View Full Version : Skin Viewer for Windows (in Visual Basic)
hey guys!
i'm currently working on a skin viewer to simplify skinning process. uploading an underdevelopement skin and testing it out on the xbox is really a pain, so i thought it would be useful.
for the moment only a few controls are supported (image (with colorkey and colordiffuse), button, buttonm, ...) but i'm stuck with id's. for instance, the button 'my programs' seems to switch to my programs section only because it has id=2, but i'm not sure about this. is there a listing available that says what those id meens exactly ?
thanks a lot
http://www.artstock.net/temp/testshot.jpg
Gamester17
2004-03-15, 16:48
moving thread the development forum as you need help with the development of the application, (so you don't just get requests for it)
ps! i believe frodo said/suggested before that it would be simplest to port 'the real' xbmc skin engine from xbox to windows (in c++)
window switching is done via the hyperlink tag. for example the my programs button should have a line like this: <hyperlink>1</hyperlink> in it. window ids are set in the respective window's xml file (at the top). certain button ids have special meanings in the code (reboot, exit to dash, power down, credits, etc.) these can be found by checking the .cpp file for the appropriate window (e.g. guiwindowhome.cpp for the home window).
Hullebulle
2004-03-15, 22:47
hmm... just a thought: wouldn't it be possible to port xbmc skin engine/interpreter to windows?
hmm... just a thought: wouldn't it be possible to port xbmc skin engine/interpreter to windows?
offcource :) but to do so you have to know some cpp programming. and from the looks of the screenshot this guy is using vb.
but a strait port from xbmc would definitely be a better choise as it would reflect the exact same thing.
but give the guy a chance. it could be a great self learning thing.
i guess sooner o later a cpp developer will make a 4 hour port of the skining engine http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
//nickman
Bobbin007
2004-03-16, 01:26
a really great idea to make a skin viewer. maybe this can be extended to a skin designer later, with property pages for controls and all that stuff. :)
also a integrated strings.xml editor would be neat, so eg. localization would be much easier.
just some ideas. http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif
greets
bobbin007
well i thought about taking xbmc code to do this but i hate c++ *:angry: and there's thousands of stuff inside the code that would need to be cleaned up, and it is something really difficult to do if you you're not the one how coded it. besides i'm 50% done, it's already too late...
but a strait port from xbmc would definitely be a better choise as it would reflect the exact same thing.
agreed! but it's not reallly a problem, most of the skin is based on bitmaps and their positions are fully described in the skin. the only thing you have to guess is relative positions, like how much pixels is the checkmark picture from the text that describes it.
the only thing i have problems with is fonts. i can't use xprs but since they are based on regular ttf fonts, i'm mapping ttf with xprs in a xml settings file and ... voila!
also a integrated strings.xml editor would be neat, so eg. localization would be much easier.
already done ! *http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif
maybe this can be extended to a skin designer later
of course this viewer is only a preview module of a larger skin editor ... :lol: i'll post more screenshots later
art
well i thought about taking xbmc code to do this but i hate c++ *:angry: and there's thousands of stuff inside the code that would need to be cleaned up, and it is something really difficult to do if you you're not the one how coded it. besides i'm 50% done, it's already too late...
but a strait port from xbmc would definitely be a better choise as it would reflect the exact same thing.
agreed! but it's not reallly a problem, most of the skin is based on bitmaps and their positions are fully described in the skin. the only thing you have to guess is relative positions, like how much pixels is the checkmark picture from the text that describes it.
the only thing i have problems with is fonts. i can't use xprs but since they are based on regular ttf fonts, i'm mapping ttf with xprs in a xml settings file and ... voila!
also a integrated strings.xml editor would be neat, so eg. localization would be much easier.
already done ! *http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/cool.gif
maybe this can be extended to a skin designer later
of course this viewer is only a preview module of a larger skin editor ... :lol: i'll post more screenshots later
art
sounds like you'r ontop of it all.. can't wait to see the end result. best of luck!
//nickman
hey,
here's a couple of shots showing xpr font mapping support and a render of the hifi skin in myvideos. speaking about fonts, does anyone know what the original ttf fonts are for common-fontxx.xpr and matrix8.xpr ??
http://www.artstock.net/temp/testshot3.jpg
http://www.artstock.net/temp/testshot2.jpg
art
the matrix font used in the screensaver can be found here;
matrix symbol font by lexandr (mcode 1.5 - http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/2040700/) (http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/2040700/)
Gamester17
2004-03-17, 15:16
does anyone know what the original ttf fonts are for common-fontxx.xpr
tahoma (not sure if it's "tahoma.ttf" or "tahoma bold.ttf", anyway get of windows pc from "c:\winnt\fonts" or "c:\windows\fonts")
does anyone know what the original ttf fonts are for common-fontxx.xpr
tahoma (not sure if it's "tahoma.ttf" or "tahoma bold.ttf", anyway get of windows pc from "c:\winnt\fonts" or "c:\windows\fonts")
thanks for the quick answer but it doesn't seem to be tahoma, look how the 'm' is bendend to the right and the typewriter-like 'g' or 'a' doesn't look the same in tahoma ...
tahoma is the credits font, i think the normal skin font is trebuchet (comes with windows).
tahoma is the credits font, i think the normal skin font is trebuchet (comes with windows).
that's right, now it does look the way it should!!
thanks a lot
btw, i'm around 70% of work done until i get a complete skin viewer, and i will have to do some basic interaction, so that you can navigate through the different xbmc screens.
this will make the preview module of a larger skin editor and the grounds of the editor itself (i'll only have to draw some basic schematics above the controls in order to do that), but i was also thinking it could be used as a "remote xbmc desktop" as long as the web server offers enough control commands, what do you guys think ?
art
did you upload your source anywhere?
if not- are you planing of doing so anytime soon?
did you upload your source anywhere?
if not- are you planing of doing so anytime soon?
no, and this for a very simple reason, i won't release totaly unstable source code. but don't worry everything will be opensource, i will realease something once i get a rather complete "emulation" of xbmc (navigating through xbmc screens) and once i cleaned up the code a little bit.
art
did you upload your source anywhere?
if not- are you planing of doing so anytime soon?
no, and this for a very simple reason, i won't release totaly unstable source code. but don't worry everything will be opensource, i will realease something once i get a rather complete "emulation" of xbmc (navigating through xbmc screens) and once i cleaned up the code a little bit.
art
thanks, i want to try implementing ttf support to xbmc,
it would be great if i could use some of your code.
did you use the xbmc skin engine or did you create it from scratch?
i would really appriciate it if you would let me have a look at the code as soon as you feel you can do so.
(i dont care if its messy or crushes, i just wanna check some stuff without having to upload files to the xbox)
i thought of creating tga files from ttf files when a skin loads up, so if anyone has comments, i would be happy to get them.
thanks, i want to try implementing ttf support to xbmc, it would be great if i could use some of your code
sorry but it won't be of any use, i'm mapping what you can find in xml files that says to xbmc to use xpr fonts with ttf files. i don't have any code to open xpr files. but it's not really matter since only a few xpr are used yet.
i would really appriciate it if you would let me have a look at the code as soon as you feel you can do so.
i have no doubt people will try to improve my code as soon as i release it, they will probably send me their modifications, but i don't want them to do this until i'm sure how this code will be organised. maybe in a week or so ...
good luck for your project :)
art
i thought of creating tga files from ttf files when a skin loads up, so if anyone has comments, i would be happy to get them.
check out xfont_opentruetypefont().
Gamester17
2004-03-17, 19:21
i want to try implementing ttf support to xbmc, it would be great if i could use some of your code.
why not use the ttf source code from xboxmediaplayer (http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/) instead?, i mean the code is already ported to xbox (check it out! (http://sourceforge.net/projects/xbplayer))
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
errr ... did you say that for me, cause the point is not to run my program by the box!! anyways, as a side note, it's written in vb.net not vb (6)
i want to try implementing ttf support to xbmc, it would be great if i could use some of your code.
why not use the ttf source code from xboxmediaplayer (http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/) instead?, i mean the code is already ported to xbox (check it out! (http://sourceforge.net/projects/xbplayer))
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
thanks- i would give it a shot
you think there is any chance of getting it in to the cvs?
Hullebulle
2004-03-18, 02:01
hmm... just a thought: wouldn't it be possible to port xbmc skin engine/interpreter to windows?
offcource *:) but to do so you have to know some cpp programming. and from the looks of the screenshot this guy is using vb.
but a strait port from xbmc would definitely be a better choise as it would reflect the exact same thing.
but give the guy a chance. it could be a great self learning thing.
i guess sooner o later a cpp developer will make a 4 hour port of the skining engine http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/wink.gif
//nickman
oh i didn't want to stop anybody. *:)
Hullebulle
2004-03-18, 02:15
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
errr ... did you say that for me, cause the point is not to run my program by the box!! anyways, as a side note, it's written in vb.net not vb (6)
no. he was refering to okets who wanna add ttf support to xbmc. ;)
how will this work with the new compressed textures feature? i guess your skin app would have to include some sort of textures.xpr extract(/compress) to make it work? could be some kind of caller to an external comp/extract application as the current can't be distributed publicly?
i do realise that if you have original gfx thats no problem but currently most skins released, utilise texture compression so anyone who don't own original gfx can't really use the viewer (if there isn't any extraction). mce-skin is in cvs in uncompressed state so that can always be used tho.
oh and great work btw http://www.xboxmediaplayer.de/forums/non-cgi/emoticons/tounge.gif
Gamester17
2004-03-18, 14:18
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
errr ... did you say that for me, cause the point is not to run my program by the box!! anyways, as a side note, it's written in vb.net not vb (6)
no. he was refering to okets who wanna add ttf support to xbmc. ;)
yep :)
@okets, yes if you code it and submit it as a patch on sourceforge. but if you're asking if the official devs plan to code it soon then no
edit: note! art is writing his skin viewer in vb (visual basic), and all xbox code must be c++, c, or assembly which xbmc/xbmp is.
errr ... did you say that for me, cause the point is not to run my program by the box!! anyways, as a side note, it's written in vb.net not vb (6)
no. he was refering to okets who wanna add ttf support to xbmc. ;)
yep :)
@okets, yes if you code it and submit it as a patch on sourceforge. but if you're asking if the official devs plan to code it soon then no
i'll do it.(ttf fonts support to xbmc)
anybody thinks of anything i need to take in mind?
i think i will try to implemet the xbmp code to xbmc.