Hey everyone. Sorry if these may be a couple stupid questions but I can't find answers for them. I've searched but still no luck. This is my first smartphone/PDA phone.
First, i'm wondering about changing the theme on my Blackjack. What do I need to start changing things around. I've seen THIS , and really like the way that looks. I assume themes like this come with the plugins or whatever, and they just work. Yes? I'd like to have the ability to change things around myself, particularly the color of the signal and battery meters at the top for starters, then adding and changing icons, their locatins, etc. Where can I get those plugins to do it myself? Do I need to mess with the registry to do that kind of thing? I might get that Sci-Fi Plugin Blue Clock one, just because it looks nice and functional IMO.
Second, what should I look for as far as software requirements? I know it's WM5, and i'm guessing it's considered a "Landscape" screen. But if it has to say Windows Mobile 5. Some say that, smartphone, Pocket PC, Windows Mobile 2002/2003, that kind of thing. Would it have to say WM5 "landscape" to work? Would it be safe to consider anything that works for the Moto Q would work on the BJ?
I know there may be simple answers to simple questions, but thanks in advance for any help.
For your first question... there are some Smartphone theme makers out there, but the Home screen is basically two parts - the background (.JPG image) and the actual text and formatting of the information on the screen, which is an XML file. If you know what you are doing, you can edit the XML and simply add the files to your /Applications/Home folder to add them to the list of Home Screens that you can select from. Be advised that improperly formatted Home screens will not display nor even show up in the list to select.
The plugins are available all around the web, just Google search for what you are looking for and you will find them.
Second, pretty much anything that will work on the Q will work on the Blackjack, with some minor exceptions. One is a flashlight program that uses the flash on the Q - the Blackjack doesn't have a flash, so it is a moot point. The important thing is that any software needs to support WM5 SMARTPHONE and not just WM5. And yes, the landscape view does mess up some apps and the way they display.
Yes that answers alot, really helps narrow down the software to look in to. Thank you.
I assume the plugins that I need are already in the phone. I've been reading up on XML so I think I might try to tweak one of the built in themes a little to see what happens. One more thing about that, what's the worst that can happen if I mess it up? Will I be able to go to "Start" and change the theme back?
As long as you don't edit the current theme and then try to use it and it's bad (which will put you into a loop of errors) you should be OK. The only way to go back then is to do a hard reset.
So switch your theme, edit the theme that you want to play with, add it back, and then see if it shows up.
The screen is 320x240 so if you want a custom background image format a current .jpg to those dimensions. Use photoshop or macromedia's fireworks to get just what you need. Also keep in mind the size of the jpg for performance issues. 20k or so would be optimal.
As jpmihalk stated, the XML file controls the homescreen. Some plugins are more customizable than others directly in the XML file. It depends on how they are written. Fizz Weather controls everything internal so changing the homescreen design is little more difficult. From what I know, you are basically limited to the homescreen font/color rules.
Others like time/date/carrier are open to a lot changes like size, color, bold, etc... www.kooldezine.com has some cool homescreens. You can download one of theirs then use it to play with and learn about the XML file. Just follow the directions jpm said and you will be fine. That is how I learned about the properties. Also, this link: CLICK HERE has a great write-up on how the homescreen works.
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