Wow! It seems this thread is thriving!
Thank you all for your ideas and contributions!
Regarding per-app-icons:
Well, in some cases the easiest method is to make a Screenshot and slap it on a flat rectangle, for example in wLE's case!
Just a screen-shot from the main-menu and then slapping it on a flat rectangle (like the one shown in Jolek's post).
In ESR's case, I think:
- extracting the logo from the ELF,
- adding some Bezier-curves around the flat "writing",
- adding a z-depth to the bezier curve, to make it a 3D-Icon
would be the fastest and most efficient way.
I really hope for the Mini-MC to be added and that we will have "better" icons once upon in time, than simple rectangles or cubes...
That's probably also the best idea for a better FMCB-MC-Icon, using the FMCB-Logo and then adding depth-info to it!
Having all logos in FMCB pretty similar, was also due to us want to "get it all done" at least, without @JNABK or someone else spending
hours on
one icon!
I was thinking of the doing the following in my OSDSYS reimplementation:
"LAUNCHSV.INI" would be in a directory and contain the path to an ELF file, so it can be launched by navigating to the icon and pressing the confirm button. This would be similar to how HDD partitions are launched.
Yes, that would be a pretty cool feature!
Regarding this specific config "LAUNCHSV.INI":
Well, the naming-convention-idea is also meant to not being dependent on such a file, BUT of course such an additional file should still be supported, like the new file which is used in OPL's new app-system!
You know...
- (preferably fixed-lenght) Folder-Prefix with a following underscore --> simple code to recognize an app based on folder-name and also easy to see for users, when reading/seeing the name
- "APPNAME" in folder-name and "APPNAME".ELF have the same name or as a Fall-back-solution "BOOT.ELF" and another fall-back-solution "Filename defined in a config" (like yours, or the one OPL uses in it's new App-System
These config-files can also hold additional information regarding the app (version, etc.)!
OPL already has a 3D icon,
@Tupakaveli made it and it's in the repo currently.. you can see screenshots here
https://www.psx-place.com/threads/open-ps2-loader-v0-9-3.13415/page-40
Yeah, correct! I forgot about that!
Merging that with a Mini-MC (APP) Logo would be cool thought!
Folder-name "APP_OPL", ELF-Name "OPL.ELF" and the first "app-folder" already would be made according to the idea(s)!
Not sure about other apps but I would think wLE would already have one also?
I ought to remember, that someone already slapped a Screenshot from uLE's usual/default screen, onto a flat rectangle, but am not sure about it.
Fairly sure SMS already has one compiled in too.. Might have a look.
Definitely, but that was a simple cube, has no Mini-MC and is only for the save/config-folder AFAIR!
As for tools, I think ffgriever coded an app (forgot what it's called) to make very basic 3D cubes/rectangles etc from 2d images.. but yea, they turn out better if made manually though software.. Milkshape etc
I forgot about that tool! THX!
Yes, it's definitely better if manually made (visually, etc.)! But... It's also quite a bit more work... :-|
Edit: yea both SMS & wLE already have memory card icons but unlike OPL which has the files compiled in and just writes them, SMS & wLE create them from source code.
https://github.com/AKuHAK/uLaunchELF/blob/master/makeicon.c
That might actually proof useful for the PC-Side-stuff
@Maximus32 mentioned, so we can create some "dummy-icons", until anyone wants to contribute a new/other/better icon.
Edit 2: SMS took me longer to find but I knew I had seen it in there somewhere
https://github.com/doctorxyz/sms/blob/master/src/SMS_ConfigIcon.c
https://github.com/doctorxyz/sms/blob/master/src/SMS_Config.c
Controversy aside PS2 Intro Loader uses icons the same way OPL does cause it was easier to code ;-)
I remember, when that feature was added to uLE, due to a user-request! It's cool, but pretty much unknown!
OPL it appears may be hardcoded to use /APPS/
Yes... It currently does not have support for "searching per folder"... on MC and using the new apps-system (that file within the folder, which OPL is looking for)!
@VTSTech
Indeed it does, but that is for displaying apps in your device list (USB, HDD, ETH) which would not be affected by MC Icons anyway.. which I think this thread is about (for the most part)?
Yerp, it's about the MC Icons, to have a "save" per app!
Within the device APPS folder for OPL I believe you can have sub folders per app though
https://github.com/ifcaro/Open-PS2-Loader/blob/master/src/opl.c#L389
Does OPL read/scan apps on MC? Can't say I've ever used the apps page.
I believe it does not! If support is included or is gonna be implemented, I think just scanning the folders on the MC instead of within the APPS-Folder would be the best!
+ here comes another reason for the naming-convention... The folder-name with the prefix can be used, to "kick off" any folder from the list which does not follow the naming-convention and thus not scan for the file which has the information!
Great, looks nice!
Just tried uLE, it does not have an icon (correct me if I'm wrong), but it can create a very very simple icon. It looks like this:
View attachment 21372
I think there was an easy uLE-Icon!
A screenshot of the UI, slapped on a flat rectangle!
But yes, uLE/wLE has a small feature to create very simple/basic MC-Icons!
You mean while browsing files in wLe, pressing R1 -> New Icon:
You can enter "Icon Title" and "IconText".
Theoretically BOOT icon is for u\wLe:
Although I've never seen dedicated icon for this app (u\wLe).
Yes, basically JNABK made them all quite similar, due to it sparing A LOT of time!
It is possible to have way better visuals (3 animated 3D-Icons per save/app), but they are 3D atleast and represent the MemoryCard-Style quite well!
I'm not sure why u/wLE is always BOOT/BOOT.ELF which is why the icon is that way, is it something to do with FMCB recovery mode?
@TnA or
@jolek probably know.
That's due to multiple reasons:
- Like @sp193 said/wrote... All Modchips which support DEV.1-Mode, use this path! It's the perfect fallback-solution for them, if the FMCB-Loader got corrupted, or the CNF accidentally got deleted, because the internal defaults still point to BOOT.ELF to BOOT3.ELF for Buttonlaunch! (especially useful, if these consoles lasers are not working)
- Many apps allow to "Exit to BOOT.ELF" and the most natural choice is wLE for this IMO.
- etc.
Im sure ESR has one built in too cause I recall seeing it in the browser.
Naaaah... Really? But it's not offi9from ffgriever, nor within the ELF! The ELF has a Logo (shown on startup), but not an MC-Icon.
I think there was an equally easily made Logo for ESR-GUI though! It was simply a Screenshot from ESR GUI slapped on a flat rectangle!
Perhaps a list of apps that don't have icons would be helpful if anyone knows them?
...or vice versa, which icons are "wanted"?! But yes, possibly!
I think we would not need specific icons for wLE and ESR, because both are meant to be part of the BOOT-Folder!
I don't mind, if such a contribution is provided however! It certainly would be neat to have icons for every app out there and it would be even cooler, if we would have some icons for the most prominent apps, to follow a kind of "standard" (like proposed in this thread)!
ESR does have one, I used it as the base for the Intro Loader icon
??? MC Icon? I think you mean the Logo, which pops up on startup?
I only ought to remember, that there was a "flat rectangle with Screenshot"-MC-Icon for ESR GUI...
It was made to support a modchip, although I'm not certain which one.
All which support "DEV.1"! It was specifically tested (pre-introduction) on an original MI (I think by Jimmykaelkael or l.oliveira.), DMS3 (by me), DMS4 (by dlanor) and later on on a lot of others as well (clones, etc.)!
CC doesn't work with it, because it either needs the Bootmanager (@Jones23's mod preferably) on MC or possibly a hacked FW.
