If anybody figures out the right properties to enter to correct my dilema I would appreciate a post with the info.

Thanks

Actually ChasUGC, you can do it, as I believe the graphic I show here proves:



The method I used is pretty much as I outlined in previous posts in this thread. From the CopperDeck 2 WB files, I took the sp-moreprogs.bmp and cropped the top off of it, to a new size of 190 x 20. I then added the "All Programs" text and a small arrow to the image. I then copied this image and made a new image 570 x 20, and tiled three copies of this modified graphic. Next, I Selected the center and right images and used a hue map to change the orange bits to a hue with more red, thus giving me a mouse-over and pressed state with some emphasis. I then flattened and saved the image as sp-moreprogsarrow.bmp in the copperdeck_2 WB folder.

I then opened CopperDeck 2 in Skin Studio, and replaced the More Programs Arrow graphic (trayarrow.tga) with my new bitmap. Since I was replacing a tga with a bmp, I had to disable translucency. I then edited the content margins for the More Programs Background item. I had to shift them a great deal, finally ending with a -90 (negative) margin for the left content margin. Because of the cropping I did, I also had to adjust the top and bottom content margins as well to get things to line up properly.

The graphic above shows in the top half the Start Panel opened, but I have not hovered over the All Programs Arrow yet. In the bottom half, I am hovering over the All programs arrow, and you can see the color shift on the button, and that the More Programs menu is open, and most importantly, no hover color anywhere to be seen.

P.S. For some odd reason my cursors never want to show up in my screen shots, but trust me, the cursor was over the button in the bottom half. If you have any doubts, try it yourself.

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Satans Child - odd, I did the same thing to try and check the clicked image and now when I click it just stays on the rolled over state...ditto the start button itself. I have found with the start button that pressing the Windows key sometimes makes it display the pressed state, but only under some set of conditions I've not tracked down yet! I've never seen the pressed state when using the mouse for the start button, the all programs button or the MDI buttons for that matter...

Shameless Designs - I agree...you've convinced me

Sput... I think it will be kind of tough to come up with an exact formula, unless you always make your skin the same way. The default size of the More Programs Panel in SS is 190 x 30. The More Programs Background size for this skin is 190 x 25, but the draw method is stretch, so it would end up occupying the full size of 190 x 30. (Only the 2nd row of pixels from the top is stretched... pretty clever, Treetog .

Anyway, that is the reason I cropped the top of the graphic I used as the basis for the MoreProgsArrow, so that wound up to be 190 x 20 (per state). My left content margin had to be -90 to pull the arrow graphic all the way to the left and eliminate the hover color completely, so that number I feel reasonably confident that it could be used as a starting point, at least.

My top content margin was 10, which makes sense given that I wanted the bottom edges to match and the difference in size vertically was 10 pixels. The right content margin was 0 which also makes sense as the graphics were of identical width. The bottom content margin was 1, which makes no sense mathematically, however it was the only way that the two graphics would align properly.

At any rate, I'm not that confident that there is a formula in all of that detail. It might best be used as a starting point for adjustment - a rule of thumb if you will. I'll keep looking at a few other skins I want to tweak now, and see if I can find a pattern out of it all.

a gentleman and a scholar

Wow. We're getting some really informative threads on WindowBlinds as of late! Good work solving these little hiccups guys.

Shameless D ... you are a bad motherfSHUT YO MOUTH

Thank you so much for your help and shareing with all of us, this can only lead to bigger better things.

Thanks for the compliments, all. But I still say the real credit goes to brewman, Snidely Whiplash, and TheGreenReaper. All I did was shine a light on it.

I need to add to watch list to keep track of this one.

ah! I got it