Database Develop

Theming help for a former iPhone themer.

So, with the iphone it was possible (once jailbroken) to swap out system images (status bar, battery images, fonts and so on) on the fly via a file manger, once you uploaded the images to the device or connected via SSH to your computer of choice. So I'm curios if this is possible with android or is baking it into a custom rom / update and flashing it the only option?
Also wondering if there is anything like winterboard for android? I have toyed around with apps like ahome, pandahome and the likes, but I dont really like the idea of a replacement home screen.

regular way is creating an update file that you flash in recovery with all the mods you done. new way where you can watch videos about.. is kind of cool you do it without the need of update file and mostly without the need to reboot the device to take effect. check it out. thanks to stericson ..
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=574556

Smokuevo said:
regular way is creating an update file that you flash in recovery with all the mods you done. new way where you can watch videos about.. is kind of cool you do it without the need of update file and mostly without the need to reboot the device to take effect. check it out. thanks to stericson ..
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=574556
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That looks promising. A lot like winterboard for the iphone. Just needs a GUI and more safety checks, but, I'm sure that will come in time. I'll start making packs for it in a week or two hopefully once I figure out all the file names and paths.
Thanks for the tip!

[Theme] SHKvBLK for MCR ROMs: 11/02/2010

I accept NO responsibility for any damage caused to your handset before, during and after updating it with these THEMEs. Using custom THEMEs has risks attached to it, and can be dangerous. Proceed with caution.
Description
Basically I have taken Kos's theme and made it more of a black/grey theme. I have gone deeper into the OS and replaced most of the green stuff with black/grey etc.
There are also bits from themes found at xda for other Android devices. Ended up doing a lot more than what i should of really
There is still a bit of green left and most of it is where it makes sense to have it (some check boxes, indicators etc).
WORKS ON MoDaCo MCR3.1 & 3.2 Beta's ROM.​
Fixed or should i say replaced, the lock screen for a different one . Hopefully that is it ​
MetaMorph Version​>>>​GET IT FROM HERE <<<​
Update.zip Version​>>>​COMING SOON <<<​
This theme is purely for people who like black/dark themes. Please don't write bad feedback or that it isn't to your taste, as i won't change it or provide reasons for my choices .
Use the attached Wallpaper for use in SenseUI. In Android it is already default
Big thanks to Kos for base theme, tristan for inspiration & all the CREATORS & ORIGINATORS of anything that may of been theirs in some form!!... (u know who u are )
Enjoy.
KEEP A LOOK OUT.​

Details!
Update.zip is 31.8mb in size as its a fair few .apk's
Metamorph file size is just over 5mb, so i have achieved a smallish footprint of this theme.
Modifications
Rework of Android UI
Customised Keypad dialler
Status Bar Icons from HelloMoto
Over 40 apk's have been modified in some way
Changed the Screen Lock pattern icons
Lots of stuff i cant think of.......
*I have only modified the apk's i am currently using on my ROM build (3.2 Beta 5; very LITE version)
Basically i have edited a lot of stuff, changed a lot stuff and borrowed a lot of stuff To make this theme, i like it, now...
And am gonna be making a LITE ROM, based on MCR builds and also a ASOP build based on one of those builds...with this type of theme built in.
FYI
Your Home screens will be reset, i cant do this yet (put them like i want), but in future i will be able to, just need to open the xmls with hextool..will be same result with the update.zip too.
I have used Beautiful Home here in my screen shots for my Home....i just wanted to show you a comparison of HTC vs Android (not much difference)
The Battery Widget is BatteryLife
The Settings Widgets are Beautiful Widgets
The News Widget is News Buzz
I did the Google search bar in the Android UI too
I am ultimately NOT responsible for anything that occurs from use of the provided theme. Use at your own risk and hopefully enjoy it.
B)

How To Install Metamorph Theme
Always BACKUP your Hero (Nandroid or whatever you use)
For best INSTALL RESULTS for Metamorph & update.zip, Re-install current ROM fully, let it install, set up, then reboot when finished...
Then either....
see below for options....
Metamorph Version
1. Download the Metamorph application from the Market
2. Download AndExplorer application from the Market
The above are required, Metamorph uses AndExplorer to search your device for themes
3. Download then copy the .zip theme from this thread, to your SD card to a location you know of.
4. Open Metamorph, and select 'Pick Theme' after it checks your device
5. Select the theme from its location, then Install All (Apply All).
6. It will extract the theme, and a progress bar is now shown in Metamorph as it extracts the theme.
7. It will then install each apk one at a time... it will take some minutes...and some more.....
When it asks to force close an app, please do so.
** I recommend keeping the phone awake during the installation to ensure it installs as quick as possible **
8. When it asks to REBOOT, it probably won't (even in newest Metamorph version), so just manually reboot by turning device off and then on again.
Update.zip Version
1. Download then copy the .zip theme from this thread, to your SD card (ROOT)
2. Boot Device to Recovery mode & flash as normal...
3. Reboot
RESULT
If you already run other themes in some form or another, the best install method above will benefit you most

Nobody tried this yet?
Come on, please leave feedback.
Shokka9

I tried your Theme and its still ob my hero,so i like it.
There is just one thing i dont like:
The dark black coloured Status bar at The Top. Its to dark dir me. When you pull it down its a little more grey, this colour i would like to See as Standard.
Hope you. get what i mean.
Cheers

I get ya bro....
But i prefer the Black bar , thats how i do it....
If you want i could make u a quick Grey bar like the pull down and post later tonight (am at work) and u can just update with Metamorph

right ive installed it this is my first time trying metamorph so bare with me. i followed your instructions above it installed and i then rebooted and ended up with a few problems
-it removed my people.apk completely off the phone
-removed most my widgets from my home screen but i just added these back on
-it completely removed the htc picture frame widget altogether
- when i press the phone button it just brought up a text saying phone it didnt actually open the dailer
- lock screen was still the same
- the pattern password screen was still the same
ive restored my nandroid backup and will try again.

still a no go for me im affraid i tried to install some parts individually but im still having problems. if you could do a update.zip that i can apply from the recovery menu id appreciate it as i like the look of the theme from the screen shots

@ mjcook1984
Thats strange.....what ROM are you running.
For it removing apk's; well thats something i have never seen.
All those widgets, are actually in the metamorph theme too, so it wouldnt remove them.
Try installing one at time.....bit tedious but hey.
Update.zip will come, i made one last night, but it doesnt work fully.
I even sucessfully installed this theme to my own ROM (based on Modaco 3.2 beta 5), it has no rosie etc.
Even tho the ROM didnt have some of the apk's it still installed fine and everything working fine.
I would recommend, wiping, then when fully booted, reboot, then use Metamorph again. NEVER UPDATE a metamorph theme ALWAYS replace.

thers defo something strange i just tried kos-worlds black eclair and that came up with the same problems.
im running modaco 3.1
ah just realised ive not got andexplorer ive been using astro will try again

Hmmm....i tested mine originally on MCR 3.1 (and 3.0 & 3.2) so it should work....
I know you wont want to, but try wiping, reflashing the 3.1 ROM, rebooting, then running Metamorph.
Strange. Have you used any other Metamorph themes before?

no first time ive tried to use it. just tried again with andexplore installed still the same problems but this time the htcpictureframe.apk stayed. i am using a custom theme that was applied from the recovery menu i wonder if that causing the problem. il re flash 3.1 and see if that sorts it

That might be it....
Try again bro

UPDATE.zip now available
update.zip coming to the first post soon....
Posts updated accordingly.

wallpaper
hi in the pic of the lockscreen on the first post on the right i was wondering if you could post that wallpaper its pretty awesome blue and black look great =)

added to first post

Awesome thanks love the theme haven't had one problem with it yet

Thanks Bro

shokka9 said:
I get ya bro....
But i prefer the Black bar , thats how i do it....
If you want i could make u a quick Grey bar like the pull down and post later tonight (am at work) and u can just update with Metamorph
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would be really nice
Sorry for my late answer, had to survive the Karneval in Cologne

i give you update later bro...
Check back after 9pm UK time

can't get metamorph to install theme, and yes i searched

i can't seem to figure out why i can't apply nextheme.
i'm on enom's latest ROM, and got the appropriate (well, mostly, only difference i believe between 1.9.1 and 1.9.2 is the camera app, i think).
i unzipped the nextheme folder, brought over only the folder containing the modifications and xml file, and put them into a folder on sd card. using metamorph i navigated to the correct folder, selected the xml file, and then hit 'apply all'.
it says it starts with the first file (browser.apk), then just sits there with the little 'busy' indicator spinning around. i let it go for like 10 minutes, and nothing happened, it just sat there and spun. so, i killed it.
second time i just selected one apk to adjust (calendar.apk) rather than the whole lot. same thing. sit there and look busy, but do nothing. forever.
so i killed it.
any suggestions?

Which version of MetaMorph are you using?

3bs said:
Which version of MetaMorph are you using?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the newest one. i picked up the morph in the themes thread. somebody said that they packaged up the theme into a morph. i tried to get it to fire up, and it just locked. if i tried to update all, it would lock on the first one. if i would pick any single one, it would lock on that.
i'm not going to hold my breath. i'll just wait for froyo, i guess. or, at least news about froyo.

Sorry for hijacking your thread but since you're talking about metamorph here i might as well ask instead of creating a new thread.
So i have the most recent version of metamorph and when i try to apply themes it says it had successfully patched things but nothing changes. Anyone know why or how to fix this?
I'm using HelixLauncher2 so that could be why but it used to work before the update so i dont know

Help me theme my Captivate, please?

I have a Captivate I just upgraded to, from a BlackBerry. [FINALLY]
After reading around for a week or two on XDA it's about time I ask the questions I've been searching so long for.
It's a couple questions, but I have no idea:
I'm running the latest Cognition rom. Though it's nice and all, can I have my old boot animation back? How?
Ever since I started researching Android and their themes, I've fallen in love with chancellorr's minimalist themes, notably this one from his deviantART account: http://chancellorr.deviantart.com/gallery/26259232#/d33q9jd. I've been trying to get his setup ever since I started. Help please?
How do I use MetaMorph? I'm not sure if it's the main theming app for Android, but it's nothing like Winterboard on the iPhone, I have no idea what I'm doing! Help with that too, please?
What's the nicest and most customizable launcher for Android?
Anything else I might need to know to help further customize my Captivate? What I should be worried about, and how I can prevent issues loading themes and the like.
Thanks for helping me out, loving this Captivate so far

bugmenever said:
I'm running the latest Cognition rom. Though it's nice and all, can I have my old boot animation back? How?
Ever since I started researching Android and their themes, I've fallen in love with chancellorr's minimalist themes, notably this one from his deviantART account: http://chancellorr.deviantart.com/gallery/26259232#/d33q9jd. I've been trying to get his setup ever since I started. Help please?
How do I use MetaMorph? I'm not sure if it's the main theming app for Android, but it's nothing like Winterboard on the iPhone, I have no idea what I'm doing! Help with that too, please?
What's the nicest and most customizable launcher for Android?
Anything else I might need to know to help further customize my Captivate? What I should be worried about, and how I can prevent issues loading themes and the like.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Yes; the boot animation resides in /system/media/bootanimation.zip. To replace it, put the new bootanimation.zip on your SD card and move it over with root explorer. Should you not have root explorer, run the commands below via AndroidSDK/tools (put the bootanimation.zip in the /tools folder too)...
Code:
adb push bootanimation.zip /sdcard/
adb shell
su [i](should change from a $ to a #, dont forget to accept superuser on the phone too)[/i]
cp /sdcard/bootanimation.zip /system/media/
exit
exit
adb reboot
2. As this seems to be designed for a different device, it would require decompiling the frameworks and such and porting them over to captivate-esque code; that would work with the captivates framework.
3. This thread should teach you how to MetaMorph.
4. It's a matter of opinion. The two big ones are Launcher Pro and ADW.Launcher, both come with their own advantages and disadvantages. Want a transparent app drawer background? ADW. Want to hide apps in the app drawer? LauncherPro. Best way to find which one you like is to try them yourself, but as for customizable, i would say Launcher Pro as you don't have to jump through hoops to change the dock background.
5. Don't try to flash a theme that was designed for a different phone. When you theme a ROM, you theme the framework, which is tightly bound to the rest of the software. Changing the Captivates framework to the Evo framework for example would cause problems, as the Evo frameworks calls for different values in different places. The code isn't necessarily different, but the layout and string values will be different too.
All in all, this phone is pretty unbrickable. Get used to making backups and flashing back from a bad flash, and before you apply a theme, make sure you back up whatever files this theme calls for you to replace! Most of the time, even with a theme that doesn't work(assuming it's for the captivate), you'll still retain basic functions. Backup is key!
Enjoy the new toy!

geokhentix said:
1. Yes; the boot animation resides in /system/media/bootanimation.zip. To replace it, put the new bootanimation.zip on your SD card and move it over with root explorer. Should you not have root explorer, run the commands below via AndroidSDK/tools (put the bootanimation.zip in the /tools folder too)...
Code:
adb push bootanimation.zip /sdcard/
adb shell
su [i](should change from a $ to a #, dont forget to accept superuser on the phone too)[/i]
cp /sdcard/bootanimation.zip /system/media/
exit
exit
adb reboot
2. As this seems to be designed for a different device, it would require decompiling the frameworks and such and porting them over to captivate-esque code; that would work with the captivates framework.
3. This thread should teach you how to MetaMorph.
4. It's a matter of opinion. The two big ones are Launcher Pro and ADW.Launcher, both come with their own advantages and disadvantages. Want a transparent app drawer background? ADW. Want to hide apps in the app drawer? LauncherPro. Best way to find which one you like is to try them yourself, but as for customizable, i would say Launcher Pro as you don't have to jump through hoops to change the dock background.
5. Don't try to flash a theme that was designed for a different phone. When you theme a ROM, you theme the framework, which is tightly bound to the rest of the software. Changing the Captivates framework to the Evo framework for example would cause problems, as the Evo frameworks calls for different values in different places. The code isn't necessarily different, but the layout and string values will be different too.
All in all, this phone is pretty unbrickable. Get used to making backups and flashing back from a bad flash, and before you apply a theme, make sure you back up whatever files this theme calls for you to replace! Most of the time, even with a theme that doesn't work(assuming it's for the captivate), you'll still retain basic functions. Backup is key!
Enjoy the new toy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks so much for answering :]
2. Where can I find Captivate frameworks? I always see different amazing looking themes, but no frameworks specifically for Captivate.
4. Learned that the hard way. Scared myself two days after getting it by trying to flash a theme for the G1 and had to wait half an hour to flash back to stock ROM, so I've started to backup more now.

bugmenever said:
Thanks so much for answering :]
2. Where can I find Captivate frameworks? I always see different amazing looking themes, but no frameworks specifically for Captivate.
4. Learned that the hard way. Scared myself two days after getting it by trying to flash a theme for the G1 and had to wait half an hour to flash back to stock ROM, so I've started to backup more now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can find them on this board. A theme almost always changes the framework, which can point to a couple files. These aren't all of the files in theming, but generally, these 2 are almost always changed.
/system/framework/framework-res.apk
/system/framework/twframework-res.apk
Themes usually come as a .zip file, which is intended for you to flash with CWM(ClockworkMod Recovery). Cognition comes with ROM Manager I believe, if it doesn't, DL it off the market. Open it, click Flash ClockworkMod, select Captivate, then you can reboot into recovery and flash themed updates.
Put the themed .zip on your SD card
1. Open ROM Manager, and Flash it, selecting Captivate.
2. Select Reboot into Recovery. (On the first attempt, you might have to click "Reinstall Packages" when it boots into recovery, to get you into CWM for the first time.)
3. Once inside CWM, Install ROM from SD Card > Choose ROM from SD card > theme.zip
It's pretty hard to brick this phone, so don't be afraid to experiment a bit. Generally, most captivate themes are available here in teh Apps & Themes board, but make sure you read the thread to see if there's any information about it being compatible with your current ROM or not.

That's awesome!
Is there anything I would really need to get started up with this phone? I used to have an iPhone and I'm used to their framework, so... :]
Hoping to become a master at this.

I would say ROM Manager, Root Explorer, Titanium Backup, and NinjaMorph are all musts. I would say update to one of the newer roms too; like Perception. The newer kernels are much faster. If you're into customizations, it's worth modifying the rom before you install it (please note however, to always keep a stock unmodified copy of the rom you're modifying, incase it doesn't work).
It's pretty easy. Open the Rom's .zip(like perception, etc etc) in 7z or WinRAR
Apps go in /system/app if you want them to be system-installed (can't remove them, samsung/atnt bloatware is installed in the /system/app for example..well was)
OR the /data/app , which is pre-installed but on a user level, uninstallable like any app downloaded from the market.
Anything theme related goes in /system/framework
Kernels/Modems/etc go in the /updates folder
drag, drop, replace. No need to uncompress and recompress. Whatever you download, assuming it's not an odin flashable, will generally be in the same file system as the rom you're modifying, so it's easy to swap them out. This way themes install with the rom, please note however that if you do install a theme in such a way, features like the all-boot menu (Reboot/recovery/download on power menu), or any extra animations or unlock screens may not work; unless the theme you're building in has them too!

Woops. Accidently double posted.

[DISCUSS] General Questions/Problems with Theming

There seems to be a lot of things that are new when it comes to theming the Nexus S and Gingerbread in general.
A lot of us have run into various problems.
The purpose of this thread is to discuss the problems we're facing and to ask general questions regarding theming.

Issues:
1. [SOLVED] I can't flash anything unless it is the full ROM. I tried jabbawalkee's base zip but no luck.
Solution: Post 12. Thanks to ogdobber.
2. If I make a nand of a themed ROM and try to restore it, I get a bootloop. Unthemed ROM works fine.
Temporary Solution: Don't use ROM Manager to restore your themed Nandroids. Go to recovery and restore the Nand and don't reboot.
Flash the pertinent ROM again without wiping anything, then reboot. Flash the theme again.
3. How to get out of a bootloop? I've been doing the battery pull and volume up + power button does not work during a bootloop.
Solution: adb reboot recovery
4. [SOLVED] Nexus S loses signal after reboot.
After unlocking the bootloader, I used paul's Superboot to get root and used ROM manager to flash the latest CWM. All is well except every-time I reboot, I lose the signal (it shows emergency calls only) and I have to search for available networks in Mobile network settings.
Solution:
In the dialpad enter *#*#4636#*#*
Select phone information
Scroll down to preferred networks
Select "WCDMA only"
Click on Update
You need to re-enter the SMSC Carrier number. For WIND Mobile Canada, SMSC is 16135009000
Android requires you to enter this info in Hex.
Hex = 07916131059000F0
For Mobilicity Canada Hex = 07916174080001F6
In the dialpad enter *#*#4636#*#*
Select phone information
Scroll down to SMSC field, enter 07916131059000F0 and done. Then reboot.

Theming Guide:
Master™ started a guide where we could post useful stuff like the transparent notification bar & anything else in a simple Nexus S (or gingerbread guide...)
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nZSTpSuFg_ox7cEzn5YZSx3P8nXMgly4Q-AvVRC8Lfw/edit?hl=en#
If you guys want to edit it, PM him so he can add you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Stuck this useful thread

theimpaler747 said:
Stuck this useful thread
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks a lot!
Issue number 2 has been confirmed by another users. Maybe its a bug in CWM.

sonnysekhon said:
Thanks a lot!
Issue number 2 has been confirmed by another users. Maybe its a bug in CWM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could be that, I remember on my hero I tried to restore a recovery of my theme and it looped too

sonnysekhon said:
Issues:
1. I can't flash anything unless it is the full ROM. I tried jabbawalkee's base zip but no luck.
2. If I make a nand of a themed ROM and try to restore it, I get a bootloop. Unthemed ROM works fine.
3. How to get out of a bootloop? I've been doing the battery pull and volume up + power button does not work during a bootloop.
4. Nexus S loses signal after reboot.
After unlocking the bootloader, I used paul's Superboot to get root and used ROM manager to flash the latest CWM. All is well except every-time I reboot, I lose the signal (it shows emergency calls only) and I have to search for available networks in Mobile network settings.
Anyone else having this issue? Any fixes?
If you guys can provide some insight, I will be most thankful.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In regard to #1, you're right about that. The mount line is incorrect, I believe it needs to be changed to ext4 instead of mtd but I haven't gotten the line just right yet. I contacted PaulOBrien and Koush for assistance but didn't have much luck getting it right.
In terms of #4, I actually didn't have that same issue with his Superboot...but perhaps I overlooked it.
Hopefully we can get a theme zip base to work from. I'm hoping one of the ROM devs can jump in and maybe push us in the right direction. I'm not a code type of guy so I let the coders do the update script stuff . In the meantime, we'll just have to use the full ROM.
Thanks for this thread sonny!

On the Galaxy S I can find the data and wifi icons for the notification bar no problem, but I can't seem to find them anywhere for the Nexus S (along with a couple of others). Sorry if the answer is obvious, but I'm stuck. Could someone please point me in the right direction?

Dean-O said:
On the Galaxy S I can find the data and wifi icons for the notification bar no problem, but I can't seem to find them anywhere for the Nexus S (along with a couple of others). Sorry if the answer is obvious, but I'm stuck. Could someone please point me in the right direction?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
system/app/SystemUI.apk

Great, thanks.

Found a solution to issue number 4, updated the post.

sonnysekhon said:
Issues:
1. I can't flash anything unless it is the full ROM. I tried jabbawalkee's base zip but no luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is a solution to problem 1.
in the META-INF\com\google\android needs to have updater-script and update-binary
the updater-script needs the following line
Code:
run_program("/sbin/busybox", "mount", "/system");
attached is a meta-inf. use it in place of your current one for flashing themes

Thanks ogdobber.

Hi,
I'm a newb to theming. Can anyone point me to the right direction to change my stock news widget to transparent?
Thanks in advance

cyc1120 said:
Hi,
I'm a newb to theming. Can anyone point me to the right direction to change my stock news widget to transparent?
Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
start with the 2 links below, you basically need to change the transparency level on the widget_background in the drawable(hdpi) folder. but it is not that easy because it is a .9 png (unless you go 100%)
[GUIDE] Want to learn how to theme?
The Ultimate Android Themeing Guide
Here is a thread by rori that he themes a bunch of stuff to transparent smoke http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=731625

I can't for the life of me try to figure out how to make an object in photoshop have a transparent background. I make the background transparent, add the object (eg: a number) and everything looks great. Then once I flatten the image the transparency disappears. What I don't get is up until I flatten it, the whole background is transparent. I'm completely baffled, can anyone offer an idiot some help?

kenvan19 said:
I can't for the life of me try to figure out how to make an object in photoshop have a transparent background. I make the background transparent, add the object (eg: a number) and everything looks great. Then once I flatten the image the transparency disappears. What I don't get is up until I flatten it, the whole background is transparent. I'm completely baffled, can anyone offer an idiot some help?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What image is it? And by flatten it, do you mean you are making it an indexed image?

theimpaler747 said:
What image is it? And by flatten it, do you mean you are making it an indexed image?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Its a number for a Beautiful widgets clock skin. By flatten it I mean in photoshop CS5 when you make an image with multiple layers (the layers get created automatically when I try to add anything, in this case text) in order to save it as anything but a .psd you have to flatten it (IE force all of the layers into one).

kenvan19 said:
Its a number for a Beautiful widgets clock skin. By flatten it I mean in photoshop CS5 when you make an image with multiple layers (the layers get created automatically when I try to add anything, in this case text) in order to save it as anything but a .psd you have to flatten it (IE force all of the layers into one).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Never save it as a psd for edits on android Save it as a .png

theimpaler747 said:
Never save it as a psd for edits on android Save it as a .png
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly, I'm trying to save it as a png but in order to do that I have to flatten the image which causes the transparency of the background to disappear.