[nolti27]

Originally Posted by zGuy

Love your theme and, just as important: Your engaging emails and responses.
If this theme can be modified to be a hidden today plus type with a weather slot, I would make it the one and only on my Blackberry.
Kudos and thanks, HaTaX!

x2 on this!!!

[HaTaX]

Got the changes to the incoming call screen completed and updated. Pretty minor update, but it was getting annoying for me. Sorry for the delay on this, work has been pretty demanding lately!

As far as having this be a hidden theme, I'm actually working on an updated version that would have 2 or 3 small, very thin icons at the top. Icons that are linked to messages, calendar, and phone logs so that when one of them is selected you will have 6 lines of today information display below it. This should appease all looking for different lines of info for different categories, and keep a high level of functionality for everyone.

Also, while I'm at it, I may have those icons, and your chose icons dim or slide off the screen when the profiles icon is selected leaving only your wallpaper showing.

Let me know what you all think about the idea above and I'll work on a few shots to show what I'm thinking...

Now, as to that new version that fixes the annoying run over text problem on the incoming call screen........



Open these links up on your BB browser: (Same links as posted previously, files are updated though)
Click me for OTA Link

Click me for OTA Link of NON-Animated version

ALX Files for desktop manager installation are below if anyone needs non-ota links:

[HaTaX]

Originally Posted by GaryFolke

In the previous theme builder for OS 4.6 I had a similar problem when creating a theme for my Bold 9000.
I found that if I used the same filename for the lock screen background, the home screen background and the icon menu background when building the theme then it would work.
Changing the home screen background (once the theme was compiled and installed) would change them all.
I haven't messed around with the latest theme builder so you may well have already tried this and found that it doesn't work...

Thanks for your great work on this theme so far - it's saved me some time building one as it's just what I wanted.

Just tried this again and it still behaves the same way, the icon screen keeps the theme background while the lock screen and home screen change background in unison. Also tried resetting all back to defaults and we get the same behavior...

Hopefully they'll come up with a work around for this fairly soon, seems to only affect certain OS & models as well.

[finky]

Thanks for the hard work on this as usual!!

Can't wait to see the updates!

[HaTaX]

Okay, I've made some progress on creating the new theme with a hidden top and bottom dock. The left picture shows the regular home screen with the browser icon selected. The right picture shows the profiles icon selected. On the right picture the top row of icons has done a fade to disappear and the bottom row of icons slides off the bottom of the screen.

You can't see it in the left picture, but there is a today area in the middle of the screen that will display "today" information from any of the top 3 icons or the bottom 6 icons. The today area is setup to show up to 6 lines of information.



Hopefully having the 3 icons at the top will let the people who wanted more icons available on the homescreen move their other desired apps onto the bottom row of 6. This way you've got 9 icons (besides the profile icon) on the homescreen with the ability to customize the lower 6.

Also if you look closely at the picture, the background on the left is slightly darker. That's because I am using a very slight mask when the icons are on the screen to improve readability of the today text and everything else on the screen.

Let me know your thoughts on this layout....

[zGuy]

HaTaX, I like the new theme with a hidden top and bottom dock a lot, it is precisely what I was looking for. I think this theme and format could finally be my permanent theme (I seem to go through 4-5 themes per week, undecided on my favorite). Kudos!

[infernox]

Originally Posted by HaTaX

I think this is a bug in the new theme builder that the homescreen wallpaper isn't applied to the icon menu screen. I've tried giving the icon menu a transparent wallpaper, but all that does is create a white background. I'll keep looking for a resolution to it, but I'm thinking it will take a bug fix release from RIM / Plazmic to resolve it.


That being said, I've done some tweaking to the theme for my own tastes and to try out some other things you can do in theme builder. If any of you would like to try it out, I may release it as a separate theme.

I've added an animated lock screen (Wallpaper scrolls from bottom to top, repeats infinitely) and changed the wallpaper used on the homescreen and icon menu. Also all of the icon box shading is gone and the focus "blue" halo is slightly transparent. The menu and pop up dialogs have also been made a very dark slightly transparent blue. The color and transparency changes with the angle you look at the screen from top to bottom.

If you'd like to give it a shot, here's some info on it below....


Home Screen:
http://hatax.home.comcast.net/bb/tod...HomeScreen.PNG

Icon Menu:
http://hatax.home.comcast.net/bb/tod...m/IconMenu.PNG

Lock Screen Shot 1 (Animated):
http://hatax.home.comcast.net/bb/tod...ockScreen1.PNG

Lock Screen Shot 2 (Animated):
http://hatax.home.comcast.net/bb/tod...ockScreen2.PNG

Download Link (OTA): http://hatax.home.comcast.net/bb/tod...700-custom.jad

Your info will appear on the lock screen, I just blanked it out so you could see the animation better.

Hatax - can you also post this wallpaper? I like it!

[kenny3794]

Originally Posted by HaTaX

Okay, I've made some progress on creating the new theme with a hidden top and bottom dock. The left picture shows the regular home screen with the browser icon selected. The right picture shows the profiles icon selected. On the right picture the top row of icons has done a fade to disappear and the bottom row of icons slides off the bottom of the screen.

You can't see it in the left picture, but there is a today area in the middle of the screen that will display "today" information from any of the top 3 icons or the bottom 6 icons. The today area is setup to show up to 6 lines of information.


Hopefully having the 3 icons at the top will let the people who wanted more icons available on the homescreen move their other desired apps onto the bottom row of 6. This way you've got 9 icons (besides the profile icon) on the homescreen with the ability to customize the lower 6.

Also if you look closely at the picture, the background on the left is slightly darker. That's because I am using a very slight mask when the icons are on the screen to improve readability of the today text and everything else on the screen.

Let me know your thoughts on this layout....

With the previous version of this theme showing messages and calendar, I do not use those icons because I can always select them from the today listing. Since the Call button on the blackberry doubles as the Phone icon, I always have it phone icon hidden as well. Therefore, I already have 6 icons I can control accross the bottom. While this is not a bad idea for those who like an empty screen when not on messages/calendar/phone or like a larger today listing, this variation just isn't for me. I'll be watching to see what other variants you devise!

Thanks for the work,
Ken

[HaTaX]

Originally Posted by kenny3794

With the previous version of this theme showing messages and calendar, I do not use those icons because I can always select them from the today listing. Since the Call button on the blackberry doubles as the Phone icon, I always have it phone icon hidden as well. Therefore, I already have 6 icons I can control accross the bottom. While this is not a bad idea for those who like an empty screen when not on messages/calendar/phone or like a larger today listing, this variation just isn't for me. I'll be watching to see what other variants you devise!

Thanks for the work,
Ken

Good point! I also do not have those icons on my home screen because I use "M", "L", and the talk button to bring up those screens. I will look into what it would take to make a scrolling bottom bar, don't think it would be too hard...... So good job, you convinced me to look at it.

Really the purpose of putting them up at the top like that was to give more room for today text to have 6 lines of text. Also works into making a weather slot in a different version. And the hiding / sliding is for those that like a clean homescreen, you do have to go all the way up to profiles to hide everything and you can bring up profile selection with the "f" key without the animation. Hopefully it'll "fit" with most people in it's final incarnation.

[HaTaX]

Originally Posted by infernox

Hatax - can you also post this wallpaper? I like it!

This one?

[finky]

Hatax,

When you do the next update (with the links on the top), can you do it as a separate named one? So it doesn't erase the previous update? That way if the previous one works better, we can still keep it...instead of it being erased by updating.

I'd love to see how smooth everything looks once you do the messages/calendar/calls up top, but i have a feeling i'm also going to like always having them on the screen to remind me.

Thanks!

[HaTaX]

Yes! When the new version is released it will be released as "TodayPlus-9700" and will be an entirely new theme. I will probably change some backgrounds and such as well so they are a little more distinguishable from each other.

Kind of using this thread to gather ideas from users at this point. And I've run into a bit of an aesthetics "bug" that's a PITA to work around. Basically I added the weather slot in the upper right of the banner and squeezed it in just under the signal bar. If I make that icon so you can navigate to it (Going right from profiles) then I cannot have the top messages, calendar, and phone icon smoothly fade away. Instead they just disappear as soon as you goto the profiles icon.

This is because of how the SVG is read and and followed, basically a "focusin" is read before a focus out. When you come back to the profiles icon the top icons briefly flash and fade away if navigation to the weather slot is enabled. Or I could just make it so that you press the "W" key to load whatever is in that slot.

What do you people think? Is it that important to be able to navigate to the weather slot or would just a "W" be good enough? Is the fade away of the top icon bar important enough to sacrifice manual navigation to the icon?

[Stevestrike]

This is 98% of what I have been searching for. Would you be willing to do a version with "Messages, Call Log, & Calendar" on the home screen?

[finky]

Well im kinda biased bc I don't have weather on my home screen...so I say pressing W is just fine with me.

[infernox]

Originally Posted by HaTaX

This one?
http://img190.imageshack.us/img190/5...ackgrounds.png

Thanks HaTax. That's the one!

[HaTaX]

Well guess what!? I found a way to get that animation to work and to keep the buttons from re-appearing. It involves setting up some sequences in a certain way and isn't real reliable for fast movements through the UI...

I'm going to keep the non-fading fast removal of the top icons as the performance hit of getting it the way I want is just too great. With a fast fade off the screen the overall performance is actually great! I've basically grown this from manual editing of the SVG file as composer is kind of a POS as it sits.... Faster for me to do it with TedNotepad and copy and paste sections.

So as it sits this theme is nearing a release. Maybe some people here would like to help me test it out?

[BB6Machine]

Will this work for BOLD 9000?

[JSanders]

Originally Posted by BB6Machine

Will this work for BOLD 9000?

It pretty clearly states "9700" in the title here I read.

Two different OS versions... 4.6 vs 5.0

[finky]

Be happy to test for ya. Kinda feel like I've been helpin test a little for the past few releases lol.

[HaTaX]

finky and zGuy, check your pms....

Here's what I've got so far on the new theme, take a look at the screen shots and let me know what you think!
(Before anyone says anything, yes I have two weather icons, one is the free BeWeather and the other is a pushed accuweather icon.
I'm comparing the two and have them both on the screen currently.)




The today list isn't showing on the screenshot because I had already viewed those messages.
Here's another shot from the simulator showing a calendar list:


Also, been tweaking the incoming call screen and here's what I've come up with that I think looks a little cleaner:


Heh, sorry about all the pictures but I want to make sure it gives a good idea of the look of the theme.
The bottom icon dock slides down to disappear and leaves you with only the wallpaper and banner showing on the homescreen.