qxzwa In reply to propstoart [2012-09-27 18:23:04 +0000 UTC]

thank you

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qxzwa In reply to Liuxiaofei [2012-09-16 17:02:16 +0000 UTC]

ur welcome..
i love it

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-09 06:48:28 +0000 UTC]

I love the SimplifySegoeUI theme.
But,there is no search bar in the start menu.
I was wondering if you would release a version with search bar in it?

I love the Minimal Taste Colour Buttons theme.
Combining Mac and simplicity was really brilliant..
You're feakin genius dude!Thank you very much..

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-09 10:09:52 +0000 UTC]

thanks for the feedback bro!
About Simplify... I've removed the Search Bar from the start menu for design purpose... even thought it's not physically there, it still works the same way... just start typing something and you'll see.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-09 11:44:43 +0000 UTC]

Thank you..
Simplify Slim taskbar is gorgeous dude..
Btw, I have been browsing deviant for a while now ..I have to say barring the Placebo Kitsch Cold and Black Market themes i have never seen any theme here that can match Leaf...
You are handsdown THE BEST DESIGNER I have seen on this platform because of your simplicity and minimalist approach...
You have made my Windows experience sweet and I owe you for that..

I have 2 questions for you.
1)How long does it take for you to develop a theme from scratch?
and
2)Are you planning on doing a Black theme similar to those in Placebo theme in the near future?

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-09 20:11:38 +0000 UTC]

Reallly realllyyy really glad to hear you say that and big thank you!
I like to do things efficiently and maybe that's why I like the minimalist approach.
I'm not the best minimalistic theme designer but thanks anyway... I would thought give Microcrap a few tips on minimalistic themes specially with the new design desktop UI of Windows 8. Design Gods are crying as we speak... this is design murder!
How can the most used desktop OS on the planet be ruined by a bunch of idiots??? Doesn't Microcrap have enough money to pay for some professional UI and UX designers?? Is this world gone mad!?

About ur questions:
1. Cant really say... I do this as a hobby in my spare time. Could take 1 week or 4 months... depends.
2. Not a fan of dark themes... although they can be a real beauty, they are not practical. White text on dark background is a killer for the eyes, specially if you use your PC all day long. I like the combination of dark/light theme like Maverick for Win7, but they are a real nightmare cause the idiots back at Microcrap didn't think that themers will eventually skin the crap out of Windows7 so the support for this kind of themes is really limited. And Microcrap is not fully to blame. Many... many Windows developers don't use the right Windows UI elements and often end up using menus instead of toolbars and so on. That's why I couldn't make Maverick perfect (doesn't look too good on VLC player... god, when is this player gonna grow up on Windows!?)
And finally to answer your question... no, I won't make a dark theme in the near future... sorry!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-09 21:10:54 +0000 UTC]

SimplySegoeUI is the best minimalist interface I personally have used even beating Leaf which is again by you..
I really mean it when I said you were the best designer for minimalist themes coz i have had to change and search for many themes until i chanced upon your Leaf theme.
It is so exasperating to find a theme that REALLY suits you..
I have browsed through some 700 themes and NONE matched with my style as perfectly as your UIs did..
Now I was lucky to have a designer like you who knew my style..
That's why I say you are the only one in this forum that I have seen who really knows what they are doing and not mixing and matching fancy colours but keepin it EASY on the eyes..

I think since Windows 8 is touch based OS they have tried something different and Computer OS may have got sidelined to make it appropriate foe Mobile OS and hence got fucked up..
I never knew Win8 was so bad in UI

And regarding the dark themes,if you are using your computer in a dark room then using black text on white background can cause eye irritation..
That is where dark themes help..but in well lit rooms as you said it makes it little difficult to read..
Maybe minmalist dark theme designing is generally tough then..as you pointed out the lack of support for flexibility..

Oh btw I have to tell you that utorrent font problem doesn't appear in SimplifySegeoUI theme and the font is smooth and perfect..

I am interested in building themes..
What are the software needed?..Are they free?
Is there a tutorial regarding this?

Thanks

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-10 09:32:42 +0000 UTC]

Thanks again man!
I know what you mean about trying out themes. I tried many themes over and over and none met my requirements until I found Caesar for Win7. But this wasn't perfect so I started to mod it until it was just perfect for my needs. This is how I started theming.
Then I said "why not make my own themes?" So one after another my themes were born.
About dark themes... specially while working at night in the dark, they are the most unpleasing and dangerous to the eyes because you can't make everything dark so for example you open up a new Firefox/Chrome tab which suddenly fills your screen with white, then your eyes just scream from the sudden change from dark to bright white! I mostly work at night and dark themes are not a solution... trust me! Not even the Adobe Phtotshop/Illustrator/whatever CS6 dark interface is a solution at night... they say it makes you focus easier on the artwork... bullshit! Maybe if you only use the canvas to draw or do something without the need of the left panels. Cause if you have to switch from the dark panels to the white canvas, back and forward, you are killing your eyes my friend!
Look try this theme: [link]
It's made to mimic the new Adobe CS6 dark interface... maybe you'll like it. It's a great theme but for me it's an eye killer.
From all my windows theme design experiments, Minimal Tast Flat and Simplify Slim meets the best requirement for good eye relaxing experients. It's that special shade of Grey at the top of the windows which does the trick, plus the transparent left, right, bottom frames.
This is why Mac users don't complain about the OSX interface. Ideally it would be to have no borders in Windows as well... I can make a theme with no border (i did it before), but you have the never ending problem of apps compatibility and just to mention 2 major apps: Chrome and Firefox. They have such a fucked up interface in Windows... god, it's like it was designed with the ass, not the brain! So 1px border in Windows is not really a solution... there are many problems with this... many!

Glad to hear your uTorrent problem is gone under Simplify!

I use Windows Style Builder for theming: [link] , but it's not free... well thepiratebay is your friend... you might find it a little bit free... if you know what I mean!
You can find plenty guides and stuff regarding Windows theming here on dA or on their forum [link]

Well... good luck theming! You'll need it... cause it's a nerve racking experience! Things are not that simple as you might think cause the rules don't always apply everywhere. So arm yourself with patience and chill pills!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-10 18:56:29 +0000 UTC]

Oh yeah switching between white and black background definitely damages your eyes...
I hear you in web browsing and its damaging effect..I checked it out for myself with Placebo and it was difficult to navigate and strained my eyes..
Since I am new to designing and stuff I haven't used Adobe CS6,hence I dont know
You were correct about dark theme..

I would also add the Simplify Visual Style to the list of those good for eye relaxing..It is the most pleasant to eyes

I will search in tpb for Style Builder..thanks for that...
I am unable to download your Caesar mod..Could you check if the link is working?
Btw is Vista Style builder the same as Windows 7 Style Builder?

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-10 19:41:02 +0000 UTC]

Caesar Mod download seems to be working just fine.
Vista Style builder is the same as Windows 7 Style Builder... just make sure it's version 1.5.0.0.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-19 15:00:31 +0000 UTC]

Hey do you have original ExplorerFrame.dll file for Windows 7 SP1?If yes can you upload it somewhere?
I searched the internet but no reliable sources for dll file.I have run into a terrible problem...
Thanks

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-19 15:30:45 +0000 UTC]

Here you go my friend:
[link]
This is ExplorerFrame.dll version 6.1.7601.17514
Hope this helps!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-20 18:45:33 +0000 UTC]

Oops..the one you uploaded is for 64 bit..
Can you upload the 32 bit explorerframe.dll?

Thank you and sorry for the trouble.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-20 15:47:30 +0000 UTC]

Hey is this a 32 bit one or a 64 bit one?
Thanks

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-20 15:39:15 +0000 UTC]

BEEN WAITING FOR THIS.
Thank you very much .You SAVED my computer.
You are MY GOD.I just ran into many problems changing the shell style and when I applied it the system kept on crashing.Now I have become more careful and try my style changes on other computers.I am sad that i cant work much on this now..

Have you run into instability problems while designing a theme?
I have to bow my head in reverence to all you designers as i understood how hard it is to work with Vista Style Builder..
Takes a lot of work time and energy,but i dont have that much time as you guys probably have..
But I can try and tweak small changes to a theme.
It is too frustrating to even do a taskbar change and then view its effect..Very tedious job.
I thank you for sharing your work on this community for others' benefit.

I am looking forward Simplify Visual Style Upgrade you promised..lol
Do you remember?

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-20 19:21:18 +0000 UTC]

Hey my friend... didn't know which explorerframe.dll to send you... yes, that was 64bit and this is the 32bit: [link]
I ran into stability problems while designing win themes but that was back when I used to mod other's themes.
Since I started making my own themes, I've started by editing the default Aero.msstyle and tried not to change the values too much, only the images.

I'm finally happy to hear a theme user that realizes the effort it goes into making a windows theme. It's a living hell... specially since it doesn't always follow logic. But the result and the user's feedback is my reward! and... you're welcome!

I didn't forget about Simplify upgrade, to make the highlight in explorer a bit darker... hopefully next week I'll have some time to do it.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-20 20:22:13 +0000 UTC]

Oh..thank god .I got my system stability back thanks to YOU.
Otherwise My Computer was not at all being displayed..pretty erratic.
Thank you for uploading that file.I appreciate it.

Yeah..if only the users even tried to make one on their own they would realize the difficulty.
Thats the first thing i realized how tedious and mind numbing it is.
Thank you my friend for all your efforts.

I was just wondering if you could teach me anything if I wanted to know something in theme building...That is if i dont waste your time..

Anyhow MAJOR thanks to you my friend.My system is working fine..I am too HAPPY lol..Thank youVERY MUCH
MUCHO GRACIAS.

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-20 22:35:13 +0000 UTC]

You're welcome my friend! Glad I could help.

If you encounter problems during the theming process, feel free to ask me. I might not answer right away, but I will as soon as I can.
Like I said before, it's best to replace PNGs at first and stay away from changing values like ContentMargins or something cause they are not always logical.
After a while you will get the hang of it... just take some chill pill when you're theming... you'll need it! hehehe!

I see you have a thing for beautiful curves! How can you not love such beauties right?? I'm talking of course about the collection of beautiful ladies in your favorites folder. Nice to see other are not shy to appreciate the beauty around us! Some of them are in my faves collection as well... niceeee!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-21 10:18:46 +0000 UTC]

Haha yes Nudity is ART OF GOD.To not appreciate it would be a
crime,if you ask me.
Well GLAD to see that even you like it.
Well for some it can be considered porn but it is just our perception and the way we have been made to see things a certain manner by the society and i would like to break my inhibitions and be okay with it.
I would like more people to appreciate Nude Art.
Thats why so many CURVES lol

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-21 13:38:17 +0000 UTC]

Yes... art of God indeed!
Too bad people are so ashamed of openly appreciating nudity!
And damn... I looove curves!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-10-09 17:01:34 +0000 UTC]

I have to say Simlpify Slim glass toolbar is GORGEOUS..fits in to any glass theme and AWESOME..i love it very much.
The first time i used Simplify Slim months ago i didnt get your way of thinking for caption button..but now i have to say your artistry in creating minimalist themes is proved by the caption buttons..The gradual increasing gray intensity and no signs is without doubt simply brilliant..
I think you should protect your work by COPYRIGHTING bcoz your thinking style is AMAZING..I haven't seen such caption buttons anywhere in this forum..Now that I finally got your idea on creating the caption button styling I BOW TO YOUR ARTISTRY..simply ASTOUNDING..

Now coming to the only problem i can see is that for the progress shown in toolbar for applications like foobar2000 you have put a thick coloured underlining effect indicating progress.The problem is it becomes little difficult to see the progress since its at the very edge of screen..

I would be grateful to you if you can make it more easily visible.

I have few requests.These are my dreams..
1.Can you add one more borderless style just like in Simplify Borderless UI style next time ?
2.Can you add another version in SS by adding border less style and changing the explorer colour of Simplify Slim from grey to white like in Simplify UI Visual Style?
The only problem in visual style of SS compared to Simplify UI is the grey colour of the explorer frame..I think Simplify UI white explorer frame colour seamlessly merges with the window background and makes it extremely simple to work with...
The only thing stopping SS from being the ULTIMATE MINIMALIST VISUAL STYLE for me is the explorer frame colour which doesn't create the same magic as in the old Simplify Light Borderless UI which has to be the best in my opinion..The grey colour of SS distracts your attention while working..

Sorry for posting such a lengthy post.Thanks for reading(if at all you do LOL ;D)

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-10-09 23:34:37 +0000 UTC]

Hey my friend... thanks again for all your support and appreciation!

Regarding the progress bar on the taskbar... this was the idea and the challenge: to make a thin bar that would show progress, that would be nonintrusive and would not overlay the icon. So I did it... wasn't easy but I did it! I know it's not very visible on every wallpaper, specially light ones, that's why I've created Version 3 of Simplify Slim which has a full opaque taskbar so people can use any wallpaper they like. With the progress bar if I make it any thicker, than it would intersect the icon and it would look like crap. I could make it the same height as the taskbar, but then it would be the same as all the other themes... where's the fun in that!?

Now about you're requests:
not sure I wanna do that. Simplify Light Borders variations is not borderless... it's just that the borders have the same color as the top frame, and the rest of the explorer elements, which btw is not white, but light grey. It looks good in windows explorer where the window seem borderless, but in any other software, the borders are very visible and distracting at the same time. Like I said before somewhere, I made this theme to be the ultimate productive theme for me. Since I don't use windows explorer (just very rarely), I had to make the borders as invisible as possible but also give them some style. I think I've done it really well since the borders never bother me. I for one, hate the borders and I've tried to make a borderless version (like I did with Minimal Taste Reloaded) which would not ruin Firefox and Chrome, the 2 main browsers everyone uses, and other programs (Thunderbird). I had a trick that would fix Thunderbird and Firefox, but since they update these software so often, I couldn't keep up with the code.
Another thing... making the whole windows explorer elements white, just like in Simplify Light Borders, would not make the theme very productive since it burns your eyes like hell... that's why I don't use Simplify anymore.
So the current combination of light grey window, transparent borders and a bit darker grey top bar is the best for productivity. I've spent a lot of time experimenting and testing different color combinations and couldn't find a better one. You can find a similar combination of grey in Mac OSX. They also found the perfect combination for productivity. For me the top grey frame relaxes my eyes while working... it's almost invisible to me, exactly the effect I was after. Everything in this theme has a purpose and design logic, at least from my perspective, unless I've forgot something unintentionally.
But you can mod the theme as you like, to better suite your needs.
No need to thank me for reading... it's a pleasure to talk about this.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-10-14 14:47:38 +0000 UTC]

Hello can you please tell me how to change selection highlight to a little darker colour than you have put in Simplify Visual Style?
I am trying for changing colour but not able to achieve it..
Also you haven't replied to my questions about changing progress bar width and how to make 24px taskbar..

Also i want to know whether you liked my suggestion regarding Simplify Visual Style.I apologize if appeared cocky to you for suggesting change..
Please can you guide me to a tutorial in case you cant mod (bcoz of lack of time) regarding my request....

And regarding the progress bar on the taskbar i got two ideas..See if they are anything good:
1.If you are adding a another style you could change the colour of progress bar to something more bright like bright yellow
2.Or you could put the thin bar on top of the icon instead of underlining the icon in Simplify Slim glass taskbar versions..
If you like any of the above suggestions are you willing to do a mod for the same?

Please forgive me if I appear too arrogant to you..I cant contain the excitement to convey my ideas to you.

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-10-15 01:45:10 +0000 UTC]

Hey there... sorry about my late reply but I've got a really tight schedule and time is always a problem.
And don't have the time to do tutorials and stuff like that. It's not that complicated to use Windows Style Builder, once you get the hang of it. Of course it take time, practice and a lot of googling... as I was suggesting in the Note I sent you, look for infos in the ave's forum: [link] You can search without registering.

Regarding ur 2 suggestions:
1. I think the green color I set was the best option... I've tried other colors and they just didn't work
2. That's just not possible using WSB... maybe hacking some dlls or something, but I'm not familiar with hacking.

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-10-17 19:04:11 +0000 UTC]

Hey whenever you have the time check your notes.
I have sent you 2 notes.Try the theme in the second note.I am currently using the link i sent you in the second note.
I accidentally sent you a wrong version.
Please dont forget to give you feedback whenever you have time.
Thank you

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-10-10 16:36:32 +0000 UTC]

By borderless i meant LIGHT BORDER version and by white i meant GREY colour...SORRY about the confusion..
Regarding the SS latest release the theme style idea i meant was to give a gradual change in colour beginning with the Title bar address bar and toolbar to meet the window background colour which could be grey..
Thus what i mean is that there should be minimal variation in colour from title bar to windows background colour so that there will be no distraction..
I didn't mean the colour HAS to be white ..It can be any colour as long as the change is minimal..
For example in the minimal taste style emulating MAC OSX the different colours make me distracted if i am coming from Simplify Light Border theme..Thus my request is for you to add a version that emulates Light Border because explorer in the old Simplify version whenever you have time..
I would have asked for steps to mod it but I know your TASTE IS MUCH BETTER THAN MINE..Hence the request..Please do consider it as an earnest request from one of your BIGGEST FANS..

Also you promised me that you will upload a Simplify Light Border theme with better selected item highlighting..So i thought may be you can consider adding some mods to that and hence asked you to change those things whenever you would be modding it..
If in case you're busy and not releasing a version in Simplify Light Border version can you please tell me what changes to make a mod for the selection problem?

I have 2 questions to you related to modifying themes:
1.Can you tell me the steps to create progress bar little thicker or maybe of equal height to taskbar as you suggested?
2.Can you teach me the steps to create a 24px taskbar and also proportionately resizing the icons within like in your themes?

The reason i said sorry is because all my correspondences with you have been lengthy and enjoyable ones ..i didn't know if you were enjoying it or not..hence thought may be i was causing some trouble to you by my comments and thus apologized to you...
Since we are on the same page i hope you like reading my comments..

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-22 12:16:24 +0000 UTC]

I am inclined to ask you a personal question.
Have you studied any arts...or were you interested in arts from childhood?

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dpcdpc11 In reply to qxzwa [2012-09-23 17:56:30 +0000 UTC]

No sweat my friend... I've never went to an art school... I'm self taught.
I've always loved to draw since like forever.
Now I have less time to draw and I mostly draw logos for our clients. Hopefully I'll make some time all for myself to draw what my heart tells me to!

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qxzwa In reply to dpcdpc11 [2012-09-24 19:00:39 +0000 UTC]

oh..ok then I guess you had a burning desire to do painting or drawing..
which means you are a NATURALLY TALENTED and GIFTED ARTIST..
Well one important thing i have noticed is that artists who have gone to art school always stress themselves and dont produce quality art..
They lack the conviction in mind and desire in heart to see their art through to completion.
I think REAL art is made either through some form of struggle which has to be genuine and more importantly as you do FELT WITH HEART..Such genuine feelings cant be TAUGHT in an art school...
Only maybe painting drawing and brushing techniques maybe which doesnt NEED a separate degree.
It cant make you better..
It is not like engineering or science which can be mastered if you have decent intellect and desire to learn.
Great artists like Michelangelo or Picasso were never TRAINED..
Hence I would say that TRUE ARTISTS have in born talent and desire to do something..and when helped by circumstances they create magnificent art...
I feel that there is so much of crap which is paraded as GREAT ART..and the quality of art as it were prior to 19th century was far more ORIGINAL in intent and isnt that is what art all about?
That is why I asked you whether you went to art school or not...

Great to see someone follow their passion with conviction...
Correct me if I am wrong..

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