(Skin) Problem with min/max buttons

[Alexis]

I have been working on this skin, but i have a problem with  the the hi and lo versions of skins   showing through each other and just staying there.
Like the lines for the others should be as thin as the 'X' but they are as thick as you can see, because i either used them or hoovered over them.  I created those icons myself, so maybe i did  something wrong.   Each version is on an invisible background.


As you can see, the maximize button is showing what appears to be a mixture of itself and the restore button.
Also, the highlight effect on these are delayed.. in that, if i pass the mouse over an item, it highlights as it should, but takes a while after i move the mouse away for it  to go back to  dim.
Any ideas?

[jistme]

I remember strugling with kind of the same problem.

I'm quite sure it has to do with transparency.
I remember removing transparency to resolve it, but there's probably a better and more correct way?

[Alexis]

wow, that is REALLy great feedback.   So you resolved it by  coloring the background?  Took me forever to make those though .

[jistme]

Took me even longer then forever ;-)
Still I suppose there is a reason for the transparency, but I didn't manage to get it right with it.

I'm usually on Windows classic mode with skinning borders, but Aero without skinning gives other results...
 

[Alexis]

I am on aero.  I think i will try your suggestion this weekend.  this is not easy, and it is not even as if i am starting from the very beginning, i am piggy-backing another skin.

[jistme]

Good luck with this endevour.
If after that you could give some more enlightment to me and others, please do!

(I am using Photoshop and Paint.NET, but e.g. also not clear yet about differences and consequences between saving as 'auto', 24bit or 8 bit)

[Alexis]

ah... I am not familiar with that aspect at all and i am using paint.net.  Paint.net just seems straight forward for my simple mind.  I guess i save as auto  (I did not even notice that aspect)   Maybe someone will enlighten us here.

The reason I would like the buttons to be transparent is that they would be easily transferable to other skins without working on the background for each one, which for me, takes what seems like forever.  I would think though that the transparency aspect should not present the problem I am seeing, so then should it be considered a bug?

I am  really planning on doing a basic skinning guide when i am finished.. something that  gets people IN.  They can  figure all the other stuff out once they are IN.  Learning is part of the fun, but it is really horrible when  you have no idea where to start from...  which is where i was, and the guides on here are too advance for someone like myself... but I have picked up a lot of tips through the many different discussions and asking questions.

[Alexis]

I have chosen to go back with the buttons that came with the skin.  maybe another time .. They look better than anything I can do

[Bee-liever]

As you can see, the maximize button is showing what appears to be a mixture of itself and the restore button.
Also, the highlight effect on these are delayed.. in that, if i pass the mouse over an item, it highlights as it should, but takes a while after i move the mouse away for it  to go back to  dim.
Any ideas?

MB places both the restore and maximize buttons on the skin when it first opens, and then just brings the button it needs to the foreground. It then puts the highlight for that button on top. I solved it with the different (OK, weird    ) button on the polar bear skin

[Alexis]

OK,  then I am not too bad after all.  Indeed, these comments bring relief and MUCH hope.  I should try again.

I have another and Final question I promise.   This one is related to something I must have done.

I am not able to get the Last.fm rating  to turn red (the one circled) above the artist (therefore it does not change in other areas of the player, except the player bar)   It works on other skins but not  on  the ones I have been working on, so  it means I did something that I am not aware of, and I am so far in..    I have tried comparing and counting the color instances, but no luck so maybe someone knows offhand.

What controls that icon's color?

[Bee-liever]

For the player, the highlights and lowlights are controlled by "Panel.NotLovedIcon.Highlight" and "Panel.NotLovedIcon.Lowlight"
The selected colour is one of the images you have to create <element id="LastFmLoveSelected">

For the tab it's, "MiniPlayer.StarRating.Default"
The selected colour is from the created <element id="MiniPlayerLastFmLove">

Hope that helps.

NB There is a bug that if you have Last.FM love on both the player and the tab, turning it to "Love" on the tab, turns it off on the player and vice-versa

[Alexis]

Thank you.  THAT was it.. looks like i went a little nuts!

I messed  up the element code.

[Bee-liever]

I now how that feels 

After working on a skin for a while, the xml all starts to look the same, and you can't find the change in the colour code you want anywhere!

[lnminente]

I really miss changing the colour of the heart with a colour value like with the rating stars :/

[Alexis]

That would have been a whole lot easier for me ... and I would have found it!   

I want to thanks you guys for all the input.  I think I am finished, barring a few very minor tweaks.. then I will put the skin up.