sworph Posted February 19, 2002 Share Posted February 19, 2002 Other than using Stylebuilder to create and edit XP themes, what other software can be used to create/edit these themes as easily as StyleBuilder? Being fairly new to creating themes it seems a fairly intense process, I have already tried editing various themes to suit my needs but I have found that some have been created by something other than StyleBuilder. One more question.... 'msstyles' what are these and how are they created and how do you install them ??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StimpyX Posted February 19, 2002 Share Posted February 19, 2002 I have no idea what Microsoft used internally to create their own visual styles (like Luna), but for us poor slobs there are pretty much only two choices right now: 1. StyleBuilder 2. A programmer's resource editor like ResHack Choice 2 is definitely not an easier method though. An *.msstyles file is a Microsoft Visual Style file. In other words, the file which defines the skinning of windows and other visual elements for XP theming. This is what StyleBuilder creates when you compile your visual style. You can also edit (i.e. hack) existing ones with ResHack, if you're up to it. You normally *install* them through XP's Display Properties (Appearance tab). Make sure they reside under WindowsResourcesThemes (typically in their own folder). Might be important to note here a difference between theme and visual style, with a theme being a full entourage of settings, including the skinning component as well as (if you choose) customization to colors, sound events, fonts, icons, and the like. StyleBuilder allows you to create a visual style (*.msstyles). Then you can (manually) set up a theme (*.theme) that defines its use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sworph Posted February 19, 2002 Author Share Posted February 19, 2002 Cheers StimpyX much appreciated Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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