[comp.sys.mac.misc] Color Icons in System 7

b1y1m39@bagate.BELL-ATL.COM (Bob Esposito) (06/06/91)

	I have been trying to change the color associated with some of my
	applications.  Using ResEdit 2.1 and editing the icl8 resource,
	I never see the changes on the desktop.  Even after rebuilding
	the desktop, things remain the same.

	Can someone point me in the right direction?


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Bob Esposito                                  Voice:    (215) 466-6831
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fprefect@caen.engin.umich.edu (Matt Slot) (06/08/91)

  To make the Finder notice changes to icons, you need to clear 
the INITED bit under the ResEdit Get Info. When the Finder 
launches, it updates its info on all programs whose INITED bit
is turned off, and then sets the bit. 
  After you make your changes, and clear the bit  you need to 
quit the Finder--by re-booting or (preferably) by using the Quit
Command (if you installed the new fmnu resources from Sumex) or 
by Force Quitting with Command-Option-Escape. When the Finder
restarts, look for your updated icons.
 
fprefect@caen.engin.umich.edu
Matt Slot, CAEN Mac-Support
 
"Time is an illusion, lunch-time doubly so. Drink up!"

leue@galen.crd.ge.com (Bill Leue) (06/08/91)

In article <9F_-90#@engin.umich.edu> fprefect@caen.engin.umich.edu (Matt Slot) writes:
>
>
>  To make the Finder notice changes to icons, you need to clear 
>the INITED bit under the ResEdit Get Info. When the Finder 
>launches, it updates its info on all programs whose INITED bit
>is turned off, and then sets the bit. 
>  After you make your changes, and clear the bit  you need to 
>quit the Finder--by re-booting or (preferably) by using the Quit
>Command (if you installed the new fmnu resources from Sumex) or 
>by Force Quitting with Command-Option-Escape. When the Finder
>restarts, look for your updated icons.
> 
>fprefect@caen.engin.umich.edu
>Matt Slot, CAEN Mac-Support
> 
True.  However, under System 7, you can avoid this entire mess by just
pasting in your color icons into the Get Info Box for a file.  The
changes are noticed immediately by the Finder, and you don't have to
reboot.

When I want to "colorize" or otherwise dork with an Icon (typically
for an alias, but it could be any file), I bring up its Get Info
window, click on the icon, and select "Copy" from the Edit menu.  Then
I start up ResEdit 2.1 on a dummy file and create a new cicn resource,
which opens up the cicn color bitmap editor.  Selecting "Paste" from the
Edit Menu puts the original icon into the editor, which I then use to
colorize or munge the icon to my taste.  To complete the process, put
the modified (now color) bitmap back on the Clipboard, bring up the
Get Info window for the original file, select its icon, and Use "Paste" 
from the Edit menu.  Voila!

Of course, the changes you make aren't very permanent -- anyone can
revert back to original icon by hitting 'Cut' in the Get Info box.  With
my artistic ability (?), that's probably an advantage :-).

-Bill Leue
leue@crd.ge.com
 

ejb@think.com (Erik Bailey) (06/08/91)

In article <20370@crdgw1.crd.ge.com> leue@galen.crd.ge.com (Bill Leue) writes:
>
> [...]
>
>When I want to "colorize" or otherwise dork with an Icon (typically
>for an alias, but it could be any file), I bring up its Get Info
>window, click on the icon, and select "Copy" from the Edit menu.  Then
>I start up ResEdit 2.1 on a dummy file and create a new cicn resource,
>which opens up the cicn color bitmap editor.  Selecting "Paste" from the
>Edit Menu puts the original icon into the editor, which I then use to
>colorize or munge the icon to my taste.  To complete the process, put
>the modified (now color) bitmap back on the Clipboard, bring up the
>Get Info window for the original file, select its icon, and Use "Paste" 
>from the Edit menu.  Voila!
>
>Of course, the changes you make aren't very permanent -- anyone can
>revert back to original icon by hitting 'Cut' in the Get Info box.  With
>my artistic ability (?), that's probably an advantage :-).
>
>-Bill Leue
>leue@crd.ge.com
> 

Sounds like you do things the hard way.  There's a much nicer way to do it
all within ResEdit.  Double-click on the ICN# resource, then double-click
on the icon you want to modify.  This will bring up the "Icon Family"
screen.  Here you can create/edit  all six icons (ICN#, ics#, icl8, ics8,
icl4, ics4), plus the large and small masks.  The advantage of this is that
you can create much nicer icons with better colors, and you can tweak the
small icons you they look good (it's nifty having a well-designed ics8 in
the upper-right corner of the screen for the current app).

(btw - there's nothing wrong with your way, so no need to switch if it
works!  I'm just relating the way *I* do it, which I *think* is better.)

--Erik

--
      Erik Bailey       | 7 Oak Knoll         | Thinking Machines Corp.
      ejb@think.com     | Arlington, MA 02174 | 245 First St.
      harvard!think!ejb | (617) 643-0732      | Cambridge, MA  02142
          /earth is 98% full. Please remove any excess inhabitants.

dant@ryptyde.UUCP (Daniel Tracy) (06/10/91)

Responding to the following:

"To make the Finder notice changes to icons, you need to clear
the INITED bit under the ResEdit Get Info. When the Finder
launches, it updates its info on all programs whose INITED bit
is turned off, and then sets the bit."

Actually, I believe it checks the file's INITED bit when that file's 
directory is opened. Scanning the entire disk for non-inited files
would be murder! So, you don't have to restart or reload the finder, 
you just have to (close and) open the directory that file is in.

granteri@pnet51.orb.mn.org (Grant Erickson) (06/12/91)

Is anyone aware as to whether or not an update for SunDesk is going to be made
that it System 7.0 Compatible? Pasting in all the icons by hand is a pain, and
I liked the fact that I could have custom icons for EVERYTHING on my desktop.
Grant Erickson

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drg@mdaali.mda.uth.tmc.edu (06/13/91)

In article <5119@orbit.cts.com> granteri@pnet51.orb.mn.org (Grant Erickson)
writes:
>Is anyone aware as to whether or not an update for SunDesk is going to be made
>that it System 7.0 Compatible? Pasting in all the icons by hand is a pain, and
>I liked the fact that I could have custom icons for EVERYTHING on my desktop.

Yes, and I miss the color cursors, too.

David Gutierrez
drg@mdaali.mda.uth.tmc.edu

"Only fools are positive." - Moe Howard