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Can't figure out how to change my statusbar look and color... I have a ton of programs to have my theme the way I want except a way to change the statusbar.
As far as I know the only way you can change it is by actually flashing a theme from the Magic/Dream theme section. I've yet to hear of an app that can change it.
You can replace just a few files to get the results but not without resigning them into a theme or ROM to flash. I have all the files if anyone knows how to write the app.
You must get the original rom you have, open the zip, go to system/framework/framework-res.apk and unzip this apk. You will see the drawable folder where all images are located, then you must create a update.zip with this framework.apk and flash it with your recovery.
Well I haven't had much time lately to make themes but I figured i got enough time to explain how. This is how i do it in windows 7.
1) First thing i assume that you already have androidsdk on the root of your C drive. Lets go ahead and add it to your system path. If it's not called androidsdk go ahead and change it to that. Now open up your startmenu, right click computer, click properties, then click advanced system settings, in the advance system settings select environment variables. In the second box down look for path select it and choose edit. copy and paste this
Code:
;C:\androidsdk\tools
in there. Click okay.
2) download the jre and jdk from here and install them. Now you need to add them to your system path so copy paste this
Code:
;C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre6\bin;C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jdk1.6.0_20\bin
to your system path just like you did in the first step.
3) Download apk manager from here. Now run it and when it says clean out all current projects click yes. Now thats ready to go.
4) Download an image editing program. I use gimp. Also if you don't have it 7-zip
your all set to go now so lets start over with the numbers
1) choose a mymode apk and extract it with 7-zip. Open up the res folder select a png that you want to change and change it with the image editor you chose.
2) when you've changed the images you want open up the original apk as an archive with 7zip. Then place the res folder of the modified unzipped apk into the archive and close the archive.
3) Now open up apk manager and place the mymode apk into the place here for signing folder click script batch choose no then type 15.
4) Now put the newly signed apk into your androidsdk/tools folder and close apk manager.
5) open command prompt and type this
Code:
cd\
cd androidsdk/tools
adb install whatever.apk
I'll update this with pics a more thorough guide.
Thanks to everyone that made this easy
reserved for themes to come
Thanks been waiting for a thread like this.
thanks, if i ever get any free-time between jobs and kid and fiancee i will look into this a little more
This is an awesome guide! I messed around with theming mytouch/g1 back when I had one.. so this will be great to make some themes for the slide..
One question though.. let's say you pull the nest theme.. theme it and re install it.. will it just override the nest theme or in the theme listing will it appear as a new theme and still allow you to have the original theme?
Sent from my T-Mobile myTouch 3G Slide using XDA App
ryanolson7 said:
One question though.. let's say you pull the nest theme.. theme it and re install it.. will it just override the nest theme or in the theme listing will it appear as a new theme and still allow you to have the original theme?
Sent from my T-Mobile myTouch 3G Slide using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The nest theme is in the framework, its not an .apk like the rest, its built into the system. The rest of the mymodes themes are .apks and if you edit those they will override the stock "nest" theme. The only way it will show up different in the theme chooser is if you edit the preview snapshot to be a preview of your theme. If you wanna keep the original theme, the nest theme is it and you should edit a different theme .apk...
-BMFC
Sent from my ROOTED MyTouch3G Slide
Okay so I got the next three days off and I already got two mymode themes pretty much done well their done but I just learned of a way to change the name so they are there own standalone apk instead of using another apk name. I've been using puppypride (which by the way isn't puppies those are full grown dogs) and switching out the pngs and you couldn't have the regular puppypride now you can have both
hope you don't mind but I did a mod of your themes and took out the bubbles since some people always create threads about it
Help with following guide
I am a newb at this so please don't attack me if I am doing something wrong. I have been struggling with following the guide posted to make mymode themes. I have successfully got up to the step of signing the apk file. I modified the files in the free_kick.apk. When I try to use APK Manager 4.8 and using the directions given the file just gets erased and nothing happens. My log file just shows errors. Any help with a more detailed directions one what to do in APK manager as I am trying different things and not getting anywhere. I use the option 15 like told in the guide. I can send my modified apk file to anyone if they can get this to work and get it installed that would be appreciated so much. I hope I can figure this out my own but thought I would try get help from the forums. Thanks in advance.
impimms said:
I am a newb at this so please don't attack me if I am doing something wrong. I have been struggling with following the guide posted to make mymode themes. I have successfully got up to the step of signing the apk file. I modified the files in the free_kick.apk. When I try to use APK Manager 4.8 and using the directions given the file just gets erased and nothing happens. My log file just shows errors. Any help with a more detailed directions one what to do in APK manager as I am trying different things and not getting anywhere. I use the option 15 like told in the guide. I can send my modified apk file to anyone if they can get this to work and get it installed that would be appreciated so much. I hope I can figure this out my own but thought I would try get help from the forums. Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually the guide needs to be fixed a little because i'm guessing your getting compiling errors when using apk manager? But the best way to do this is to open up the mymode theme (using 7zip) as an archive delete meta-inf folder then replace the pngs with ones of your choice as long as they are the same scale. Then resign. and install
totally lost
I've followed these directions to a T and when it comes to using the apk manager i am getting nothing, please help
You guys that are having trouble with apk manager...its honestly not necessary to use Apk Manager for this. Mymodes themes are system .apks and shouldn't be re-signed. What you need to do is forget about apk manager (for now) and drop the UNsigned .apk into the ROM update you are using, and resign the whole ROM using the autosign tool created by jesusfreke. Or just adbpush the .apk. but don't resign the .apk.
Here's the link for the autosign tool to sign ROM updates. its in the THIRD POST and its auto-sign .zip, NOT the signing.zip in the first post. you can put it anywhere you want and you just drop (a copy of) your ROM update in the autosign folder, rename it update.zip, then run the sign.bat to sign. it will create another file, update-signed.zip. you shouldnt need to wipe when flashing the same ROM over itself, but i cant guarantee this is true for all ROMs.
you can also make an update that will only flash the .apk to /system/app, and nothing else will be changed. basically just make a copy of the update for the ROM youre using, then delete everything but the /system directory from the zip. then go into that /system directory and delete everything but the /app directory, then go into it and delete all the .apks and odex file or whatevers in there. ALL OF IT. when you are finished you should have an update with nothing in it but a /system/app directory. you put your modded .apk in there in /system/app, and thats it for that.
then you must edit the update script and remove MOST of its contents so that it only does what you want it to. THIS IS IMPORTANT! Go here to learn how to create an update script. what youll need is way simpler than the examples, youll want it to look basically like this...
Code:
assert compatible_with("0.2") == "true"
show_progress 0.1 0
copy_dir PACKAGE:system SYSTEM:
show_progress 0.1 10
this update script will copy ANYTHING in the /system directory to /system on your device, regardless of subdirectories. that means anything in /system will go in /system, anything in /system/app will go to /system/app, etc. but since you only have one .apk in there it wont mess with anything but what you put in there. this way, you have a NOWIPE update for...well, whatever you want to put in it.
so you just drop the new shortened update-script in /META-INF/com/google/android/
and then use the autosign tool to resign your new update then flash away! This also takes less time cus its only flashing one file instead of flashing a whole ROM just to replace that one file...
hope this helps...
-BMFC
Sent from my T-Mobile myTouch 3G Slide using XDA App
So you cannot do this on t-mobile's rom which is 2.1 right now? I'm leery of rooting in case they ever release froyo
Tbrewer80 said:
So you cannot do this on t-mobile's rom which is 2.1 right now? I'm leery of rooting in case they ever release froyo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm having issues with this as well... After I do the whole signing apk thing, it installs fine, but when I go to MyModes, the preview is black and when I select it, the MyModes app force closes. I don't get it.
Go to market
Download mm, ninjamorph, silver edit, and astro.. While here pick up a random icon pack... (your first morph)
Open silver edit..pick new xml.. Here is a template. Replace the dashes - with less than/greater than < .. They won't show on xda
-?xml version="1.0"?-
-themename-Theme_Name-/themename-
-themeversion-1.x-/themeversion
-screenshot--/screenshot-
-author-that's you-/author-
-authorweblink--/authorweblink-
-phone-Samsung Vibrant-/phone
-rom-Stock-/rom-
-themedescription-whatever changes-/themedescription-
-item-your app.apk-/item-
-path-/system/app/-/path-
-description-changes the...-/description-
-item-framework-res.apk-/item-
-path-/system/framework/-/path-
-description-Morphs the ...-/description-
Open ninja morph, choose the apk you want to modify.. The images you want to change are in res folder in the drawable dir.. choose the icon and replace it with one out of the icon pack..
Open astro.. Go to android themes.. Make new directory, Theme_Name.. Open the workspace folder..this is where the changed apk is... Copy res folder.. Paste it inside Theme_Name.. Delete everything but drawable... Open the silver edit folder in astro and copy Theme_Name.xml and paste it with your new res folder... You just made a morph on your phone...
Open meta morph..start checks and chose existing... Click Theme_Name and Theme_Name.xml, apply all...
Your original images from your apk are in backup inside android themes...
Thanks stericson for 2 apps..
My phone has been flashed more than Girls Gone Wild..
I can't find silver edit in the market :/ .. i'm starting to think something is wrong with my market because I couldn't find simply lockscreen either.. :/
In the directions it says "Samsung_Vibrant" so is this just for the captivate or can you insert which ever phone you want?
sabo2000 said:
In the directions it says "Samsung_Vibrant" so is this just for the captivate or can you insert which ever phone you want?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
that's just the name of the phone he's editing..
its more of a header or a title if anything..
This will work for any device, on any android device... Just edit the xml to be compatible with your device..
Im hoping this could bring some would be themers out the wood works...
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Is metamorph able to put in modified XML files as well? If so, can you explain how this is done? I tried updating some XML files in framework-res.apk via metamorph with no luck...
If i compile + sign my own framework-res.apk, then it works. But i like to use it in metamorph instead so I can change things on the fly.
xDarKnighTx said:
Is metamorph able to put in modified XML files as well? If so, can you explain how this is done? I tried updating some XML files in framework-res.apk via metamorph with no luck...
If i compile + sign my own framework-res.apk, then it works. But i like to use it in metamorph instead so I can change things on the fly.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That might be a problem with Super User or something.. That I've read about..
darkamikaze said:
That might be a problem with Super User or something.. That I've read about..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you recall where you read it? and is there some sort of workaround? or is it just not possible?
I think I read it in the meta morph topic in the android theme forum..there's another meta morph thread there
Sent from xdaApp - Captivate
Metamorph only replaces files... doesn't add new ones... so if its a new xml going to have to use an update.zip
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
I did everything by the guide in the first post but when I try to install the theme in metamorph I get the error The theme you selected is invalid because the theme control file could be missing, or is not correctly written.
Any help would be much appreciated.
I would like to flash a new ROM but i like the stock captivate theme the best.
is there any update.zip packages of the default theme floating around? i want to wait until i know i can do it before i flash. Also, is there any way to "rip" the theme from my ROM? because then i can just do that
I posted a request for this a few weeks back and got really no help.... What I did was unzip the framework.apk's from the theme I wanted and from the JH7_OTA that's floating around here somewhere and compared the images in the drawbale-hdpi folder. I think there are some files in tw-framework.apk that need to be changed if you want to change the pull down menu.
Hope this helps
The themes are mostly inside framework-res.apk, which is very ROM-specific. You can't just install them randomly inside one another.
If you'd like to port a theme, you can either replace the image files using 7-zip, WinRAR, etc. or decompile the .apk using APK Manager for more extensive changes (things like battery mods, etc.).
MikeyMike01 said:
The themes are mostly inside framework-res.apk, which is very ROM-specific. You can't just install them randomly inside one another.
If you'd like to port a theme, you can either replace the image files using 7-zip, WinRAR, etc. or decompile the .apk using APK Manager for more extensive changes (things like battery mods, etc.).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what he said ^^^^
but as a beginner's guide, you will need to pull your FRAMEWORK-RES.APK and TWFRAMEWORK-RES.APK from /system/framework folder
For this, you will need to use either ADB or an app like ASTRO or ROOTEXPLORER
when you copy these two apk's to your computer, you will need to open it up (NOT extract it) and simply replace the images inside with those from a stock FRAMEWORK-RES.APK & TWFRAMEWORK-RES.APK
The images you want to change are going to be in res/drawable-hdpi folder
Don't just replace everything, you will need to see which one's are different.. if there is something you want to change and don't know what .png file it is, just post it back up here and I will help you out
I need help creating a theme for Go Contacts. I have all of the .png's ready to go but after I replace all of the original .png's and pack it into the .zip and then into the .apk and put it on the phone I go to instal it. But every time after trail and error it says "Application not installed". I have gone through each and every .png to see if I have made an error and I believe I haven't. Any idea to what I could be doing wrong?
Same problem here, does anyone know the answer?
EDIT:
masonspisz12, did you use apk manager?
Basically I decompile the apk, swap images, compile apk then sign it.
Other things to do before compiling:
To change the name, its in res/values/strings.xml
Version number is in AndroidManifest.xml
Till this part the theme will still install over whatever theme you based it on.
To make it it's own, you need to change the package name.
The package name can be found in AndroidManifest.xml (package="blah.blahblah.something")
But changing that is not enough.
Go into the smali folder, right to the deepest folder.
There change the package name too.
Then change the folder structure names in the smali folder.
I got the hints for package name stuffs from the following posts:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=14547534&postcount=2
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=725870
Go Contacts theme .zip format
Hey Guys! I wasn't sure if I should ask but I hoped you might not mind. I really need a go contacts theme file in .zip format instead of .apk. I have searched everywhere to no avail. I saw your posts and thought maybe you may have one you're willing to share? If not I understand! Thank you! Email: [email protected]