Thread: [SKIN]FPs "Bright Life" (input needed to complete)

Originally Posted by P2k

hi,
there will be 2 Versions coming up. One with a higher count of buttons (the one you see above) and one with less buttons looking like this:



And here is probably a higher quality Version of the exit screen.



So tell me, wich button icons shall i switch, change exactly?

This is my personal artistic/usablility opinion, to be taken with our without salt:


The above screen with less buttons is much better, but that huge VW sign is just taking up precious space. BTW can you post the full image of that VW sign, i drive one too and havent seen one as high quality as that one. But back to the skin. I would remove the half circle (VW logo) completely from the player screen. I llike the logos up top and play buttons on the bottom are all a nice size. The Dir and playlist windows are too small. After removeing the VW logo you would have more space to make these areas bigger.And also make the menu button take up the extra space. I would also do something with the vis window very similar to this skin New Skin
make a toggle and fullscreen button. Unfortunately the links to the download for this skin are broken If you need it let me know and i can send it to you so you fully understand what im talking about.
Other than that, everything is cool as far as the player screen goes.

One minor (and this is minor) thing i would do with the exit screen is to move the exit button to the lower left or right, only for the sake of being symetrical. Just looks funny with the extit button by itself all alone
You could make the big red shutdown button the exit button, and maybe put some cool text in the bottom white bar, remove it, or leave it blank and people can put there own text there or not.

Oh, just noticed. 1 thing you are going to have an issue with when you start making the .ini files is that the sliders in FP dont support trasparency. So the scroll up and down buttons, middle slider and volume slider all have to have a solid color. Which in turn makes the gradient background look bad because you have these solid bars sitting on top of them. One of the reasons a lot of FP skins dont have a gradient in the dir and playllist windows. It can be done and look ok, its just usualy not what you expect when you start to create the .ini files. Just thought id give you a heads up on that part and not have to chage it later when you see for yourself.

Cant wait till your done with the skin, i really like the style. Keep up the good work.

something more along these lines is what i was thinking.

If those ideas of mine are a little too much, i wouldnt mind making a variation of your skin if you sent me psd files. God knows when i would find time to do it though, i currently swamped with work, but i could work on it during breaks from my real work.

Originally Posted by liquid_smoke

This is my personal artistic/usablility opinion, to be taken with our without salt:


The above screen with less buttons is much better, but that huge VW sign is just taking up precious space. BTW can you post the full image of that VW sign, i drive one too and havent seen one as high quality as that one. But back to the skin. I would remove the half circle (VW logo) completely from the player screen. I llike the logos up top and play buttons on the bottom are all a nice size. The Dir and playlist windows are too small. After removeing the VW logo you would have more space to make these areas bigger.And also make the menu button take up the extra space. I would also do something with the vis window very similar to this skin New Skin
make a toggle and fullscreen button. Unfortunately the links to the download for this skin are broken If you need it let me know and i can send it to you so you fully understand what im talking about.
Other than that, everything is cool as far as the player screen goes.

One minor (and this is minor) thing i would do with the exit screen is to move the exit button to the lower left or right, only for the sake of being symetrical. Just looks funny with the extit button by itself all alone
You could make the big red shutdown button the exit button, and maybe put some cool text in the bottom white bar, remove it, or leave it blank and people can put there own text there or not.

Oh, just noticed. 1 thing you are going to have an issue with when you start making the .ini files is that the sliders in FP dont support trasparency. So the scroll up and down buttons, middle slider and volume slider all have to have a solid color. Which in turn makes the gradient background look bad because you have these solid bars sitting on top of them. One of the reasons a lot of FP skins dont have a gradient in the dir and playllist windows. It can be done and look ok, its just usualy not what you expect when you start to create the .ini files. Just thought id give you a heads up on that part and not have to chage it later when you see for yourself.

Cant wait till your done with the skin, i really like the style. Keep up the good work.

Great Ideas,
P2k should have input in this, but here are my 2 cents.
1. The gradient and size of the playlist is not a huge issue, this skin is on my 7" in my car, and my main concern was looking at the screen as little as possible. The size of the playlist never bothered, but the idea of the Visual covering the playlist also sounds fun... Overall I dont think there is a wrong way with have this (kind of like the reeses.) So if you are up for this, you can make version 3...but we have to ask P2k first, he is the mastermind of the graphics.

2. Gradient playlist is not a problem if the Arrow(s) picture follows the gradient background. (look at attachment below) and it looks clean. (I uploaded an actual working skin at the beginning of the thread...it looks pretty good there already)

3. The VW sign removed: I agree, I think (for the second version the cleaner one with mode arrows), we will add the GPS link, bigger volume buttons and whatever else we and you guys can come up/advice.

4. P2k likes simplicity, I like simply accessible; thus the two versions. Scrolling through all the modes to find the one you need is not only unsafe, but frustrating sometimes (personal opinion). I know it doesnt look better then the version with MODE ARROWS, but while driving it makes it SO SO SO much better.
If an administrator can run a poll to figure out how many people like which, it could give us a better idea

Yunus

@liquid_smoke
thx for your good critizism!
yunusyu already said a few things about your ideas and I'd like to add just a minor things cause I agree in general.
I inserted the logo to get some dynamic and colors in the skin. Otherwise it would just be too grey and boring (in my opinion). But you are right especially with the dir window. So I reduced the size of the arc on the right side and increased the size of the dir list. I think that is a quite good compromise. But if you want to I can hand you the psd after we finished this and you can do a 3rd Version.

I will think about moving the exit button. Dont feel that this looks bad thou its def unsymmetric. But I will ask some more people about this

thanks for your tipps concerning the gradients. yunusyu told you about possibility to adapt that...

and here the adress for the VW logo:
http://www.sovent.co.za/tours/10year...ogo%20jpeg.jpg

i seem to like p2k design and layout of the alot better then the dice version made by yunusyu.
yunusyu has to much going on in the skin, while p2k has just the right amount of buttons on the skin.
as for the liquid has being talkin about and the layout he has done, you cant go wrong with it, that is as simple and clean lookin as you can get it..
keep up the good work...

Version 2S the Cleaner one is fully functioning... finishing up other parts of the GUI now.
Getting closer

Drum roll ...................

The drummer's arms are getting tired..