One Piece At A Time : Windowblind Tutorial Part II
Design: Title Bars & Window Frames
Friday, January 20, 2012 by PoSmedley | Discussion: WindowBlinds Tutorials
Welcome to Part II of the 'One Piece At A Time' tutorial. This thread will be concentrating on the design of the Title Bars & Window Frames for the Roan Windowblind. Several skinners are helping me through these threads in an effort to understand and learn how to build Windowblinds. (And they would be Vampothika, neone6, and 2of3) Along with a lot of other talented skinners, artists, etc, who have participated with this so far, we're hoping these threads will also help other would be or existing skinners as well. We also have gmc2 sorting through all of the info posted for hte Wincustomize Wiki.
EXAMPLE:
For these first few parts, we'll be working on the design of the Roan Windowblinds elements and then bringing them all together and exploring SKS (Skin Studio) where we'll take everything and put it together.
If you're looking for Part I, II, III you can find them here:
One Piece At A Time : Windowblind Tutorial Part I
Design : Start Menu and Taskbar
One Piece At A Time : Windowblind Tutorial Part II
Design: Title Bars & Window Frames
One Piece At A Time : Windowblind Tutorial Part II
Design: Edit Controls
PLEASE :
- I am open to suggestions but may not use any of them. Please, don't be offended if I don't use yours.
- Keep the image posting to the skin(s)
- If you want to make a skin to go with this, PM me for the files. My PSD's tend to be a mess, but I save everything and will be happy to share. I am uploading the actual files to the Graphics Gallery here on Wincustomize.
- We'll be skinning for Windows7, maybe Vista. If someone wants to do XP, PM me and I will get you what you need.
- Any files you request will come as I complete them. I won't be jumping ahead. Please be patient.
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The PSD files for the previous threads are in the Graphics Gallery.
Roan WB Title Bars and Window Frames
Roan WB Taskbar Buttons
Roan WB Title Bars and Window Frames
Roan WB Taskbar Buttons
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-- Ace --
Reply #4 Friday, January 20, 2012 10:48 AM
Thanks.
Now, where is my morning Derp??? The shortbus is late again!
Reply #5 Friday, January 20, 2012 10:52 AM
Sorry...... I was busy licking the windows.......... 
Reply #6 Friday, January 20, 2012 10:59 AM
Had a dream about him last night.
*no more dunkin' derps at bedtime.
Reply #7 Friday, January 20, 2012 11:07 AM
{insert something witty here, I don't care enough about this project to put in the effort.}
Reply #9 Friday, January 20, 2012 12:43 PM
Kinda idle in what I want to do with the design.
Reply #10 Friday, January 20, 2012 1:22 PM
Just so we´re perfectly clear on this (Others who doesen´t have a clue will read this too) 
Reply #11 Friday, January 20, 2012 1:30 PM
Reduced 54%Original 800 x 800
This is the part that always takes the wind out of my sails, too. There is so much more freedom with the Start Panel and the Taskbar. You get to the Windowframe and now you get cramped with figuring out titlebar buttons (never enough real estate do go as much as I really want) and all the rest of the tiny bits that need to be skinned.
Two things can happen at this point--you can get up, walk around, make a sandwich, come back refreshed and work it out, or you start something else and this one ends up on the Island of Lost Windowblinds like the rest of the great ideas that die prematurely.
I'm putting on my cheerleader outfit and picking up my pompoms and chanting for you, "GO PO! GO PO! KICK that Windowframe, get it done, Gooooo PO!"
Reply #12 Friday, January 20, 2012 1:35 PM
No. This is getting done. I've told myself if I get stuck...really stuck..I'm going with whatever I have. The design isn't a huge a deal on this as it is to just get through it and have a complete blind.
Having said that...
*Damien Rice - The Blowers Daughter - always helps me clear my head- been listening to him for the past hour or so
Put it up top. Thanks.
Reply #17 Friday, January 20, 2012 2:22 PM
just thinking out loud: you could remove the icon from the upper left hand corner, make that center graphic into a button and place the button where the icon used to be.
Reply #18 Friday, January 20, 2012 3:03 PM
left???
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neone6 - I'm not getting out of what's possible with this top bar, am I? I know you have the option to stretch and tile certain areas. I guess the stitching is gonna be the issue?
and*
From previous experience messing with textures - I know you can make a small graphic and stretch/tile it with little or no distortion. With this I'm making them a little larger (so the area you actually tile is larger) to minimize the distortion/lines. Does that make sense?
This may be a bad example (using photoshop) . I thought there would be a more visible seam.
Reply #19 Friday, January 20, 2012 3:29 PM
I would use layers with this and tile the texture and stitching separate of each other, so it doesn't look predictably tiled.
Reply #20 Friday, January 20, 2012 3:36 PM
I haven't messed with 'layers' in SKS. That's why I'm saving everything, incase that's the route we end up taking. The last image I posted shows it tiled (in photoshop). Will SKS be that different?
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Reply #1 Friday, January 20, 2012 9:25 AM
May not have any graphics til this afternoon. I was up late putting together the PSD uploads and barely started on the frames.