new theme (kinda): retroTape

[audio-i]

I made the tape round, the result is very nice. For now and while I finish some other stuff it can be pre downloaded here (ipod video):

[vash]

Absolutely amazing theme! The greatest one I've ever seen!

Just a couple of improvement questions:

Could indicators of Bat and Volume be done in bold, in order to see them just in a half-look?
Could counter be moved to some other place and replaced with a watch?
Could white background be replaced with yellow or metallic color, just to be a single whole with a theme?

Tnx a lot! Keep on going!

ps Unfortunately, link with v2.0beta2 is dead 8[ 

[Yotto]

By "watch" do you mean a clock? I miss a clock on this as well and have been wondering where to put it. I don't care about the little meter in the lower right so I've been wondering what it would look like there.

The white background for the menus is to simulate/suggest the old inserts for blank cassettes. I would personally not dream of changing it

I agree, this is the nicest theme available for the iPod.

[kostkoro]

Hello, I'm a new member here and I have an Iriver H320 (converted to H332 with a compact flash card). I recently tested your theme with the simulator (Rockbox 3.5.1) and I find it wonderful! Congratulations!
I only have a humble request: I wish there was genre information in the .wps. I miss it. I don't think that the words e.g. "2/18 in dynamic playlist" are totally necessary, I believe only numeric value (2/18) is really needed. So one could save space to include  genre information in place of the above sentence.
I know, you could ask "why don't you do it?" The simple truth is I don't know much about "coding" and compiling a wps.
Thanks and many wishes

[audio-i]

Thanks for your comments.
Some of the suggestions made are fairly simple to do, it may look complicated at first but it really isn't, plus starting to personalize an existing theme is the first step to making one's own themes (and a good step!). I would suggest checking http://www.rockbox.org/wiki/CustomWPS

Could indicators of Bat and Volume be done in bold, in order to see them just in a half-look?

Do you mean the numerical power and volume? I wanted them to stand out as little as possible honestly, but I recently found that the 09-Nedore.fnt is sort of like the system font in bold and that might work, I will give it a second look for the next theme update (when Rockbox 3.6 is released)

Could counter be moved to some other place and replaced with a watch? 

Like Yotto, I'm  not specially a fan of the peakmeter, except in this theme: I really like it. Plus tape decks used to have one  However I also agree with him that probably the best place to put time display would be there. It would probably be also better to use a bigger font for that.
This is a quick change to put time display there using the current font (check http://www.rockbox.org/wiki/CustomWPS#Real_Time_Clock)

In the WPS file, replace

Code: [Select]

# Peak Meter
%V|261|184|51|17|1|6699b9|72abce|
%pm
with

Code: [Select]

# Peak Meter replaced with time
%V|257|184|56|12|1|6699b9|72abce|
%ac%cl:%cM%cp

I wish there was genre information in the .wps. I miss it. I don't think that the words e.g. "2/18 in dynamic playlist" are totally necessary, I believe only numeric value (2/18) is really needed. So one could save space to include  genre information in place of the above sentence.
I know, you could ask "why don't you do it?" The simple truth is I don't know much about "coding" and compiling a wps.

It is important for me to know the playlist I'm playing 

If you want to change it though, in the .wps file, replace:

Code: [Select]

%V|24|96|214|12|1|282200|554900|
%ac%s%pp/%pe%?pn< in "%pn"| in dynamic playlist>
with something like (see http://www.rockbox.org/wiki/CustomWPS#ID3_Tag_Info)

Code: [Select]

%V|24|96|214|12|1|282200|554900|
%ac%s%pp/%pe - Genre: %ig
I didn't try the changes, probably they would have to be slightly adjusted.

[kostkoro]

If you want to change it though, in the .wps file, replace:

Code:

%V|24|96|214|12|1|282200|554900|
%ac%s%pp/%pe%?pn< in "%pn"| in dynamic playlist>

with something like (see http://www.rockbox.org/wiki/CustomWPS#ID3_Tag_Info)

Code:

%V|24|96|214|12|1|282200|554900|
%ac%s%pp/%pe - Genre: %ig

Thanks for your kind advise. Finally I made it! Although the code you provided was a bit different than the one in the downloaded file (maybe your provided code comes from your recent version which I don't have, and, I could not use, if it is for ipod):

# Position & Playlist info, codec
%V|15|72|150|10|1|4a3f00|554900|
%ac%s%pp/%pe%?pn< in "%pn"| in dynamic playlist>

I also removed the word "Genre:"
Anyway, I think now it is much better! I am waiting to see the "rounded tape" version for H3xx!

[vash]

By "watch" do you mean a clock? I miss a clock on this as well and have been wondering where to put it. I don't care about the little meter in the lower right so I've been wondering what it would look like there.

The white background for the menus is to simulate/suggest the old inserts for blank cassettes. I would personally not dream of changing it

I agree, this is the nicest theme available for the iPod.

Yep. I meant a clock. Sorry for my poor English 8]

Meter is a smart detail that looks pretty amazing for this theme, so I don't thinks it should be removed or replaced by smth. Counter could be placed above full track time and below "Total" word. Counter text formatting should be the same as formating for full track time is. If you do so, then clock may be put on the counter place.

I caught your thought about white background, so I absolutely understand why you not going to change it. I'm totally agree with you on that point. 

What about bolding up the text for battery and volume indicators?

Tnx in advance!

ps When are you gonna to put your modified theme in the rockbox website?

[Yotto]

What about bolding up the text for battery and volume indicators?

Tnx in advance!

ps When are you gonna to put your modified theme in the rockbox website?

Currently the theme only uses 2 fonts, because more is only available on the daily builds and Audio-i (the theme's author) wants to only release a "stable" version for the Current Build (currently 3.5.1).  So, until 3.6 comes out there will be no changes officially, but after that we can do a lot of stuff

I'm working on what you could call a "fork" of Audio-i's original theme. We're working together and sharing images and code but we have different needs for a final product. He's not releasing (as I said above) until 3.6 comes out, and I'm not releasing until some (hopefully short) time after that.  I'm planning on putting some of your ideas (genre and clock most notably) in my theme somewhere, and while I agree that the meter looks nice it may just have to go We'll see.

[vash]

Great thanks for your answer Yotto!
You rock my music world!

My best,
-V.

[peaceful1]

What about bolding up the text for battery and volume indicators?

Tnx in advance!

ps When are you gonna to put your modified theme in the rockbox website?

Currently the theme only uses 2 fonts, because more is only available on the daily builds and Audio-i (the theme's author) wants to only release a "stable" version for the Current Build (currently 3.5.1).  So, until 3.6 comes out there will be no changes officially, but after that we can do a lot of stuff

I'm working on what you could call a "fork" of Audio-i's original theme. We're working together and sharing images and code but we have different needs for a final product. He's not releasing (as I said above) until 3.6 comes out, and I'm not releasing until some (hopefully short) time after that.  I'm planning on putting some of your ideas (genre and clock most notably) in my theme somewhere, and while I agree that the meter looks nice it may just have to go We'll see.

do you know when the 3.6 well be released

[Strife89]

do you know when the 3.6 well be released

It will be ready when it's ready. There is no real release schedule.

[Llorean]

You mean other than the release schedule we decided about before 3.0 that has led to 3.0 through 3.5 (and has been adjusted slightly for future releases)?

[kostkoro]

I'm working on what you could call a "fork" of Audio-i's original theme. We're working together and sharing images and code but we have different needs for a final product. He's not releasing (as I said above) until 3.6 comes out, and I'm not releasing until some (hopefully short) time after that.  I'm planning on putting some of your ideas (genre and clock most notably) in my theme somewhere, and while I agree that the meter looks nice it may just have to go We'll see.

Hi again, allow me to participate in the interesting discussion.
First, I would like to notice some problems with the theme wich I have installed in my H3xx.
When status bar is off, everything works fine. When status bar is on (actually "custom") its elements are visible in the .wps, confusing the outcome. This is more obvious if it's the "B" side of the tape displayed. Apart form that: date/time from the menu mixes with the top of the counter, which seems to flicker constantly, it also mixes with the top grey edge of the tape. The letter "B" (capital) displays on the left top corner of the casette. More confusing, the "NOW: title" displays in the middle of the text info on the yellow part of the tape. This lasts a few secs, then it dissapears, as if a kind of refresh happens. But if the  "NOW: title" scrolls, (because it is quite long), then it constantly appears and reappears, exceeding (of course) the limit of the tape area.
Here you can see what it looks like (screenshot from the simulator):

Second, I have some ideas about what info and where to be included in the .wps

...while I agree that the meter looks nice it may just have to go

I certainly vote for the peakmeter to remain! It is a must for a tape deck!
Other info: I managed some small modifications to original .wps, although totally newbie in code.
Thus the last line of text displays in an alternating way: A. {genre+year}  B. {file format+bitrate+khz} as you can see here:

[Yotto]

When status bar is off, everything works fine. When status bar is on (actually "custom") its elements are visible in the .wps, confusing the outcome.

The obvious solution to this is to not turn the status bar on. I think this actually isn't a problem with the theme so much as a problem with backwards compatibility to a time when the status bar was actually just a status bar.

...while I agree that the meter looks nice it may just have to go

I certainly vote for the peakmeter to remain! It is a must for a tape deck!

I don't *want* it to go. But if I'm going to get some of those things that you want from the inaccessible status bar... something has to. Plus, I want the "next" track to be printed on the side of a cassette case so I'm losing even *more* vertical room.

The good news is - at least as far as I know - that audio-i is not planning on killing the peakmeter.

... the last line of text displays in an alternating way: A. {genre+year}  B. {file format+bitrate+khz}

More info is generally better, but my personal opinion is that the info "printed" on the cassette should not change unless absolutely necessary. To me, that means it's ONLY acceptable to allow changes between tracks and to scroll long lines.

[kostkoro]

The obvious solution to this is to not turn the status bar on. I think this actually isn't a problem with the theme so much as a problem with backwards compatibility to a time when the status bar was actually just a status bar.

It is the obvious solution, but this makes the (custom) status bar non-functional. I don't see the reason - from the designer's point of view- to put effort to do something that noone can use.

The good news is - at least as far as I know - that audio-i is not planning on killing the peakmeter.

Really good news!

More info is generally better, but my personal opinion is that the info "printed" on the cassette should not change unless absolutely necessary. To me, that means it's ONLY acceptable to allow changes between tracks and to scroll long lines.

It's a matter of taste, for sure. I was going to suggest a possible "placeholder change" between next track (bottom area) and the other (current) track info, bitrate, genre, year etc (tape area), but it also scrolls...
Well, I will wait for the next version- I don't forget the "promised" rounded tape! (Although it's from audio-i).
Thanks again.