So, I'm well-aware that the reason icons can't be changed easily on the Android home screen is because the icon image is stored in the APK file, and editing that image is, essentially, near impossible.
However, I had an idea that could potentially fix that problem, and I'm just curious how realistic the solution is:
As most G1 users know, AnyCut is a great application that can allow a user to create a shortcut to any number of actions on the phone. These shortcuts are customizable by name, and, for the time being, have a limited number of icons, one for each shortcut type.
I also recall using an app several months ago to change the icons of bookmarks (Bookmark 2, I believe it was called). With this app, a user could choose exactly what their icons would look like on the home screen, except, of course, that these icons could only link to bookmarks.
By combining these two applications, wouldn't an icon changer be quite possible?
Using this same methodology, wouldn't it be possible to create "shortcuts" to applications on the home screen, and thus, allow the user to rename apps and change their icons, at least on the desktop? I know that the icons would not be changed in the pull-out drawer or elsewhere on the system, but wouldn't this be a temporary workaround, until a better solution is reached? I have quite a few programs with horrendous icons, and it really takes away from the aesthetic of the home screen.
Again, all I'm asking is if there's a way to place a shortcut to an APK on the desktop, and preferably to customize that shortcut's icon, not the actual apps.
It is possible to edit .apk's and change the icons. Just look at the forum for theams.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=450
soundwire said:
It is possible to edit .apk's and change the icons. Just look at the forum for theams.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=450
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I know that the icons can be edited in a theme, but can non-stock icons be edited as well?
And also, my concern with that is that it seems like a lot of work to update a theme everytime a new app appears on the market. I'm a little OCD, so if I were able to change all the icons on my home screen, I would want them all to be absolutely uniform (like the themes' icons are). However, if a new, super-useful app were to appear on the market, and I absolutely needed it on my home screen, it would seem much easier to simply add an image to my phone, and make a shortcut using that image, than to have to edit an APK, resign the entire package, and reflash the phone each time. While I know my way around the G1, and I'm comfortable with basic rooting, I am by no means a developer, and just like most G1 users, I would probably be more comfortable making shortcuts than updating firmware.
Do you understand where I'm coming from?
I too, would also like to know how to change "non-stock" app icons. Bump.
jayaustn said:
Well, I know that the icons can be edited in a theme, but can non-stock icons be edited as well?
And also, my concern with that is that it seems like a lot of work to update a theme everytime a new app appears on the market. I'm a little OCD, so if I were able to change all the icons on my home screen, I would want them all to be absolutely uniform (like the themes' icons are). However, if a new, super-useful app were to appear on the market, and I absolutely needed it on my home screen, it would seem much easier to simply add an image to my phone, and make a shortcut using that image, than to have to edit an APK, resign the entire package, and reflash the phone each time. While I know my way around the G1, and I'm comfortable with basic rooting, I am by no means a developer, and just like most G1 users, I would probably be more comfortable making shortcuts than updating firmware.
Do you understand where I'm coming from?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have yet to try this, but (provided you have root), you should be able to use adb to pull the apk for an app off your phone, edit it as described, and push it back to the same place. I will give this a go tomorrow, as I'm rather sleepy, and it's probably not a good thing to mess about with superuser stuff when I can't think straight.
If there's any flaws in my theory, I'd be happy to hear them.
RE: Changeing Icons!
I have a video on you tube on how to change icons. Here it is!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjnV_d9b22E
Hope you enjoy and your able to Change Your Icons.
Good Luck!
bms122223 said:
I have a video on you tube on how to change icons. Here it is!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjnV_d9b22E
Hope you enjoy and your able to Change Your Icons.
Good Luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Video doesnt show you how to change "non-stock" app icons, only icons for the original apps.
Well, I kind of figured out how to change the non-stock icons. But got stuck at the end...here's what I did...
1) Install/Open Astro.
2) Back up the app you want to change the icon for.
3) Grab that backup apk file off of your sdcard and put it on your computer.
4) Open it with Winrar.
5) Go to the proper folder and drag your new icon into the folder.
6) Close Winrar and move the apk back to your sdcard.
...this is where I get stuck, I know the icon changed because I can see it when I TRY to install the app. But the app doesnt want to install, it says "install unsuccesful". I'm guessing it needs to be signed?
I have used astro as well, I even signed the apk the same way I sign themes and no luck.
ultra spikey said:
Well, I kind of figured out how to change the non-stock icons. But got stuck at the end...here's what I did...
1) Install/Open Astro.
2) Back up the app you want to change the icon for.
3) Grab that backup apk file off of your sdcard and put it on your computer.
4) Open it with Winrar.
5) Go to the proper folder and drag your new icon into the folder.
6) Close Winrar and move the apk back to your sdcard.
...this is where I get stuck, I know the icon changed because I can see it when I TRY to install the app. But the app doesnt want to install, it says "install unsuccesful". I'm guessing it needs to be signed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're real close; once you replace the icon you need you need to delete META-INF folder then zip it back up, rename file extension to .apk and sign it with the test keys like the stock .apk. The META-INF is where the signature info is kept from the original author, you need to delete this so it doesn't conflict with the test keys.
Geo411m said:
You're real close; once you replace the icon you need you need to delete META-INF folder then zip it back up, rename file extension to .apk and sign it with the test keys like the stock .apk. The META-INF is where the signature info is kept from the original author, you need to delete this so it doesn't conflict with the test keys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will that a try. So this also mean that if author updates .apk file we will not be able to install update? Similar to google RC30 updates, we have to wait for JF to modify it.
johnowa636 said:
I will that a try. So this also mean that if author updates .apk file we will not be able to install update? Similar to google RC30 updates, we have to wait for JF to modify it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agreed; this might be a problem.
I mean, opening up the APK files is definitely a start, but it seems the shortcut approach I mentioned earlier is just so much easier. Shortcuts would allow basic users to change icons effortlessly and without fear of ruining the app, and the process could be just as easy as Bookmark 2, if a developer took charge, no?
ultra spikey said:
Well, I kind of figured out how to change the non-stock icons. But got stuck at the end...here's what I did...
1) Install/Open Astro.
2) Back up the app you want to change the icon for.
3) Grab that backup apk file off of your sdcard and put it on your computer.
4) Open it with Winrar.
5) Go to the proper folder and drag your new icon into the folder.
6) Close Winrar and move the apk back to your sdcard.
...this is where I get stuck, I know the icon changed because I can see it when I TRY to install the app. But the app doesnt want to install, it says "install unsuccesful". I'm guessing it needs to be signed?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i would like to verify that this method works to change non-stock apps without pushing files or inserting apps into updates. i used 7zip but i'd imagine winrar will work fine as well. just remember to delete the entire metainf folder, not just its contents. once you have your .apk, re-sign it using stericson's auto-sign utility and you'll be able to install the app through astro.
i should also note that i deleted all instance of the unmodified app from my sdcard. i uninstalled it and deleted the backup on my sd card. this may or may not be necessary, but i just wanted to take precautions.
I've given this method a try, and it seems simply too complicated for a moderate user like me. Wouldn't the shortcut method I mentioned be so much easier to quickly change home screen icons? Would any of the developers on this forum be interested in throwing such an app together? I'd gladly donate some money if a good app was able to take care of this problem.
what are you having trouble with, exactly? i'm far from an advanced user myself, but this is probably one of the easier things to do on the g1, probably second to flashing themes.
though i will say that there are a few apps that i can't change icons for. chomp and cubik have installed but force close when opened.
i have a feeling it's something to do with the signing the apk's, but like i said, i'm not an advanced user at all.
TruLuvNvrDies said:
what are you having trouble with, exactly? i'm far from an advanced user myself, but this is probably one of the easier things to do on the g1, probably second to flashing themes.
though i will say that there are a few apps that i can't change icons for. chomp and cubik have installed but force close when opened.
i have a feeling it's something to do with the signing the apk's, but like i said, i'm not an advanced user at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I opened up the APK using WinRAR, replaced the icon.png with my icon of choice, and then I'm stuck. I known I have to auto-sign the APK, but am not exactly sure how. I have Stericson's auto-signer tool, and used command 4 to manually enter the APK path, but once I do that I get a bunch of errors. If need be, I can copy down the exact error I get.
ultra spikey said:
Video doesnt show you how to change "non-stock" app icons, only icons for the original apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice video!
jayaustn said:
I opened up the APK using WinRAR, replaced the icon.png with my icon of choice, and then I'm stuck. I known I have to auto-sign the APK, but am not exactly sure how. I have Stericson's auto-signer tool, and used command 4 to manually enter the APK path, but once I do that I get a bunch of errors. If need be, I can copy down the exact error I get.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you probably need to delete the contents of the meta-inf folder. there should be three files in there, delete them all. if you extracted the contents of the .apk, zip them back up with an .apk extension. if you didn't extract them, you're at the last step, which is to re-sign the .apk. you don't actually need to manually re-sign the file through the console on stericson's re-signer. just right-click the .apk file and at the very top, there should be an option that says "resign .apk". click on that and your app will be re-signed and ready for an install attempt.
though, as i said before, this method is not 100%. of the 6 apps that i modified so far, i was only successful with 4 of them. even if you do all of the steps correctly, you might not have a working app at the end. the apps will install but will automatically force close when launched. i don't know what causes this, actually, and any suggestions would be appreciated.
I agree with the OP, while it is easy enough to edit the apks, resign them, copy them back onto your phone it would be far more elegant (IMHO) if you could have an application that allowed you to copy "Icon Packs" onto your SDCard, and then add links to applications on your home screen giving you a choice of icons from the aforementioned "Icon Pack".
Theme developers could then distribute the "Icon Pack" with the theme, and end users could easily add custom icons to your home screen from your phone without having to mess about on a PC.
liamw said:
I agree with the OP, while it is easy enough to edit the apks, resign them, copy them back onto your phone it would be far more elegant (IMHO) if you could have an application that allowed you to copy "Icon Packs" onto your SDCard, and then add links to applications on your home screen giving you a choice of icons from the aforementioned "Icon Pack".
Theme developers could then distribute the "Icon Pack" with the theme, and end users could easily add custom icons to your home screen from your phone without having to mess about on a PC.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what everyone wants is Anycut that can do custom icons.
I just recently moved to ICS on my Samsung Galaxy S2 (Epic 4g Touch) and I can't seem to get all fonts in all locations system/apps to change to the new font.
Up until now, I have always used rom toolbox pro to flash my fonts with my Gingerbread roms and everything has always been themed in the chosen text (all apps/menus/text on websites/text in facebook ect).. Love the patronne font. So I upgraded my phone to the Blue Kuban ICS rom built off of FF18. I downloaded romtool box pro to change my fonts like I have always done in the past. I select the font and then install. After the reboot from the fonts being updated, the system menus updated and anything that shows regular (non bold, non italic) fontsdisplays as the new patronne font.
Anything within apps that have bold or italic fonts does not appear as patronne. They appear as the regular system fonts. So i go into the font installer preferences within the rom tool box app and cloctopia.tff and roboto-Regular.tff are selected.
I have tried to select (enable) the roboto-bold and the roboto-italic with no success. the phone will not boot after rom toolbox pro messes with those files.
I restored the default fonts. Then installed the rosemary and a few other flipfonts that are all apks that do not require a reboot/flash. Now the system font is updated (not anything with the clock widget) and italic fonts are now showing the installed apk but bold fonts still show system default font and not new themed text. This is the same case with other fonts that I have tried to install as well.
I have listed some apps below that are not consistent on displaying the themed font. Probably due to which roboto its referencing???
Patronne font from rom toolbox
System menus - patronne
RSS Demon - Feed list - system default, article list system default, article Patronne
Touchdown Exchange - Email list (read and unread emails), appointment/calendar, and contacts show default font
Facebook feed text - System default
XDA app - Forum list - system default, thread list - system default, article (user text) typed text is patronne and quoted text is system default.
APK - Flip fonts (rosemary, sony sketch ect)
System menus - does reflect new themed text
RSS Demon - Feed list - system default, article list reflects installed themed font, article displays in installed themed font
Touchdown Exchange - Email list (unread email - shows bold - shows system default and read emails show in themed font), appointment/calendar system default, and contacts show themed font
Facebook feed text - System default
XDA app - Forum list - themed, thread list - themed, article (user text) typed text is themed and quoted text is themed.
I am guessing that ICS handles things differently with fonts than GB. Is there anything that I can do to get all text displaying the themed text?? I am at a loss on what else to try in order to get all text being themed and not partially.
I was hoping that someone with more experience on fonts/themes would be able to tell me how to fix or what to change so all text appears the same.
Found a solution to the incomplete font themeing
Well after some trial and error I finally figured out what was going on with the fonts. ICS is way more picky on the font files than GB was. None of the font changing programs (romtoolbox Pro, flipfont ect) work 100% or even without at times causing boot loops. This is because the apps themselves do not update the metadata to match the font name. GB never checked the meta data or I guess didn’t care if it matched. ICS does and if it doesn’t match, you get boot loops.
The installable APKs do a better job but would still miss updating Bold and/or Italic fonts.
This is what I did to get 100% themed font without boot loops. Unfortunately it is a manual process.
*****Now for the disclaimer: You must have some technical know how in order to successfully do this. I am not responsible for any boot loops that may result in doing this. Please make sure to have a nandroid of your phone before proceeding.*******
Obviously the phone needs to be rooted to complete all of these steps.
Have your desired font in regular, bold, italic, bolditalic.
You will need a font editor. ( I used FontCreator – Free 30day trial)
The process on how to edit the classifications on whichever font editor you are using.
You need a file explorer app ( I used root explorer)
**backup of your phone (nandroid)**
So take your desired font files on your PC and rename them accordingly
Regular font ==> Roboto-regular.ttf
Bold font ==> Roboto-Bold.ttf
Italic font ==> Roboto-Italic.ttf
Bolditalic font ==> Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf
Now you will need the font editor program for the following steps.
Open each of your newly renamed files and change the classifications to represent what the actual font will be used for.
If you use FontCreator you will need to go to Format menu ==> settings menu to check the general tab for the classification there as well as metrics tab to make sure they represent bod, regular, italic ect
Once you have updated all the classifications, save them and copy them to your SD card.
Now we need to update the permissions of the files. Now you can copy the permissions exactly from the /system/fonts folder if you want. I just used rw-rw-rw for the four font files. You will need to copy the font files to the phone inorder to change the permissions. I created a folder in the /data/app folder with the name of my font “patronne” and placed the four files in there. I then changed all of the permissions on the files.
Now make sure you copy the original files listed below in the /system/fonts folder to another folder in case you want to return the font to the default font.
Roboto-regular.ttf
Roboto-Bold.ttf
Roboto-Italic.ttf
Roboto-BoldItalic.ttf
Once you have backed up the four files, now copy (make sure to enable R/W in root explorer) your new fonts into the /system/fonts folder and you will be prompted to overwrite the existing files. Press ok.
Now at this point the phone may lock up and/or you get cryptic characters on your screen since you just replaced files that may have been in use, so you need to reboot it. I just pulled the battery out and put it back in.
Then boot up your phone and should have all themed fonts that correctly display for regular,bold,italic ect.
If your phone bootloops then just restore from the Nandroid and check all the files for proper settings and try again..
Hope this helps anyone that has run ir is running into this. I just like having all my text be the same font and not 90% of it.
Thats waaay too complicated. Do you think there can be an easy way of doing this for flipfont apk's?
I am not experienced with what all the flip font apks do or how to update them to be 100% successful in converting all fonts. However in my experience I have had to take the font file out of the apk do these edits I described and then copy them over as the apks still didn't update 100% of what I seen on the phone. If you install an apk and it changes everything to your liking then your good. If it doesnt then the only way I have been successful with fonts is to do what I outlined. Its somewhat complicated but works and doesnt cause boot loops if you do it properly ... maybe someone with better understanding of how to update the apks could chime in how to go that route. I am sure there will be edits and possibly complicated per say to update them so you have an easy install.
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