Carbon Theme Suggestions

Rookervik · 7 Jul 2016, 21:17

@No-Hands-55 You can use the pixel theme as a base, and change the images in the art folder to something not-tetris.

Try loading the "background.png" in an image editor and just erasing everything and flood filling it with grey. That way you can keep all the logos and system images, but gets you away from the tetris. The grey will allow each system to still have the darker alternate colors. (each system has it's own dye that it adds to the background.)

Then the border images you can just delete. ES will throw some simple log errors that it can't find them, but you don't need them since they are tetrisy.

Ends up looking like this:

The darker you make that background.png, the less color and darker the background will be. Lighter will make the colors brighter.

Rookervik · 7 Jul 2016, 21:27

@Rookervik

Also, ES comes with a minimal theme - it's what appears when you apply a theme with errors. It's all black and white. haha. Try backing up one of the themes' main xmls and making a couple of random changes and saving it. The theme will error and load as a white theme with just black words on the system select, then some flat colors in the game select. It's quite.... minimal. ;-)

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 03:16

@pimpmaul69 @celly

Carbon update with Channel F, WonderswanColor Logo Fix, and Turbo Grafix 16 logo and controller updates:
Carbon Update 07072016

Changes have been sent to Herb to update on the downloader. Please be patient as he has many other tasks.

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 03:17

@pimpmaul69 @celly

Carbon update with Channel F, WonderswanColor Logo Fix, and Turbo Grafix 16 logo and controller updates:
Carbon Update 07072016

Changes have been sent to Herb to update on the downloader. Please be patient as he has many other tasks.

pimpmaul69 · 8 Jul 2016, 04:35

So i assume you guys are using the "iforgetthename"2png program to take pics of es theme screens? I cant find any info on how to take a screenshot with the program or where the pics are saved to. Any info would be awesome. I wanna be take some pics of my theme. I use carbon but on 10 of the systems i have custom themes on the gamelist that i make them look like the systems. (Ram limitation sucks) I want to post some pics but cant figure out how to take the screenshots.

InsecureSpike · 8 Jul 2016, 06:43

have you thought of making a white based version? I know there was the original "simple" theme, maybe a combination of the 2? but better!

also a side note, my distressed/weathered logos are at your disposal if you'd like to try them, the only issue is they are .png

No Hands 55 · 8 Jul 2016, 16:35

@Rookervik Thank you! That is a big help! I didn't know it was all so straightforward as a xml file and folders with images. I will definitely begin working on my own! But for now I am just going to remove the border files and use the Pixel theme because i really like it without just those.

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 17:52

@pimpmaul69 @InsecureSpike

I am actually using the Windows EmulationStation to create and test themes. It's a lot easier. And way easier to take screenshots. :D If you have a windows machine, or I think linux or mac, too, you can load the themes into the desktop version of ES. It's a little struggle to get the es_systems.cfg created, but I can help.

I am actually planning on making a light variant to the Carbon theme on this major update. So far I plan to:

Move gamelist to left side, for us left-to-right reading order users.
Increase size of screenshot/boxart
reduce metadata to: release date, genre, players, description (unless the only important information is # of players?)
add support for kid friendly icons ( just for you, @Zigurana :-) )
add ability to choose the color of the theme elements (overwrite carbon.xml with a different color version)
add a light variant background that users can point to in the xml
Note: we may think about no longer updating the "Centered" and "No Metadata" variants of Carbon.

Zigurana · 8 Jul 2016, 19:37

@Rookervik: Thanks! You are the best! </ Tips hat>

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 20:52

@Zigurana

Hey Zigurana, I need you to get in touch with me, somehow, so I can have you test this out and see if the kid friendly stuff works. Maybe IRC?

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 21:35

Pretty much finished up the element moving and finished simplifying the xml. It's very easy to change the color of the theme now. It comes stock red just as it always has. Just find and replace a color and save it :D Kid Friendly icons are coded in, but I have no way to test if they show up in the right locations.

Zigurana · 8 Jul 2016, 21:59

@Rookervik said in Carbon Theme Suggestions:

@Zigurana

Hey Zigurana, I need you to get in touch with me, somehow, so I can have you test this out and see if the kid friendly stuff works. Maybe IRC?

No problem, I can try it out for you. You can email me at my zigurana@gmail.com adress, lets take it from there.

Alternatively, if you just want to check the placement, you could add the icons as extra's, that way they should show up always, regardless of your ES installation.

For the element names, and a download of the old xarbon theme with icons, see here.

caver01 · 7 Aug 2016, 23:33

@Rookervik Here's a small one that is maybe even a quick fix: The ROM images that load in the games list are not centered. I appreciate that their original aspect ratio is preserved (not all themes do this) but lower-resolution images are pushed into the upper-left corner. It would be better if they could be centered.

It's a small thing, but since you are in there, might as well check it out.

EDIT - Come to think of it, maybe this is already taken care of with expansion of the image being displayed and repositioning of that element.

Rookervik · 8 Jul 2016, 22:33

@caver01

That is definitely fixed now. I've learned a lot since I made Carbon. :D So rest assured, all the box art will be centered and scaled from that center point.

caver01 · 8 Jul 2016, 22:33

@Rookervik Thanks! Carbon is a great theme and keeps getting better!

Rookervik · 9 Jul 2016, 23:27

As far as a light version of Carbon, that can't really be done easily with XML edits. New art assets actually have to be inserted and called in the code. So I would just have to make a new theme... which isn't hard. Just change the assets and edit the xml so you guys don't have to. I'm just toying around right now. Modifying the colors of the theme as it is. Probably needs to be white in the middle and grey on the borders. -shrugs-