Prime
jaycustom said:
Yea it can be done. IDK what ROM you're running or if you're rooted,but I was going to make my own nav buttons before I switched ROMS. The Dev of the Icylicious ROM has made a few mod packs (flashable systemUI.apks) of the nav buttons for his ROM. I asked him a question about doing my own images and this is what he said...
I like the stock buttons myself...the stock icy buttons. I would like to do a few of my own images, but is it as simple as overwriting your images and rezipping? Anything in particular I should know/do? I'd really appreciate your help with that aspect...as far as images, I've been using Photoshop for years so I'm good there. Thanks
system/app/SystemUI.apk/res/drawable-mdpi
you'll find the buttons in that directory. No need to unzip. Just open the ROM in Winrar, navigate to that directory, pull out just the files you want to modify, and drag and drop them back in. What I do is just pull the systemui out, and open the apk in winrar (winrar treats it just like a rar or zip file), modify the file in Photoshop, and when you're done, just replace the systemui.apk in one of the zips I have in the "Mods" post with yours and flash it.
It really is that simple.
Hope that helps..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found a way to get it working. I just had to dl one of the other qs mods and use the included scripts to install from cwm. I did try to replace the systemui.apk manually with es file explorer but idk why it failed.
Pixelation said:
As long a you don't alter the .9.png a they need to be decompiled, then recompiled. I've been taught to use APK Manager to unzip/edit the systemui.apk I it's easy to use one you get the hang of it. Do yourself a favor and dl Gimp, it's a great image editing tool.
I have a thread in Droid X2/Theme + Apps / Theme Creation....
Good luck, enjoy
This ISN'T my Transformer Prime
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have gimp and its great.
Can only replace PNG files as of right now. No one has been able to recompile the SystemUI.apk successfully.... will most likely need the source from Asus.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using XDA Premium HD app
Ok, I got down to business but the look is still inconsistent with grey lines and blue lines. Wat do?
Sent from my PG86100 using xda premium
If you don't see the PNG that you're looking for, you might also want to try the framework-res.apk. if it's not there either, then it may be a XML edit, in which case you're out of luck.
Sent from my CM7 Atrix 4G
Swiftks said:
If you don't see the PNG that you're looking for, you might also want to try the framework-res.apk. if it's not there either, then it may be a XML edit, in which case you're out of luck.
Sent from my CM7 Atrix 4G
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Click to collapse
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUU man that sucks. Checked mah dubs ... excuse me, my framework-res apk and it was chock full of images. It's gonna take a year to sort through them all. Imma try emailing Asus and see if they could release the sauce code for systemui or whatever. Thanks for the intel bro.
Sent from my tablet thing with XDA Premium.
jdeoxys said:
FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUU man that sucks. Checked mah dubs ... excuse me, my framework-res apk and it was chock full of images. It's gonna take a year to sort through them all. Imma try emailing Asus and see if they could release the sauce code for systemui or whatever. Thanks for the intel bro.
Sent from my tablet thing with XDA Premium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Batch editing is great, there are a ton, so be patient, or leave it to a theme. The regular .png you don't need to worry about much. It's the .9.png where the recompiling becomes an issue.
This IS my Transformer Prime, my DX 2 is boring
Pixelation said:
Batch editing is great, there are a ton, so be patient, or leave it to a theme. The regular .png you don't need to worry about much. It's the .9.png where the recompiling becomes an issue.
This IS my Transformer Prime, my DX 2 is boring
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do you batch edit? And why is the .9.png so important?
jdeoxys said:
How do you batch edit? And why is the .9.png so important?
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Click to collapse
.9.pngs are usually things like boarders, boxes, popups, etc.
But they have to be decompiled and recompiled in order to edit them and have them work.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using XDA Premium HD app
Swiftks said:
.9.pngs are usually things like boarders, boxes, popups, etc.
But they have to be recompiled and recompiled in order to edit them and have them work.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using XDA Premium HD app
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Click to collapse
Damn, that means I can't do anything unless they find out a way to decompile...
Sent from my tablet thing with XDA Premium.
jdeoxys said:
Damn, that means I can't do anything unless they find out a way to decompile...
Sent from my tablet thing with XDA Premium.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AOKP Rom is kicking ass, and since it's not based off of Asus's source, everything decompiles and recompiles quite nicely.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using XDA Premium HD app
.9.PNG are bastards. I spent hours and hour working on them.Worst part is that they have index, which Photoshop doesn't read, so it just messes up gradients. Paint.net handles them well IIRC.
Sent through the wormhole from my CoinInserted Sensation OG.
.9s aren't bad as long as you know what's going on with them. If working on a .9 PNG the previous statement that you cannot edit them without decompiling is accurate. The .9 essentially is an image that is going to be stretched. The ".9" or "guides" tells the system where the stretching is going to happen. With out decompiling the .9 you will be unable to see the guides... therefore you cannot edit the image without destroying the guides! Once decompiled the .9 image will show its guides as black pixels or lines on the border of the image. Once you see those you can just edit everthing inside of those guides and recompile without an issue. Now there are other work arounds that you can do to still modify these images without being able to successfully decompile/recompile your existing framework. Such as pulling the compiled .9 image out of the .apk... renaming to remove the .9... editing then using 9patch from the Android sdk to reguide the image... but then of coarse you will have to go through the process of recompiling the image to drop into the apk. Another quick possibility would be to pull the image you want to edit from let's say framework-Res.apk... download a theme that you know you're able to recompile... replace one of the images within that theme with yours(renaming if needed). Decompile-edit-recompile... then pull your edited .9 from the recompiled project and dropping into your actual framework. There's almost always a work around... just keep in mind should something go wrong you could end up starting from scratch.
Btw.. your top and left "guides" are where the image will be stretched. The bottom and right are for padding(if I recall correctly) lol.. but I'm positive top and left are the stretch points...
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk