Develop Bugs

Creating a Complete Pocket PC Theme

Everyone,
I am not sure if this has been created or not but since many have asked me about my theme, I thought I would compile a quick tutorial on creating a matching, dazzling theme that will include the load screen, Today screen, Dialer and Comm Manager (optional Slide2Unlock). As time goes on, I would like to add to this and make it a complete tutorial.
Please keep in mind that for those who operate on different carriers, phones, and software, you will likely have slightly different variations: Sprint users often have animated startups. Some Comm Managers will vary in style but most most of the file names will likely be the same. Hopefully this How-To will also help you get started off in the right direction in case your particular application is not discussed or found here...
First you will need several programs and I will provide links to all of them below. But before we begin cutting, pasting and installing, always makes ure to save backups of all original files to be modified to a folder on your device or PC that is well labeled so that all of these original files can be re-installed. Soft resetting will alsom enable just about all of the changes you make and should be seen in the next boot-up.
The programs...
1. Activesync - PC-loaded program necessary for transfering the files to and from your PC & PDA.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobi...ivesync45.mspx
2. ThemeGenCE - PC-loaded program that will allow you to create a Today theme and either load from or to your PDA.
http://www.freewareppc.com/misc/themegence.shtml
3. RCMod - PPC application for modifying the text, top & bottom bars on your PDA.
http://www.freewareppc.com/utilities/rcmod.shtml
4. M$ Paint program or equivelant. A design program that can be used to create ot modify pictures, etc. I use Paint or you can use this...
http://www.getpaint.net/
5. Tiermann's Dialer Skinning Tool - Terrific PC-loaded program for creating all kinds of dialer skins for your device. Many thanks to Tiermann for the great app!
http://forum.ppcgeeks.com/showthread...ht=dialer+skin
We will start with the start up screen...
In my PPC \windows directory is a file called Welcomehead.96.png. This is one of the start-up screens that I will modify. Create a 240 x 320 pixel non-animated image, save it as a .png and name it Welcomehead.96.png. (Note, create ALL images, files, etc and remove any read-only, archive properties, etc) Now place this new image in the \My Device directory on your phone. Using a PPC resource tool such as Total Commander, SKTools, etc, copy the your new image from the \My Device\welcomhead.96.png location to the \Windows location. You will recieve a prompt asking if you want to continue overwriting the existing. Click yes. This part is now complete.
Now for the Today Screen...
Create a theme using ThemGenCE. It will take some time using the program before you understand the full capabilities of this program but the rewards later are very satisfying. The utilities in this app are straight forward and loading to & from your device will become a snap. Again, I create a base background using a paint program and load it through ThemGenCe where it can be further manipulated.
Once you have a theme designed and loaded to your device, it's time to get that matching task bars and text to match. With RCMod installed on your PPC device, click on the options you want and highlight your color preference.
Optional...
If you have the Slide2Unlock program installed on your device, create (2) 240 x 320 pictures; one in portrait and one in landscape. Save both as jpgs. Name the portrait: wallpaper.jpg and the landscape: wallpaperL.jpg. Delete the (2) existing images in the \My Device\Program Files\S2U2\gfx folder place your new ones here. Optional clocks can be installed in \My Device\Program Files\S2U2\clocks folder and aptly renamed so that the Slide2Unlock app recognizes them. Soft reset once complete.
Now for the dialer...
Using Tiermann's program on your PC, load a background image and create both a portrait & landscape dialer theme. A little tweaking & experimenting will yield fantastic results as Tiermann's program is option-laden. Once you have created your theme, save it and the program will package your theme into a .cab files which you install just like any .cab. It save the .cab files to the desktop on my PC. Install on your device and soft reset.
And lastly, the Comm Manager...
The Comm Manager will have to be designed manually... that is there are no programs for easily computing a end result which can be easily installed. However, the files (at least on my device) are easily obtainable.
In the \Windows directory, locate and save to your PC using activesync these files:
L_BG - landscape background of your Comm Manager
P_BG - portrait background of your Comm Manager
Status_On - icon indicating the on status
Status_On_Disable - icon indicating status not used
Status_Off - icon indicating off status
Status_Off_Disable - icon indicating status not used
Again, using the trusty and durable paint program of choice, modify these .png images to your liking. Remember to save whatever you create to .png files and rename so that it will overwrite the existing. Overwrite the older with the newer using Total Commander or simply use Activesync and drop the new files over the older ones.
Finished...
You should now have 4-5 screens from startup to operation that express your favorite team, hobby, passion & liking that is seen on just about every screen. The more you tweak, install, remove and repeat, the more masterful you will become in creating a truly unique and thorough theme. This was done on a Alltel PPC-6800 running WM6 but I think this will work on many devices running both WM5 & 6. Please post results & comments here.
Everyone:
Please help to make this as complete as possible. I will update this as my own experiences grow but I would like much to recieve everyone's participation to make this as complete as possible. I will try to add some pictures later. Many thanks to everyone here and at PPCGeeks for their time & support and I hope this will provide others out there a good starting point...

i dont get it
i made a theme but i cant figure out how to get it on my phone
when i drag the two files to the phone, and click on them it saysthere is no application associated with "(theme name)" run app first then open within app

Having Trouble With Saving 6.1 Themes

I am one of those dash finatics that has a colection of cabs, themes files(wm6) and modded rom/system imaging files; pretty much everything i need to hard reset and re "outfit" my phone while mobile. With the wm6.1 theme file format it is hard cause i dont know how to set the "chome320x240" and "scheme.xml", "home.xml", and jpg image as one "pack" that i can just copy and paste into the right folders, if i reset. its just alot of work to customize a full theme set, then all i have to do is reboot, or change themes, and it also resets my "panels", and "my programs" settings. I wonder is there is a way to have it like "theming" used to be with 6.0. Thanks for the help guys

jarednish said:
I am one of those dash finatics that has a colection of cabs, themes files(wm6) and modded rom/system imaging files; pretty much everything i need to hard reset and re "outfit" my phone while mobile. With the wm6.1 theme file format it is hard cause i dont know how to set the "chome320x240" and "scheme.xml", "home.xml", and jpg image as one "pack" that i can just copy and paste into the right folders, if i reset. its just alot of work to customize a full theme set, then all i have to do is reboot, or change themes, and it also resets my "panels", and "my programs" settings. I wonder is there is a way to have it like "theming" used to be with 6.0. Thanks for the help guys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume you back everything up to storage card for easy reinstallation while mobile. If so, why not just copy your \Application Data\Home folder to storage card. That will back up your scheme xmls, home xmls, and background jpgs as long as you keep them all in there. That way if you hard reset, just copy this folder over the newly created one.
If you modify the registry for all your icons, etc, then you should export your regs for HKLM\Software\Microsoft\CHome and HKLM\Security\CHome\DefaultSettings. This way you can set all your settings for chome back easily.
For your cprs, just make a backup copy.
Then take all these and put them in a chome folder for safe keeping.
You could also stick them in a cab or make a script that would auto install for you. But if you do alot of modifying, they would be outdated before you needed them.

Icon settings

Hi! I was wondering where I can find the settings for the icons in the program menue. I am at the moment testing TOM_DiamondProject_v3.3_WWE and I really like the icons but if I decied to change ROM I will lose the nice icons so my question is this:
Is it possible to export the icons like in windows or are they "bake into" the ROM?

You can keep the icons if you backup the .dll which has the icons in. Obtain Resco Explorer and go to Program Files\Your Folder\ and in that folder you'll have a Icon.lnk. Go to the properties and see where the shortcut points to (it will probably something like somedll.dll,-4) and then you know what to backup. You will find this somedll.dll in the \Windows folder, simply copy it to your Internal Storage and reflash, and if you could also upload that file for me I'd be very grateful as i also want that icon set but i'm using Panosha 1.7

Default TouchFlo3D menu icons

I recently installed the Sprint Menu Icons, but it messed up my TouchFlo (must have clashed with other mods I have installed) and now that I've uninstalled the Sprint Menu Icons, I have no menu icons at all and it's causing TF3D to lag.
I tried looking around on XDA, but I couldn't find the default ones posted anywhere. Who needs the originals when you can have modded ones, right? Haha.
But yeah, does anyone know where I could find the default menu icons? Thanks in advance.

If you you the Diamond Tf3D config tool to install your Sprint Theme, you can restore back using this app.
But I'm not sure if it'll work if you hadnt used this to apply your Sprint theme.

There are 2 ways to do that:
1-Using TF3D Config; restore default.
2-Using Total Commander/Resco Explorer; go to the manila files in "Windows" & delete them then soft reset.
Either way, you'll retrieve the original manila files after using on of the above methods & after soft reset.. Basically, you'll be deleting the manila files which will be replaced with the originals from the ROM !
It's so easy.. Good Luck

Problem with Titanium Panels on non-English device

hi there!
I have an Acer neoTouch with German WM 6.5 (Build 21840.5.0.60) and a lot of the custom Titanium Panels don't work.
With don't work I mean they don't show up in Titanium, although they do in CHome Editor 1.6
Some work, some don't show up on the today screen. TitaniumStarter for example shows up, Opera Panel or CPlayer don't.
Also, Titanizer doesn't work at all. It can change the left softkey, but whatever Panels I setup, Titanium will be empty afterwards.
is there anything I need to know? Maybe a problem with different paths? Can I edit something in the Registry to make them show up? maybe there are language specific paths in the registry that I haven't found yet (but then I don't know what to search for).
thanks a lot!
Bernhard

The easest way is to create a new folder \program files and in this folder copy the titanium progs from the folder \programme. Copy not move..

hm, thanks, but copying the CPlayer directory from \Program Files to \Programme, with a subsequent reset didn't do it yet...hm.
I copied \Program Files\JMLPanex\CPlayer to \Program Files\JMLPanex
and did the same for CPlayer.
both, CPlayer and JMLPanex directories are now identical in \Program Files and \Programme
reset, but still no CPlayer panel visible on titanium (only in CHome Editor)... *snieff*

Sorry, but you think wrong. You have a german rom - In this rom the titanium progs install in the folder \Programme. But in the reg or *.xml the progs search for the folder \program files. Understand ? And some of the progs have different of screen solution. I don`t know what solution your PPC have. VGA - XVGA - WVGA Think about it, and try.

yes I do understand you, and as said, I have for example the CPlayer folder in both, Programme and Program Files. I also have the JMLPanex folder in both (with identical content).
also, the registry keys look good. same goes for other plugins, except TitaniumStarter and ElecontWeather. hm.
so, I followed your advice and copied everything to both folders, but they still don't show up. no error msgs. whatsoever

Do you have install it ? I have tried the cplayer and it works on my xperia if you do all the things that in the tread from the developer wrote. You ask him also. Possible it`s a thing in panex.dat or in the reg. I don`t know. Learning by doing. Do you have all files installed in the tread. Also the resolution file ?

Are there any files with 0409 in them?

No it isn`t. I know what you mean. For German 0407. But I think he missed some progs too and don`t install it. By me - It works.