15 replies to this topic

[Shadowfax2009]

Hi all gurus,

I am at loss at creating 9 piece elements for Carbide 3.4 for nokia 5800. Is it possible at all in INKSCAPE. Please themeing Gurus Help. I can create 1 piece button/ List Highlight etc but then how to divide it to 9 pieces?

[elegantmavi]

hey dude i don't have the answer of your question that some one else will do it for you
but i have some other things for you
hahah
it seems you are hindi or urdu speaker
and hehehe wondering that there is an other doctor other than me

[elegantmavi]

DS : Yeah its just a way to express
btw in real i don't laugh that much
but only when i am in good mood
but thanks for giving my laugh a n0tice

[Shadowfax2009]

@ DhanuSaud
Thanks a lot for taking interest. The problem with 9 piece elements is to know how to and where to cut it. I previously worked with Vista/Xp theming.. where we had to specify values to protect pixels while stretching the bitmap (Eg protect 3pixels from top, 3 from bottom, 4 from left, 8 from right), But SVG being a vector format I guess such pixel values will not work. So I guess we need to know what proportion (or some other measure) from the top of the button actually goes to the "Top" element. Otherwise definitely during stretching the edges wont match. The same goes for other element also.

If we start with modifying each of the elements from the default template (eg upper rt corner) it can be done.... but it becomes a hell of a job to get the Gradients correctly match for any nice bar/highlight. However your 9piece highlight elements match perfectly. So I was thinking it the problem could be solved the other way round.

Why not make a highlight bar completely in Inkscape and then slice it off into 9 pieces. We can then just replace the files for each component (the way I use your 9 part elements ). Such slicing can be done for raster images in photoshop/imageready.... So why not for the vector... Or am I horribly wrong?

Also I dont understand the need for 9 piece vector elements????? Vectors are supposed to be re-drawn at various sizes maintaining same corner angle, gradient parameters etc ...9 piece makes perfect sense with bitmaps but why with svgs? The 9 piece elements do convert to single piece bitmap, but why do they not convert to single piece vector?


Finally I think we should have separate threads pertaining to each elements in Carbide where discussion/ tutorials and resources can be clubbed. For example we may have a thread for Clock face, Highlight Bars, Battery meters....etc. It will take some time to do it but it will become like an enhanced Wiki in itself. The current threads are a bit random... . But then I am a newbie here and would leave the decision to other veterans here.

This is perhaps the only website where nokia themers can seek help and you guys are wonderfull...... YOU ARE the BEST

Edited by Shadowfax2009, 22 March 2009 - 12:51 PM.

[Shadowfax2009]

elegantmavi, on Mar 22 2009, 03:52 AM, said:

hey dude i don't have the answer of your question that some one else will do it for you
but i have some other things for you
hahah
it seems you are hindi or urdu speaker
and hehehe wondering that there is an other doctor other than me

Hi elegantmavi,
Nice for you to reply. Yes I do come from the heartland of all cultural potpourri; Delhi, where 'pan-chewing' 'expletive spitting' auto-rickshaw driver happily coexist with the 'Saffron streaked', hopelessly religious,dhoti clad pundit; while the 'loin hearted' sardar faces a hard time matching the colour of his ethnic turban to his modern tie. I come from a place where cast, creed, Politics, Power all mingle into a continuous glare of color that bewilders my senses. Its impossible to understand it...Yet I am happy to be a doctor here !!. In between my schedule of coaxing/ advising/ shouting at patients for "what is best for them"....(Thank God no medical insurance/patient litigation non-sense!) ....even buying them "their meds" (rarely....wish we were paid in dollars!!).. I do find some time to follow my hearts content.... useless creation just for the heck of it... flash/ photoshop/ 3dmax...theming.. I am a eternal newbie at many new things.

As for language, yes I speak hindi as i speak many others (newbie there too I guess).. But Urdu is too beautiful a language for a monstrosity like me. Ghalib and Avida Parveen are more than enough for one life time. But then again, the beautiful thing is that some language transcend all culture...... and they may be found at very unusual places..... For example from wherever you are you will have no difficulty to understand my following line
:yes: ......

Edited by Shadowfax2009, 22 March 2009 - 03:11 PM.

[Shadowfax2009]

@ Dhanusaud

Take care.. All other things can wait

[StingerMKO]

Hi, i have also Problems creating a 9-piece svg, for example the List highlight image.

I draw the image in Illustrator, it has rounded corners, and save it as SVG image.
it looks like this:


I tried to switch the List highlight in Carbide.ui to a single-Piece element and paste my new created image in to the List Highlight Position.

It seems to look fine in the different screens:



But how can i create my image as a 9-piece svg?
Do I have to switch the image now to a 9-piece-element in carbide.ui?

Or do i have to slice 9 singel images out of Illustrator and put the 9 files into the according position?

The outer 8 pieces of the 9-piece element, do theay always have to be 7px wide/high? every 9-piece element in carbide, have these 7px x 7px corners.

Plese, can you advise me?

Thanks in advance!
StingerMKO

[RobJM]

I did play about with this before but it seems to have some limitations, or at least I couldn't figure it out.

Slicing it up is easy enough, just use the pen tool to draw 4 lines [#]where you want to cut it, use the rulers to get the 7x7 [although some are 4x4, I think there is a 15x15 hidden somewhere but I'm not sure] then select all and in the pathfinder window select 'divide'.
I then selected the piece I wanted to save, inversed selection, deleted the other pieces, cropped to the size of the element, then save it somewhere as ie topleft.
Then simply 'step backward' until you've got all your parts back and repeat for each part.

This works fine when the element is plain, but I could never get the centre part to line up with the 'frame' of the element when there was a pattern or gradient etc involved.
To work around this I tried to make my elements more like a picture frame so that the outer edge and centre elements didn't need to be lined up.

The slice tool may be something to look into as well, but I never got around to that

Of course if we could edit each element in Carbide separately we wouldn't need 9 piece elements

[StingerMKO]

Hey Rob,
thank you for your instructions.
I did the same steps as you, but i have a problem.
I think it is important in wich size you create your listhighlight image from where you start exporting your 9 small images.
I created an image of the size 229 x 231 (i think the biggest listhighlight in carbide.ui).


Then i did the steps to save the 9 svg files. i put it into the 9 positions in carbide and the big listhighlight looks good, but the smaller ones not.



Even when i make the outer images without a gradient color to make it like you like a picture frame, carbide doesn´t show the gradient color of the center piece correctly.

So in which size do you create your initial image, from where you start exporting your pieces?
Thanks in advance!

Edited by StingerMKO, 30 June 2009 - 07:26 AM.

[RobJM]

Like I said in my previous post , this is exactly the problem I had, trying to line up gradients/patterns etc, it's fine with just a plain type highlights, but there must be a way, or else the inbuilt ones in carbide would not work.
I suppose the best way is just to edit the ones already there.
Probably need an Illustrator/Inkscape expert to work it out.

The size of your element shouldn't really make a difference [I don't think so anyway] because being svg each will stretch to fill whatever space is available.

The centre part seems to zoom in or over stretch, this isn't noticeable with a plain colour but of course when you use a gradient you get the effect you have.
You could try making your centre image smaller but within the same size image, if you get my meaning, so it has a transparent border around it, you may be able to get it to fit and line up within your 9 piece like that...

[xprobert]

hey bro's wanna know a secret?

the secret in 9piece elements is knowing the proper sizes that's all you need
and start with just a plain box and cut it. once you get the jeez try it with layers then viola

it took me 1month to get it right so you know.. it takes time and patience

[xprobert]

dhanusaud, on Mar 23 2009, 03:40 AM, said:

@Shadowfax2009
we don't have to cut instead just edit it one by one & match the color.
my health not good these days so I can't provide screenshots right now, as soon as my health will be perfect I will post some shots about how I do nine piece.

follow Mr.DS advice its a much easier way

Besides He's a master

[KLM]

I second Dhanu's ideea: edit the highlights in Carbide... but if you really want to make your own from scratch the dimentions for eache piece are:

qsn_fr_popup_heading_center = 328x64
qsn_fr_popup_heading_corner_[every one] = 10x10
qsn_fr_popup_heading_side_[both] = 10x64

If they're good you can use the same highlights for list, grid and input, they'll show up perfect.
Good luck!