NoelC Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 For those thinking ahead... To extract the out-of-box Windows UI theme resources, for example for use in crafting better looking resources for Aero Glass (assuming Big Muscle still has the energy to continue following Microsoft's changes)... 1. Copy C:\Windows\Resources\Themes\aero\Aero.msstyles from to TEMP and rename it: Aero.dll 2. Open it in Visual Studio and expand the resource tree for "STREAM" 3. Right-click and export resource 1204 as Build9926ThemeAtlas.png (or whatever you like). FYI, resource 1205 appears to be a PNG that contains some circular animation graphics, and 1206 some icons and circular animation graphics (Cortana maybe?) -Noel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelC Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Here's an altered set that restores borders for those interested in using it with Aero Glass... http://Noel.ProDigitalSoftware.com/ForumPosts/Win10/FauxBordersRoundedCorners_9926.png -Noel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveo76 Posted February 1, 2015 Share Posted February 1, 2015 Thanks Noel. For this updated theme. Is it possible to make it change different colors. I tried and has no effect Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelC Posted February 1, 2015 Author Share Posted February 1, 2015 (edited) Not really, no, if you want the border of the active window to be colored as per the title bar. Since I'm having to "fake" the borders by using the Drop Shadow resources, I had to bake in the color into the theme atlas in order to get them to look right. Note that I have not yet evaluated Big Muscle's latest FrameMargin work nor tried the High Contrast theme. That capability may change the nature of this depending on how much of the title bar color those approaches can automatically make available in the borders. It's certainly possible to tint the border/title bar any fixed color you like, however by changing the theme atlas. I happen to prefer the blue color I've implemented. -Noel Edited February 1, 2015 by NoelC 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssn650 Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Noel Just wanted to thank you for the awesome theme atlas you've provided for Windows 10 TP Build 9926. I'd almost given up and was getting ready to wipe my drive to restore good ole' Windows 7 when I found your post. Most of my Modern UI Applications don't work (Maps, Windows Store Beta, Photos and sadly, Cortana) but at least you've helped bring back a bit of the look and feel of my work space. Either I hold out for another 5 years or try to make the best of the new while ignoring Microsoft's attempts at insisting on making Windows 8.1 + more palatable to desktop users. Your theme along with BigMuscle's Aero Glass, as well as Classic Shell, will help make the transition easier. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelC Posted February 2, 2015 Author Share Posted February 2, 2015 You're welcome. Like you, I find the usability factor to be greatly increased by some simple graphics changes. Be sure to check out Big Muscle's thread on his current work, where he's found a way to restore actual borders to the windows. I've set up a theme atlas to work with that tweak as well, and it's a little cleaner looking than the one I posted in this thread. http://Noel.ProDigitalSoftware.com/ForumPosts/Win10/RoundedCorners.png -Noel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ssn650 Posted February 2, 2015 Share Posted February 2, 2015 Hi Noel Yes, that's the one I'm using. Thanks for the heads-up. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daveo76 Posted February 6, 2015 Share Posted February 6, 2015 Not really, no, if you want the border of the active window to be colored as per the title bar. Since I'm having to "fake" the borders by using the Drop Shadow resources, I had to bake in the color into the theme atlas in order to get them to look right. Note that I have not yet evaluated Big Muscle's latest FrameMargin work nor tried the High Contrast theme. That capability may change the nature of this depending on how much of the title bar color those approaches can automatically make available in the borders. It's certainly possible to tint the border/title bar any fixed color you like, however by changing the theme atlas. I happen to prefer the blue color I've implemented. -NoelI prefer the color to be clear for active and inactive windows Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoelC Posted February 28, 2015 Author Share Posted February 28, 2015 This is possibly ill-timed, as a new build is supposed to be coming out in the near future, but I had a few minutes and I've made some small tweaks to my theme atlas for build 9926... Very slightly rounded button borders, better looking button illumination, slight tint to the minimize and maximize buttons for the active window to enhance the subtle sense that the window is active. Note that this version still carries some blue coloration for the active window borders because I cannot get the system to composite enough of the active window color by itself and still provide a high level of transparency. Perhaps Big Muscle can look into enhancing the algorithm (with a suitable registry setting) to add more color to the borders? http://Noel.ProDigitalSoftware.com/ForumPosts/Win10/RoundedCorners_2015_02_28.png -Noel 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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