Database Develop

[Q] Help create a Steampunk theme...?

Ok folks, my friend just got a hero and we were talking about why to root. I showed him several ROMs from this site and all the cool themes. We got to talking about how cool it would be if there was a STEAMPUNK themed ROM out there.
Here's the rub... I SUCK at theming.
I looked at the "buufed" rom and I like some of the style, but it's just not quite what I'm looking for. Props to the developer of that ROM because it's very thorough. This is the depth I'd like the Steampunk theme to have, but I just don't know how to do it. I've never built a ROM from the ground up, so I don't even know where to start.
Is anyone out there interested in a project like this, or could someone help me know what to do?
Thanks!
-mb

+1
A steam punk theme would be pretty awesome

It has begun...
Ok... I have a great deal of respect for all you devs and themers out there. This is a beast. Time-consuming and not very forgiving...
I have started working on my steampunk theme. Here are some screenshots of what I've done so far. By no means is this a complete theme. I am using ZenHeroFX 2.0 by nfinitefx45 as my base. Credit to all artists/devs for their work.
I have themed the notification pull-down as well, but I don't have a screenie of that yet. Also, I themed the stock sense rosie, but (again) no screencap yet. I'm curious what y'all think...
-mb

Looks cool so far.

Wow. You're a fast learner! Here are some clear notification bar icons that I made. You can use them so that the black squares wont show up around the icons in the notification bar. Just unzip the zip file, and you'll see the folders that the icons are supposed to go into. Good luck!
http://www.mediafire.com/?nqe4mm2znhh <---- clear notification icons
(when I say clear, I mean that they are white with a clear background)

alexthearmo said:
Wow. You're a fast learner! Here are some clear notification bar icons that I made. You can use them so that the black squares wont show up around the icons in the notification bar. Just unzip the zip file, and you'll see the folders that the icons are supposed to go into. Good luck!
http://www.mediafire.com/?nqe4mm2znhh <---- clear notification icons
(when I say clear, I mean that they are white with a clear background)
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Awesome! Thanks. That file is really helpful! I'll post more screencaps when I can do some more work on the theme.
-mb

This is looking really good. Here's another theme I found a while back that has some of the same elements of csrom and your current build. I've never used it, but maybe something in there will help you, or maybe this dev can help you.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=478570

wow! this looks ... awesome! not usually an "extreme theme" kinda guy, but this I would use!
sadly though, I am using CM6 or AOSP, so would not actually end up using it, but I will be watching this thread for S&Gs anyway. the end result should look spectacular.
if I could add one "suggestion"? Get rid of the "branding" (SteamMod in big letters on the lockscreen?), I would think ppl would rather have something less intrusive in the look. I know I would. something clean and mechanical. just a IMHO kinda suggestion, great work regardless!

fallonjp said:
This is looking really good. Here's another theme I found a while back that has some of the same elements of csrom and your current build. I've never used it, but maybe something in there will help you, or maybe this dev can help you.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=478570
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Thanks for the link. There is some good stuff I might be able to use in there... credit to the creator of course!
kingdazy said:
wow! this looks ... awesome! not usually an "extreme theme" kinda guy, but this I would use!
sadly though, I am using CM6 or AOSP, so would not actually end up using it, but I will be watching this thread for S&Gs anyway. the end result should look spectacular.
if I could add one "suggestion"? Get rid of the "branding" (SteamMod in big letters on the lockscreen?), I would think ppl would rather have something less intrusive in the look. I know I would. something clean and mechanical. just a IMHO kinda suggestion, great work regardless!
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No problem-o... I appreciate the suggestion. Funny thing, too... I was using some of the mods from this on my daily use, and I thought "I need to take off that lettering 'cuz it's getting on my nerves." I'm just going to use it as the splash screen when sense loads rather than on the lock screen.
I have to take a break from this for a couple of days, but hopefully I can work on it some next week. Here's where I'm going to have most of my problems... DISTRIBUTION. I can theme my own phone b/c I know what I'm editing... I just am not sure how to make it so others can use it without bricking their phone. Any ideas? I hate Metamorph... was thinking more of a flashable zip? Or maybe just a themed version of a full ROM? ??
-mb

I may be way off, but I'm a Hero user and digital scrap "designer". I have photographed and extracted some Steampunk watch parts that you are welcome to use if you like for your theme.
http://www.scrappincop.com/search/label/Steampunk
The DL links are right below the pics for each post. Again, if I'm way off and you think my stuff sucks, disregard this post!
I love your theme btw!

I have abandoned this project... it was too big for me to take on. If anyone wants to pick this up...?

mbuchholz said:
I have abandoned this project... it was too big for me to take on. If anyone wants to pick this up...?
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that's too bad, one theme I was really looking forward to.
and no, dont know diddle about theming.

Launcher 7

I remember a thread on here a while ago where people were theming to get the Windows Phone 7 look. There's now a launcher on the market called Launcher 7 that does most of the work for you, you should check it out.
Sent from my GSBv1.7-ERIS using XDA App

Just tried it out. Its very smooth, and its the best one I have come across.

im enjoying this launcher,its really smooth.
Sent from my ERIS using XDA App

Definitely. If there's one thing that I'd like to see more of on the Market, it's more "alternative" launchers like this. Launcher Pro, ADW, Go, etc. all have their differences, but they're more or less the same in that they're all plays off of the whole multiple homescreen and a dock thing. It's nice to see new ideas out there. I remember a while back there was a launcher that showed all of your texts, email, facebook notifications, etc. in kind of an agenda view. It never really took off, but it's good to see devs think outside the box about the homescreen.

oceanminded said:
Definitely. If there's one thing that I'd like to see more of on the Market, it's more "alternative" launchers like this. Launcher Pro, ADW, Go, etc. all have their differences, but they're more or less the same in that they're all plays off of the whole multiple homescreen and a dock thing. It's nice to see new ideas out there. I remember a while back there was a launcher that showed all of your texts, email, facebook notifications, etc. in kind of an agenda view. It never really took off, but it's good to see devs think outside the box about the homescreen.
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I strongly agree

oceanminded said:
but they're more or less the same in that they're all plays off of the whole multiple homescreen and a dock thing..
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Because thats the core of how android to this point is intended to work. I like Launcher7, its fast, smooth and functional so I play with it here and there but the tile UI is comparatively bland and boring even with widget support (and the custom ones I've seen that arent bland and boring are WAY too busy). I'm gonna put it on my wifes phone since she'll love the big ass simple tiles concept.

stanlalee said:
Because thats the core of how android to this point is intended to work. I like Launcher7, its fast, smooth and functional so I play with it here and there but the tile UI is comparatively bland and boring even with widget support (and the custom ones I've seen that arent bland and boring are WAY too busy). I'm gonna put it on my wifes phone since she'll love the big ass simple tiles concept.
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sir I want to say this without coming off as a hater at all..
but that homescreen needs a little bit of work, it looks gaudy and awful!

majorbro said:
sir I want to say this without coming off as a hater at all..
but that homescreen needs a little bit of work, it looks gaudy and awful!
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without using custom images those 2x1 and 1x1 tiles (and the headphone/camera images) are all there is. I'm not going to spend anytime importing images because I like my android phone as an android phone and it wont get any use anyway. I was basically showing how the UI looks unmolested.

Lurking Noob!!!

I've had my hero for a year, i've rooted and had numerous roms installed, but never had a very cool screen. i've really just had the basic screen, just changed wallpapers. i've looked on "post your screenshots" and there were some awesome screens. They didn't really go into great detail on how they got it to look like that. if somebody could give me some tips or just point me in the right direction, that would be great.

I'm in the same boat.... Just found out Sprint changed their upgrade policies so I'm stuck with my Hero for another year and just started playing with different themes. It gets really confusing, but if you go to the Hero Theme pages there are a lot of things you can try. Just make sure you have a good nandroid to flash back to if things go wrong, and read, read, and read some more until you understand the instructions. The Skulls & Dragon Themes were pretty easy to use....forgot which post # it was.

Skulls, Dragons, and Black theme can all be found at this thread.....
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=981757

quik_joe said:
I've had my hero for a year, i've rooted and had numerous roms installed, but never had a very cool screen. i've really just had the basic screen, just changed wallpapers. i've looked on "post your screenshots" and there were some awesome screens. They didn't really go into great detail on how they got it to look like that. if somebody could give me some tips or just point me in the right direction, that would be great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Most of the time if you QUOTE the SS, and ask the poster what setup they have, they will most likely tell you.

Alot of it relies on using a different launcher, namely launcher pro, adw launcher, or go launcher. Then you download lots of different apps like minimalistic text, desktop Visualizer, simi clock and lots of other stuff that give you lots of ways to customize your screen.
Like stated above, go to the screenshot thread find a look you like and try and imitate it. If the original author didn't say what he used, quote the post and ask if anyone can tell you. Most people who customize a lot can tell exactly what programs someone else is using.
Sent from my HERO200 using XDA App

Thanks for all the info. I'm going to try some stuff out tonight. I'm using adw launcher ex right now.

Stock Style Beautiful Widgets Superclock Skin!

Stock Style Beautiful Widgets Super Clock Skin I made, should be able to get it through the app soon.
Unzip and place in sdcard/data/beautifulwidgets/scskins
Enjoy.

Nice work, keeping with the theme I like it.
-smc

How about a clone of htc clock? Would greatly appreciate it.

suzook said:
How about a clone of htc clock? Would greatly appreciate it.
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Not mine but, heres one.
Beautiful Widgets: HTC Sense UI Skin

Woah nice job! I would totally use this, although lately I've been running without the superclock, due to the fact that there's already a clock on the lock screen and the top right corner. But wow, you don't see alot of skins of this quality within the BW app! Nice!

One thing I've been looking for is a superclock skin with the same font as the D3 lock screen. My fave font! Modern and simple.

mmcgee91 said:
One thing I've been looking for is a superclock skin with the same font as the D3 lock screen. My fave font! Modern and simple.
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Do you know the name of the font used? or where i could look in the system dump to find it? I can make one using that font.
Edit: Nevermind I Found It.

gabeevans88 said:
Do you know the name of the font used? or where i could look in the system dump to find it? I can make one using that font.
Edit: Nevermind I Found It.
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Heres a new one with the same font that is used on the lockscreen. Enjoy!

Not bad, are the skins hard to make? I've been thinking about making my own BW Skins and Themes. Just don't know if I have the patience to bust out Photoshop working so much.

wootizzle said:
Not bad, are the skins hard to make? I've been thinking about making my own BW Skins and Themes. Just don't know if I have the patience to bust out Photoshop working so much.
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It pretty much depends on what you are doing, this took me about 3 hours because of the level of detail involved, I took the system dump, extracted the apk files until i found the .9.png that was used for the widget backgrounds, and i copied every single line and gradient down the pixel, so that takes a while. But many of my others where fairly simple. It also depends on your level of skill with Photoshop and you knowledge of the tools, I've been using Photoshop for many years, so I'm very familiar with it.
Plus loading it on the phone every time you make a small change can be a little annoying at times...

gabeevans88 said:
It pretty much depends on what you are doing, this took me about 3 hours because of the level of detail involved, I took the system dump, extracted the apk files until i found the .9.png that was used for the widget backgrounds, and i copied every single line and gradient down the pixel, so that takes a while. But many of my others where fairly simple. It also depends on your level of skill with Photoshop and you knowledge of the tools, I've been using Photoshop for many years, so I'm very familiar with it.
Plus loading it on the phone every time you make a small change can be a little annoying at times...
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I'll give it a try eventually, lol.. I've got 6 years experience as a freelance designer and developer. I've just gotten to the point where if it isn't making me money I don't like to open up the programs.

This is now available to download from the application! I have also created a gingerblur toggle skin to match, which is also available! Enjoy!

Thank you so much for the skin. It looks great!
1 question though. My weather skin is still in stock and doesn't look like the one you are posting.
Would you mind posting your weather skin as well?
Thanks!

travisyeung said:
Thank you so much for the skin. It looks great!
1 question though. My weather skin is still in stock and doesn't look like the one you are posting.
Would you mind posting your weather skin as well?
Thanks!
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The weather skin is downloadable through the app, its not made by me its & called tick, sorry i forget to mention it.

Buzz Launcher

Hi Guys,
Not sure if anyone's seen this yet - it's a new launcher - currently in beta.
I've never seen a launcher with as much customization as this. You can upload your settings and also download other people's home setups.
Only been playing with it for 15 minutes or so but so far looks amazing.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.buzzpia.aqua.launcher&feature=apps_topselling_new_free
Enjoy!

looks very nice!

Trying now
Send from my awesome 1080p

Loving the whole preset themes. Allready set it up as my standard launcher.

dam nice launcher, love how clean it is! thanks for this mate

really good! already tried the pre-sets thank you!

Looks like it's got potential esp when it loses it's dependence on uccw
Thanks

ty mate, really crazy cool launcher i will use this always