Slim Player - Wishlist

[drjboulder]

All Right, I am calling it Wish Fulfilled. I am done messing with this and am going to call what I have good enough.

Never got it with a really stretched comment/everything else to the left.
Tried Mode's last suggestion and comment still wanted to stay to the far right.
This is what I ended up using (tho, it seems like bad code to me ):

Code: Select all

[Custom1]
Type=Text
Resizable=0,0,1,1
Pos=396,5
Size=300,13
Transperent=1
TextMask=%C4
TextAlign=-1
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

[Custom2]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,1,0
Pos=394,5
Size=310,13
Transperent=1
TextMask=%A - %S
TextAlign=0
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

[TimeDisplay]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,0,0
Pos=320,5
Size=64,13
TextAlign=1
Transperent=1
TextMask=%H/%I
SmallDigits=0
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

Think that this is really cool. Beyond my original goal of an easy way to know if the comment field needs editing, it is pretty neat to be able to read a review of the album you are listening to!

Certainly have a new respect for Skinners!
Tho, if I had any idea what I was doing, this probably would not have been such a PITA.
Thanks Cowboy, Nohitter and Mode for all your help.

[rovingcowboy]

its what i said before in another post you can't put them all in the same line and have them all stretch to the right the ones will cover the other ones.

your using layers each section in the ini file is a layer,

first is the skin background then
the next is the first after the background.
and so on ,,,,

you can move them around in the ini file also to get things to work.

how ever if you have the seek bar on top of the buttons.
you will beable to see the buttons but you wont beable to click on the buttons.

the buttons need to be on top of the seek bar, which is why in my hillybilly rock diner skin the previous and next buttons which are the windows in the building are on infront of the car hop seek bar when the car hop goes by the windows.

so you can click on the buttons.

and as i said before the time counter needs to be big enough to allow the full time in hours to be show and must be made longer and larger just like the other text areas depending on the size of the font used in the timer area. if it is too small the time will scroll just like the title, but it scrolls really fast.

you must use a custom1/2/3/4 which ever is next in your number line if you want to use another time counter. if you want the time counter to stay on screen when there is no song playing you need to use the custom type of section. other wise the default is only on screen when the song is playing.

[rovingcowboy]

All Right, I am calling it Wish Fulfilled. I am done messing with this and am going to call what I have good enough.

Never got it with a really stretched comment/everything else to the left.
Tried Mode's last suggestion and comment still wanted to stay to the far right.
This is what I ended up using (tho, it seems like bad code to me ):

Code: Select all

[Custom1]
Type=Text
Resizable=0,0,1,1
Pos=396,5
Size=300,13
Transperent=1
TextMask=%C4
TextAlign=-1
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

[Custom2]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,1,0
Pos=394,5
Size=310,13
Transperent=1
TextMask=%A - %S
TextAlign=0
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

[TimeDisplay]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,0,0
Pos=320,5
Size=64,13
TextAlign=1
Transperent=1
TextMask=%H/%I
SmallDigits=0
FontColor=4C5049
FontHeight=-9
FontName=Verdana

Think that this is really cool. Beyond my original goal of an easy way to know if the comment field needs editing, it is pretty neat to be able to read a review of the album you are listening to!

Certainly have a new respect for Skinners!
Tho, if I had any idea what I was doing, this probably would not have been such a PITA.
Thanks Cowboy, Nohitter and Mode for all your help.

your welcome

but you cant have the custom two load on the same line under the custom one, you have custom1 starting at 396. and going for 300 pixels long. and you have custom2 starting at 394 and going for 310 pixels long your covering up your custom1 line. it wont work.
you only need a few pixels if you want that type of thing.

just make the size=15,13 for each of the custom sections.
then place the custom2 at pixel 406
and make the code for both of them in resize =0,0,1,1 they should both resize with the right of the player but the left side of the text line should stay with that pixel that it was told to start at. if the pixel that starts the stretching part of the skin is at a location to the left of the custom sections starting pixel

when you do that if one stretches on top of the other one, just change the location for the starting pixel to the section that is on the right which would be the one that starts at 406. just move it to 415 and check the skin again, if all is fine then you got that in the right location to start with.
now go back and change the other's size to fill in the extra 9 pixels and give it a longer view area when the skin is shrunk to the small size.

its like i said in my lesson on the wiki. when your ready to test the skin, you keep going back and forth between the code and the test skin to check your locations.

i've spent 3 hours on some of my skins when i started just finding the right locations.
takes me about 30 minutes now. and thats if i change lots of stuff.


i've seen your image and according to the text you have in the ini file the time counter is at location 320. it is also 64 pixels long. which would be stopping at 384. you have your custom2 starting in 394. so some place between 320 and 394 is where the skin splits and stretchs.
if you want the custom2 to stay on the left you need to move it back wards from 394 a few pixels at a time to 384 and see if it stops sliding when you stretch the skin.
if not then make the clock a little smaller, and move the custom2 over some more, do that until you find the place the custom2 section stops sliding. it is sliding because it is pinned to a pixel that is on the moving part of the skins background.

after you get it pinned to the non moving part of the player image then get the different text sections from covering up each other as i said in the first part of my post.




here i changed the code to the numbers i said.
use it and see if the sections stay where they are and stretch to what you want.

if they do then you just have to change the stuff size of the text areas, and then the location again of the one on the right which is custom1

if the custom2 still slides to the right you need to do that backwards moving thing to find where to pin it.

Code: Select all

[Custom1] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=0,0,1,1 
Pos=406,5 
Size=15,13 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%C4 
TextAlign=-1 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

[Custom2] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=0,0,1,1 
Pos=385,5 
Size=15,13 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%A - %S 
TextAlign=0 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

[TimeDisplay] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=1,1,0,0 
Pos=320,5 
Size=64,13 
TextAlign=1 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%H/%I 
SmallDigits=0 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

[drjboulder]

but you cant have the custom two load on the same line under the custom one, you have custom1 starting at 396. and going for 300 pixels long. and you have custom2 starting at 394 and going for 310 pixels long your covering up your custom1 line. it wont work.
you only need a few pixels if you want that type of thing.

Thats why I said this:

what I have good enough.

This is what I ended up using (tho, it seems like bad code to me ):

just make the size=15,13 for each of the custom sections.
then place the custom2 at pixel 406
and make the code for both of them in resize =0,0,1,1 they should both resize with the right of the player but the left side of the text line should stay with that pixel that it was told to start at. if the pixel that starts the stretching part of the skin is at a location to the left of the custom sections starting pixel

when you do that if one stretches on top of the other one, just change the location for the starting pixel to the section that is on the right which would be the one that starts at 406. just move it to 415 and check the skin again, if all is fine then you got that in the right location to start with.
now go back and change the other's size to fill in the extra 9 pixels and give it a longer view area when the skin is shrunk to the small size.


i've seen your image and according to the text you have in the ini file the time counter is at location 320. it is also 64 pixels long. which would be stopping at 384. you have your custom2 starting in 394. so some place between 320 and 394 is where the skin splits and stretchs.
if you want the custom2 to stay on the left you need to move it back wards from 394 a few pixels at a time to 384 and see if it stops sliding when you stretch the skin.
if not then make the clock a little smaller, and move the custom2 over some more, do that until you find the place the custom2 section stops sliding. it is sliding because it is pinned to a pixel that is on the moving part of the skins background.

Once I feel up to working on this some more, I will try to wrap my brain around that. For now, bad code and all, I have what I was initially looking for. It is just not perfect.

here i changed the code to the numbers i said.
use it and see if the sections stay where they are and stretch to what you want.

if they do then you just have to change the stuff size of the text areas, and then the location again of the one on the right which is custom1

if the custom2 still slides to the right you need to do that backwards moving thing to find where to pin it.

Code: Select all

[Custom1] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=0,0,1,1 
Pos=406,5 
Size=15,13 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%C4 
TextAlign=-1 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

[Custom2] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=0,0,1,1 
Pos=385,5 
Size=15,13 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%A - %S 
TextAlign=0 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

[TimeDisplay] 
Type=Text 
Resizable=1,1,0,0 
Pos=320,5 
Size=64,13 
TextAlign=1 
Transperent=1 
TextMask=%H/%I 
SmallDigits=0 
FontColor=4C5049 
FontHeight=-9 
FontName=Verdana 

Using those positions.... Artist/Title disappeared and comment was reduced to a 15 pixel scroll box:

Like I said, what I have now is workable.
Once I give my brain a rest, I will pick it up again.
Thanks for your interest and responses.

[monkey hi fi]

artist and title should not have disappeard?

i don't have any idea what that text align is doing there.

here is the code i use for the concert skin's two text areas which are on the same line. you would just have to change the size code, the placement pixels to fit your player skin.
and the font and the font size and the font color and the % codes to show what you want in each but these two do work.
and if the text is too long in each of these it will scroll.

there is something to be said for keeping it as simple as possible., just take a break let the info soak in for a day or so then get a huge cup of coffee and try again.

Code: Select all

[SongTitle]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,0,0
Pos=150,4
Size=625,25
Transperent=1
TextMask=%S
FontColor=FFFFFF
FontHeight=-20

[Custom1]
Type=Text
Resizable=1,1,1,1
Pos=800,4
Size=430,25
Transparent=1
TextMask=%A
FontColor=FFFFFF
FontHeight=-18

roving cowboy / keith hall / monkey hi fi

[drjboulder]

there is something to be said for keeping it as simple as possible., just take a break let the info soak in for a day or so then get a huge cup of coffee and try again.

That would be the plan minus the coffee, plus the Home Brew!

[drjboulder]

Hmmmm.....
Just re-reading the entire thread before Shutting Down for the night...

Could this be the issue?

If it still doesn't work
You might like to check Playlist/Max/Close Buttons pos and length(width) to make sure they aren't overlapping
[CloseButton]
[MaximizeButton]
[PlaylistButton]

[rovingcowboy]

its possible that could be overlapping but that is taken care of in the player's mskn file, i believe. i don't have the player so i don't have the whole ini file. to see if it is in there some place?
since i don't use those buttons on my players that i remember anyway? i did put the close button on one floating player but don't remember how.

just make sure none of the numbers for postion and size and location and length over lap and your fine. with that, if it still shows over laping then its going to take the redo of the whole ini file to figure out where it is.

[drjboulder]

Well, I think that I figured out what the problem was.

With a fresh brain, I decided to use a fresh skin and work on NoHitter' Zune Slim Player.
Taking a more global look at the float.ini and not just focusing on what I was changing.
Right away I noticed that the players actual width was only 500. I had been using a pixel ruler to get a rough idea where I wanted various elements on an expanded to full screen player. So, I was positioning elements in places that did not exist!

So, I figured it out!
May I present my Dream Slim Zune Player:


I thank everyone for their patience and help.
I will be quite now.

[MoDementia]

Excellent,

It can be difficult to work with someone elses work because, like scripting, you need a global understanding of the end result.
If there is a "bug" its very hard to find if it is outside your understanding

i.e. If you had listed the whole ini someone would have seen the size
[CloseButton]
[MaximizeButton]
[PlaylistButton]
Probably give it away too hehehe

[rovingcowboy]

well it proves one thing.

that my signiture goes for art work errors also.

[drjboulder]

If I would have posted the entire .ini, someone would have caught it immediately and I would not have had the lesson that this little project turned into.

[rovingcowboy]

If I would have posted the entire .ini, someone would have caught it immediately and I would not have had the lesson that this little project turned into.

yep but ya strained my poor old mind it don't like to work that hard any more. it got plum lazy

[drjboulder]

Just an update...
As I know everyone is waiting with baited breath to know if after success with Nohitter's Zune Slim, if I ever got everything sussed out with MagicalPig's SongBird Slim...
Opened it up tonight with all my new found knowledge and was able to get it configured pretty easily:


Now, if only the skinning engine supported comments as an available mask!

[rovingcowboy]

its always nice to have a new skinner in the group. welcome to the wonder world of wishful skinning.