[Verizon Droid Charge] Endless2232:
Hey guys, since spc_hicks09 was nice enough to post an "intro to Theming" thread found here I thought I would contribute with some things I've learned that will help make the process a little bit easier. This first post will focus on editing images.

Preface:

I am in no way an expert or even a true "themer". This is simply what works for me. If you think you have some comments or some advice of your own to share, please p.m. me and I will try to add it to this thread as soon as I can.

Requirements:

1. Photoshop. (Or another image editor but this is what i personally use and what I will be basing advice off of) (I have cs4)

2. Gimp image editor. (Download here)

4. a basic knowledge of theming in general. (Read thread linked to at top of post)

3. Patience and a Lot of time.

Preperation:

1. Before you begin editing your newly decompiled APK, make two copies. Mark one as "changes" and one as "reference". This way, if you ever screw up while experimenting (which will happen) you can refer back to the reference folder to see what you did wrong. Helpful with .9.png's

Let's get started:

1. To begin with, almost all the images you are going to ever need to edit to create a theme are found in the /res/drawable-hdpi or /res/drawable folders within your decompiled APK.

2. There are two types of images, .png's and .9.png's.

a. .png's are pretty straight forward. Open up the image in photoshop, make whatever changes you want to, and save the image.​

b. .9.png's are a little bit more tricky and will be the main cause of errors you get when first beginning. These images have a 'frame' of solid black pixels in specific locations along the border of the image. When you edit the image, you must make sure not to delete these border pixels or change their positions. They must also remain 100% black. The picture below gives an example of a .9.png image and the said pixels (marked by red arrows)​

3. The images you open can come in different image modes such as RGB, Grayscale, and Indexed. It is a good idea to get in the habit of changing the image mode to RGB everytime you start working on an image. In photoshop this can be done under Image>Mode. Some indexed images will be goofy looking when you open them up in Photoshop. To fix this, open the indexed image in GIMP and change the image mode to RGB and save. Then open it up in Photoshop and the image should look normal again.

4. When replacing an image, make sure that it has the same name and same image size as the original image. I.e. if the original image was 32x32 make sure the new one is as well.

5. If you get an error while compiling your newly "Themed" APK, and the error says something like "blah_blah.9.png malformed", it means you did something to the 'frame' pixels. Go back to your reference image and fix it!

Quick Tips:

1. Layers are your friend. Use them where applicable. When editing an image, if you merge layers down and then save you do not have to go through the pop-up save menu. This is a valuable time saver.

2. Keyboard Shortcuts are your best friend. You can create your own under Edit>Keyboard Shortcuts.

3. There are many ways to select parts of an image.

a. Use the marquee tool to catch specific pixels.​

b. The magic wand can be very helpful but sometimes is not completely accurate (make sure to de-select anti-alias when using so you do not delete adjacent unselected pixels).​

c. Select>Color Range is a great way to select certain parts of an image.​

d. Select>Modify is a way to make small changes to your selection without too much effort.​

e. Holding shift will add to your current selection. Holding alt will remove from your current selection.​

4. Use layer properties to your advantage. For example, if i simply want to change the color of an image from gray to red i would use Layer>Layer Style>Color Overlay. Layer properties is a great way to add effects to your images without spending too much time.

Pep Talk:

Advice is nothing compared to experimenting on your own. These are just some things I would have liked to know when i first started out. This is by no-means a say-all guide and I left some things out that I will add in the future (it's late). Stick with it and you'll find out how nice it is to be able to make things look exactly like how you want them too. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share. I will try to answer the best i can, but can't promise I'll know every answer.

Good Luck!