Database Develop

[Q] Looking for a black and white hack/mod

Just wondering if there's something I can do to simply make all my apps and/or widgets black and white?

Or I suppose if someone can lead me to a tutorial on how I can just do it myself? I can just throw them all in Photoshop and greyscale em, if someone could just point me in the right direction

adb pull each app/widget that you would like to theme. Extract the apk using 7zip, winrar, or whatever you use. I prefer 7zip because I think you have to change the file extension with winrar, and there's no point in using extra steps to achieve the same thing. Anyways, after you extract the apk, navigate to the res folder. You'll then see folders that say drawable, drawable-mdpi, or something like that. In those folders are the .png images that you can edit using photoshop. Save them with the same name in the same directory that you got in from. Now, go back to the .apk file you pulled from your phone. Open the archive (DON'T EXTRACT). Navigate to the res/drawable folders within the archive and drag and drop the edited images into the archive. Now (still in the archive) back up to META-INF folder and delete everything in there. Now, close the archive and sign the .apk. Now, you can push it back to your phone.

Or you could get better cut or adw from the market and download icon packs that meet your monochromatic needs. Seems easier than the above.

YoungSinema said:
adb pull each app/widget that you would like to theme. Extract the apk using 7zip, winrar, or whatever you use. I prefer 7zip because I think you have to change the file extension with winrar, and there's no point in using extra steps to achieve the same thing. Anyways, after you extract the apk, navigate to the res folder. You'll then see folders that say drawable, drawable-mdpi, or something like that. In those folders are the .png images that you can edit using photoshop. Save them with the same name in the same directory that you got in from. Now, go back to the .apk file you pulled from your phone. Open the archive (DON'T EXTRACT). Navigate to the res/drawable folders within the archive and drag and drop the edited images into the archive. Now (still in the archive) back up to META-INF folder and delete everything in there. Now, close the archive and sign the .apk. Now, you can push it back to your phone.
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Click to collapse
There is no need to ever rename any archive with winrar just goto "open with" and choose winrar and then check the box to associate winrar with apks you can do this with jars also.
Check black mod them in apps and themes I think you'll be satisfied with that.

YoungSinema said:
adb pull each app/widget that you would like to theme. Extract the apk using 7zip, winrar, or whatever you use. I prefer 7zip because I think you have to change the file extension with winrar, and there's no point in using extra steps to achieve the same thing. Anyways, after you extract the apk, navigate to the res folder. You'll then see folders that say drawable, drawable-mdpi, or something like that. In those folders are the .png images that you can edit using photoshop. Save them with the same name in the same directory that you got in from. Now, go back to the .apk file you pulled from your phone. Open the archive (DON'T EXTRACT). Navigate to the res/drawable folders within the archive and drag and drop the edited images into the archive. Now (still in the archive) back up to META-INF folder and delete everything in there. Now, close the archive and sign the .apk. Now, you can push it back to your phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You failed to mention that modifying the 9.pngs will have to be 9patched or else they will get distorted. But an easier thing to do is look in the themes section and find a theme or use an alternate Home launcher and use themes for those found in the market.

A lot of what u want to do is XML edits. U can always change icon colors. 7zip is a must use cause winrar is crap and to many steps.

unCoRrUpTeD said:
You failed to mention that modifying the 9.pngs will have to be 9patched or else they will get distorted. But an easier thing to do is look in the themes section and find a theme or use an alternate Home launcher and use themes for those found in the market.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Oh yeah. Thanks. I recently read that we can edit 9.pngs using photoshop if a 1px border is added to the image. Is that true? If so, it'll be easier for me that eclipse.

[Q] creating task bar

how would i edit the task bar in asopmod rom i searched through google i found nothing can someone plz help

First you need to read up on theming but in short all those png's reside in the system/framework/framework-res.apk. In that apk if you goto res/drawable-hdpi folder you'll see all of the png's that make up the task bar.
You'll need apkManager and a paint program.

Simmons - I was trying to do something similar but was having no luck -
I wanted to pull the 4G icons out of an Evo rom and put them in place of the 3G icons on CM6 - i thought it would be a riot -
I extracted the 4G's and renamed them to their 3G counterparts names and have them saved on my desktop - but I dont know the right way to extract framework-res.apk, then put in my new icons, then, and probably most importantly, zip it back up so it will flash right !
any thoughts?

Simple how to theme.
Vandelay007 said:
Simmons - I was trying to do something similar but was having no luck -
I wanted to pull the 4G icons out of an Evo rom and put them in place of the 3G icons on CM6 - i thought it would be a riot -
I extracted the 4G's and renamed them to their 3G counterparts names and have them saved on my desktop - but I dont know the right way to extract framework-res.apk, then put in my new icons, then, and probably most importantly, zip it back up so it will flash right !
any thoughts?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
heres the How to
An apk is really just a zip file... apk stands for android package (if i remember correctly). So treat it like a standard zip file.
You'll need apk manager this will allow you to sign zips which makes them flashable. get that here
Now get your favorite Rom and make a folder. In that folder make 2 folders one called packed the other called packed. Take your rom and unzip it in the unpacked folder. and then take the original zip and move it to the packed folder.
Next go into the unpacked folder and nav to system/framework.framework-res.apk take this apk and unzip it in this folder and then make a copy of the apk and move the copy to the packed folder.
Now when you want to make a change to the framework-res.apk use the unpacked as a reference. us the packed as the change dir, you do this by opening but not unzipping the apk you want to change and just dragging the files you are replacing into the apk, this will replace them. You might want to make a a 3rd folder sorta of a master copy if you ever mess up the packed roms.
Now that you have an altered framework-res.apk you can just push it to system/framework folder (i think) and reboot and your changes are in. I never do this since flashable is easier to manage I make a flashable.
A flashable is like a but allot smaller, so d/l one of my themes and take the zip file and place in in a folder next to the packed and unpacked folder call it something like staging. now unzip apk manager into the top dir next to 3 other folders you just made.
Now my theme zip can be renamed to whatever you want your going to use it as a place holder for signing flashable zips. go into the theme zip and delete ever thing in the system folder except the framework folder then go into the frame work folder and delete everything.
Your flashable zip folder should only have a a meta-inf folder and a system folder, the system folder should only have a framework folder. Now drag your altered framework-res.apk into the flashable zip folder you just cleaned out.
Ok now you have to sign it copy that flashable zip to the place-apk-here-for-signing folder, this should have shown up when you unzipped apk manager into the folder the also contains unpacked and packed folders.
Now click on the script.bat and you'll see a bunch of option you can do option 16 to sign your zip. it takes a second or two and the date should get updated on the flashable.zip file in the place-apk-here-for-signing folder.
Now you have your new them ready to install. if your changing something else find the apk and replace framework-res.apk in these instruction and it works the same. note that most app reside in system/app so you next to take that into account.
Edit: Maybe I should have made a new thread.

creating task bar
thanks simmons i will let u know how bad i mess up but yes thanks alot man

do you have to use MIUI to use .mtz files?

Is there anyway to extract icons out of them if not?

You have to be on miui to /use/ it, but otherwise it is simply a zip. Change the file name to .zip if you need to, and pop it open.

extracting it worked but the icons are a Unix executable file...how to you get the icons out of this file?

Wha?
Um...
Oh, right. Probably a new format .mtz
Change the icons to .zip aswell, and any other folder you want to open too.

I just extracted one too, but the icon file is not a mtz. Any thoughts?

just rename icons to icons.zip and extract

Im using 7zip and take the png and icon and convert to cm7 themes
Sent from my iStone using Internet Explorer Pro

MIUI Lockscreen Help please (Language change)

I like this MiLocker Lockscreen , but its in chinese.
What i did is here
1) I copied .mtz file from sd card to computer , renamed it to .zip and extract all
2) chaged lockscreen to lockscreen.zip and extract all
3) change all .png files of chinese date to english date (created all dates, times, days on png and replaced, with same name and sizes)
4) rezipped lockscreen.zip and delete .zip
5) rezip it (main file ) and change .zip to .mtz
6) place it to miui on sd card
and now when i open milocker app, it says there is some error on sd card and its modifying and take me to homescreen !
How do i make it work
Please help me !

Try not to rename or change the extension files (mtz, zip) : try to make it with 7zip, easier to work on drag and drop with the png and the manifest.xml u have to edit.
tlkh and picard666 helped me on the same case, here. Give a look to both manfests of each mtz, before and after the translation, it should help. I'll give a look to yours.
EDIT : can you add the original mtz pls ?

21vm said:
Try not to rename or change the extension files (mtz, zip) : try to make it with 7zip, easier to work on drag and drop with the png and the manifest.xml u have to edit.
tlkh and picard666 helped me on the same case, here. Give a look to both manfests of each mtz, before and after the translation, it should help. I'll give a look to yours.
EDIT : can you add the original mtz pls ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you.
I have never done this before
I will give a try .
Here is original mtz file.
Thanks again

I tried to unzip via 7zip but it gave me error and didnt move more than 3% , now what?

hi, from what i know you right click the file and click "Extract All..."
I also tried editing this lockscreen but to no avail.

Miui v4 Icon Format

Hi, I am trying to make changes to an icon theme but keep getting "Wrong theme format" error in the Miui v4 theme manager.
I used the same process I did back on GB that worked... renamed the .mtz to .zip, extracted it, renamed icons to icons.zip, extracted it. Then I edited .png's in the icons folder, zipped all the .png's into a file called icons.zip and removed the .zip by renaming icons.zip to just icons. Then I zipped the files: description.xml, icons, and preview folder. I renamed this .zip to a .mtz, pushed it to my phone and tried to apply the theme but got the error. I've searched but haven't found any solutions.
Has the icon theme format changed for v4? Thanks for any help.

Just take a MIUI icons set (like Cain HD for ex)
- open the .mtz using 7zip (no need to rename or change extension)
- double click on "icon", drag and drop ur icons.
- then close everything, it will ask u if u want to update/refresh the file. say YES and that's it

Raulinho7 said:
Just take a MIUI icons set (like Cain HD for ex)
- open the .mtz using 7zip (no need to rename or change extension)
- double click on "icon", drag and drop ur icons.
- then close everything, it will ask u if u want to update/refresh the file. say YES and that's it
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Click to collapse
I would've tried this method but unfortunately I have a Mac and haven't been able to find a good 7zip equivalent :/ Any idea why it worked when I decompressed/compressed mtz's on GB but not ICS? The format all seems the same.

iamchrisc said:
I would've tried this method but unfortunately I have a Mac and haven't been able to find a good 7zip equivalent :/ Any idea why it worked when I decompressed/compressed mtz's on GB but not ICS? The format all seems the same.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My guess is that somehow you didn't package it correctly. Double check to see if that's the issue.

i did it this way
if i have an iconpack in wrong size, i first resize the icons
then i mark all icons and add them to an archive with 7zip
now i take the icons.zip and the description.xml add it to a new zip
inside the zipfile, i rename the icons.zip into icons and you are ready^^

Have you tried using the 'store' option - I.e. no compression?
Changing the extension while inside the theme zip will also help to avoid certain issues.

Well I was able to get it working by using StuffIt Archive Manager to replace icons without uncompressing/compressing the mtz. Still strange it doesn't work when I uncompress it. I'm positive I package it back in the same way, I've triple checked. Guess I'll just have to use the StuffIt Delux trial for now.