[Atrix 4G Themes and Apps] es0tericcha0s:
Hello hello everyone. I recently picked up this Atrix and thought I would mess around with it a bit. I searched the forums here a couple of times and didn't see anything about the animated pull downs so thought I would whip one up for you to enjoy. If you haven't heard of this modification, it's it exactly how it sounds... :) When you slide down the notification / status bar screen the animation will start and will cycle through on repeat. Imagine it kind of like the looping part of the boot animation playing on the screen. I am not the creator of this modification. It was first presented here: http://www.droidforums.net/forum/droid-themes/151983-animated-status-bar-pulldown-gb-roms.html So special thanks to Alastrionia!

Instructions for Windows users... (Linux users: You should be able to follow along, as the idea is the same in both)

Things you will need:

The knowledge that whatever you do with this information is YOUR responsibility and not mine, nor the creators / developers of the mod and / or rom.

Basics -

Working computer.

Time.

Patience.

Animation / Idea for making your own animation.

Computer Programs -

Java: http://www.java.com/en/download/chrome.jsp?locale=en

Apk Manager: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=695701

Command Prompt: Start Menu > Search/Run box > Type: CMD > Hit Enter

Text Editor (Suggested - Notepad++: http://notepad-plus-plus.org/download/v5.9.3.html)*

Archive Managing program (ie WinZip, WinRar, 7zip) (Suggested - 7zip: http://www.7-zip.org/download.html)*

Image Manipulation program - (whether it be

P

hotoshop,

P

aint.Net, or G

IMP

we'll refer to it as PIMP for short from now on)

(Suggested - Dark Silent GIMP: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9903887/PCApps/Dark_Gimp.rar)*

If wanting to make one with images from a video you will also need -

A Video (if you are wanting to use one from, say, www.youtube.com then you would copy/paste that web address to a site like www.savevid.com Hit Download, Run Java Applet and select size/quality)

Video Editor (Suggested - iWiSoft Free Video Converter: http://www.iwisoft.com/videoconverter/)*

Apks -

SystemUI.apk (rom.zip > system > app > SystemUI.apk)

framework-res.apk (rom.zip > system > framework > framework-res.apk)

moto-res.apk (rom.zip > system > framework > moto-res.apk)

blur-res.apk (rom.zip > system > framework > blur-res.apk)

Move apks to the "other" folder in the Apk Manager.

(Let's say my Apk Manager folder is on my Desktop and I have renamed it ApkManager.)

The path to move the apks to would be:

C:\Users\es0tericcha0s\Desktop\ApkManager\other

Change directories to the "other" folder which you moved the apks to. In Command Prompt:

cd C:\Users\es0tericcha0s\Desktop\ApkManager\other

Enter these 3 commands:

java -jar apktool.jar if framework.res.apk <Enter>

java -jar apktool.jar if moto-res.apk <Enter>

java -jar apktool.jar if blur-res.apk <Enter>

Place SystemUI.apk in the Apk Manager place-apk-here-for-modding folder.

Double Click the Script.

Choose 22.

Choose the number of SystemUI and hit Enter.

Choose 9 for Decompile.

Naviage to Apk Manager > projects > SystemUI > res > drawable hdpi > status_bar_background_animationX.png and open your PIMP.

Edit to your heart's delight.

Common Question:

How big does the image need to be? - The screen size is 540 px x 960 px. However, I didn't even think to check this as I am used to 480 x 854 from my last few phones, and it looks fine... Your results may vary.

What kind of animation should I do? - Only you can answer that! If you are having trouble of thinking of ideas, browse the forums and see if you can't find some ideas. Search www.youtube.com for a cool video. Play with some creating some logos. Only limitation is your imagination. ;)

After editing images...

status_bar_background_animation

Navigate to Apk Manager > projects > SystemUI > res > drawable > status_bar_background_animation.xml and open with your Text Editor. Here you will be able to adjust for the amount of images you want and the speed of the image changes. You can just go from 1 - "X" number sequentially or you can have the images go 1-2-3-4-5-6-5-4-3-2 etc. depending on the style of animation or if you are trying to keep the image number down.

Save xml.

Common questions:

How many images can I have? - I'm not sure. The one I made has 31 and there have been no issues whatsoever. The original Droid would not like many on most roms, but the difference in power and speed of the two are vast, as I am sure you are aware of. With the amount of RAM / processing power, I'm sure you could easily have 50 or more.

What duration should I change the animation to? - Again, this really depends on what you are going for. How the animation looks, how many images you have, etc. I did not change mine for the default "200" Trial and error ftw! ;)

After that... (it really does not matter what order you do these in, but this might help you the first time or two to have a set path)

Navigate to Apk Manager > projects > SystemUI > res > layout > status_bar_tracking.xml and open with Text Editor.

Find -

android:background="@android:color/transparent"

Change to -

android:background="@drawable/status_bar_background_animation"

Save xml.

{Now I wanted to try and keep both the transparent color and the animation but I could not figure out how to do a double attribute. If you know what that is, and have ideas on how to implement in this case, lemme know please.}

-What that means to the layperson is that I am not sure how to control the transparency quite yet.-

After you have edited your images and xml and saved all of them go back to the script for Apk Manager and choose 11 to compile. After it finishes it will ask you if it is a system apk (Y/N). "Y" + Enter. It will ask you if you want to keep blah blah blah (Y/N). "Y" + Enter.

Go to the "keep" folder in Apk Manager > keep and delete the "res" folder and the resources.arsc file (this is the lazy way ;) ).

Go back to the Apk Manager script and hit Enter.

The apk will be completed and named unsignedSystemUI.apk and you will find it in the "place-here-for-modding" folder. Even though it says unsigned, it is signed and you will not need to do anything else to it beyond renaming it to SystemUI.apk. This new finished SystemUI.apk will be added to a flashable zip file in this format (open zip as archive to not break the signature):

flashable.zip > system > app > replace previous SystemUI.apk

Place this on your SD card and install via ClockworkMod Recovery. You will not need to wipe data or cache for this.

The example that I have made is themed for the Alien Rom (green version) built by developer kennethpenn and showcased here: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1186537 - So the rest of the thanks go to him as I like the rom and it inspired me to make this in the first place.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/9903887/AlienPullDown.zip

It is the Alien text from his thread that each letter fades in 1 at a time after each other and then it glows and fades away, then repeats. Nothing crazy, just wanted something that went with the rom that would not be offensive to anyone. It's a good base to use since I have already have all of the fixes there that you could edit to your liking. If you would prefer the stock images vs. the green Alien theme from the rom, then find the SystemUI.apk of the rom you are using and open both the stock SystemUI and the flashable zip as archives and replace the images of all but the status_bar_background_animationX.pngs.

Sorry if this seems crazy difficult, but I just wanted to be thorough so even relatively new people can at least see how it is made. If you need help, hit me up on Talk with my screen name. Enjoy!

*I receive no form of compensation for these recommendations. I merely suggest them as they are free, have a fair amount of support, and work well enough for me.*