Alpha 2 Background images confusion

[DaledeSilva]

Hello,

I'm confused about the way the backgrounds seem to be behaving in Alpha 2

Here is a picture of a skin I'm working on... this screenshot was taken using the first alpha:

notice how the background for the browser columns is the same as the background of the empty tracklist section... I always thought this was odd because since "sdb_background_list.bmp" is for sections without text... when it is ALSO used for the browser section (with text) it means it has to be designed with two very different dynamics in mind - eg.. a dominant background compared to a background which still has to allow the text to be readable. For that reason, I would like to see the browser columns having their own background image.


okay, now, here is a screenshot of the same skin after install MM3.0 Alpha 2. as you can see. the backgrounds have been changed around quite a bit.

Now:
- the browser columns don't use any background.. they seem to use the odd and even tracklist colour.
- the tracklist textless area doesn't use the "sdb_background_list.bmp" anymore at all.. instead it just continues repeating the odd and even colours throughout the empty space.
- the now playing (playlist pane - not node)... doesn't use the now playing odd and even colours at all but uses the "sdb_background_playing.bmp" throughout..

everything seems to have changed to work in different ways which are all inconsistent to each other...

can someone please explain where this might end up settling?

also, as a request, since there are obviously changes being made here, I would like to see all the background bmp's put inside the theme file.. I don't understand why they aren't anyway.. that way we will be able to adjust alignment and stretching settings for them too (if you like at my tree background.. the colours on the right are actually just space in the image... it is not a right aligned image as that's not possible yet.. so if someone elses tree pane is wide, it screws up.

Dale.

ps. if one of the dev's would like to see the skin file I'm happy to send it through.. but not sure of the exact help it might be.. - I'm not actually gonna release the skin yet though.

[PetrCBR]

Hi.

In second alpha background drawings are changed becouse some users have set other DPI than standard 96 and in this case, static background (from bmp image) will look strange.
For this reason background in empty space of the list is drawed in same way as for tracks rows.
For tracklist you can define it's background in skin as :
VirtualTree/TrackListOdd and VirtualTree/TrackListEven
and for playlist
VirtualTree/NowPlayingOdd and VirtualTree/NowPlayingEven

Petr

[DaledeSilva]

Does that mean we won't be able to include backgrounds in the skin anymore? (unless they're designed to repeat per row) - will there be a new method implemented?


also... if these are the changes being made.. why are they not consistent? - the rows in the tracklist are effected, so clicking on the "now playing" NODE shows the odd even colours... but other things still use the bg images (like the now playing PANEL and the browser columns)...
if it was changed because of DPI settings, then isn't the DPI problem relevant to these areas too?

Dale.

[PetrCBR]

Does that mean we won't be able to include backgrounds in the skin anymore? (unless they're designed to repeat per row) - will there be a new method implemented?


also... if these are the changes being made.. why are they not consistent? - the rows in the tracklist are effected, so clicking on the "now playing" NODE shows the odd even colours... but other things still use the bg images (like the now playing PANEL and the browser columns)...
if it was changed because of DPI settings, then isn't the DPI problem relevant to these areas too?

Dale.

This inconsistency looks like a bug. Thanks for your suggestion.