How do themes work?

[kazerniel]

I see a themes option in the program, but it's greyed out for me. How does one use/create themes?

[Serg-Norseman]

Themes are not available in GKv3 only - there are not enough properties of EtoForms components to completely change the appearance. System-dependent themes are possible there, but GKv3 does not use binding to the system theme.

[kazerniel]

Btw I think it might be easiest if I make a Google Sheets documents for the worklist of icons, it lets me embed images in cells.

[Serg-Norseman]

For the partial view, would this icon work then? It implies opening a new copy with that line, and a table might be the closest depiction of what it is?

I support the proposed icon for partial view. For trees, your prototype was quite clear to me, so I silently supported it :) If you find a more interesting option, we will consider it too.

As a hypothetical option, we can also consider increasing the icons for the buttons in the toolbar. Let's try, for example, 32 pixels. I used 24px buttons everywhere - because they were available to me when I started. And there were enough types to cover most of the program's needs. I'm a bad designer, so I didn't try to find other solutions.

If you make the buttons bigger, I would agree to it only for the toolbar, because I really don't want to waste space in other windows and dialogs ))) If you find interesting options, we'll consider them. I'll then specifically separate the glyphs for the main toolbar from the others.

[Serg-Norseman]

Leave an any comment in the issue by themes (#624) - I'll add you as a member so you'll get commit notifications. I find this task interesting enough that I dropped everything else and started working on it. The first commit restoring the topics to GKv3 will be out tonight or tomorrow evening.

[Serg-Norseman]

Btw I think it might be easiest if I make a Google Sheets documents for the worklist of icons, it lets me embed images in cells.

I support.

Fix three points at once:

1. Your design theme - will it be public, with inclusion in the main project repository?
   If public:
2. Сhoose a name for it.
3. How to enter you into the history of the project: under a nickname or a real name?

[Serg-Norseman]

When restoring, I immediately include some extensions and improvements.

One of the first mandatory conditions: if a button in the interface never has text - the icon that is missing in the included theme is replaced with an icon from the default theme (to avoid getting empty toolbars).

[kazerniel]

For trees, your prototype was quite clear to me, so I silently supported it :)

Oh alright, then I misunderstood that comment of yours. So you meant this icon's replacement as unclear? I suppose with that specific depiction of family trees you mentioned before, it could be more like a historical scroll , like in the original. (The 1st icon idea focused on the "exported page" aspect.)

I find this task interesting enough that I dropped everything else and started working on it.

Thanks!! :)

1. Your design theme - will it be public, with inclusion in the main project repository?
   If public:
2. Сhoose a name for it.
3. How to enter you into the history of the project: under a nickname or a real name?

1. Sure, I'm happy for it to be part of the main repository. I only tried git forking/committing once in my life so far, so I'd prefer if you handled the integration aspect :D
2. Hmm "Modern"? Or "Material" if we want to be specific, seeing that so far we only used icons from that set. But "Modern" is probably simpler.
3. I don't want to connect this username with my official name, so "kazerniel" is fine :)

if a button in the interface never has text - the icon that is missing in the included theme is replaced with an icon from the default theme (to avoid getting empty toolbars)

That is fine. I think the only text we're likely to have is the "GED" file extension appearing in the file management icons, so that shouldn't be a translation issue. But even that might be replaced if we find a better indication of file management to combine with the smaller symbols.

I'm too tired to start that spreadsheet today, but hopefully tomorrow!

(Edit: oops this was meant to be a reply in the thread.)

[Serg-Norseman]

Yes, "historical scroll" is better :)

I'm afraid the term "Material" will be incomprehensible to the program's main users. Well, practically everyone outside of IT )))

So let's accept "Modern". From "kazerniel".

[Serg-Norseman]

I have restored the work of themes, and extended it to the main toolbar, three dialogs and toolbars of subordinate tables.

Tomorrow is unlikely, but on Tuesday I will start extending the approach to all other windows, dialogs and toolbars. Along the way, the current list of glyphs of the program will be worked out.

[kazerniel]

Sounds good!

I forgot to respond to this part:

As a hypothetical option, we can also consider increasing the icons for the buttons in the toolbar. Let's try, for example, 32 pixels. I used 24px buttons everywhere - because they were available to me when I started. And there were enough types to cover most of the program's needs. I'm a bad designer, so I didn't try to find other solutions.

I think we can make 24px work everywhere. The most detailed icons were probably the family tree ones, so if those are fine this way, then the rest should be okay too :)

[Serg-Norseman]

In your design I really liked the icons you introduced for attaching/detaching people and families. Be sure to save them in the set - I will add the corresponding types of "glyphs" especially for them.

[Serg-Norseman]

Current glyph list:

    Glyph_FileNew,
    Glyph_FileLoad,
    Glyph_FileSave,
    Glyph_FileProperties,
    Glyph_Export,
    Glyph_ExportTable,
    Glyph_Exit,

    Glyph_RecordAdd,
    Glyph_RecordEdit,
    Glyph_RecordDelete,
    Glyph_Search,
    Glyph_Filter,

    Glyph_TreeAncestors,
    Glyph_TreeDescendants,
    Glyph_TreeBoth,
    Glyph_Pedigree,
    Glyph_Maps,
    Glyph_Stats,

    Glyph_Organizer,
    Glyph_Slideshow,
    Glyph_Settings,

    Glyph_Help,
    Glyph_About,

    Glyph_Prev,
    Glyph_Next,
    Glyph_SendMail,
    Glyph_PartialView,

    Glyph_Accept,
    Glyph_Cancel,

    Glyph_ItemAdd,
    Glyph_ItemEdit,
    Glyph_ItemDelete,

    Glyph_LinkJump,
    Glyph_MoveUp,
    Glyph_MoveDown,

    Glyph_Copy,
    Glyph_Cut,
    Glyph_Paste,

    Glyph_ImageSave,
    Glyph_DocPrint,
    Glyph_DocPreview,

    Glyph_Start,
    Glyph_Stop,

    Glyph_Undo, // not used yet
    Glyph_Redo, // not used yet

    Glyph_Attach,
    Glyph_Detach,

[kazerniel]

Thanks, meanwhile I started making the spreadsheet, but the new icons are still missing: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1pXJA8x3j-IJLvFuG0Fckk1zlN6Yzb-Fz?usp=sharing

I can add these new glyph names tomorrow, for now I just used the previous list and the files I found in the Resources folder.

We'll have to decide on what would be a meaningful colouring logic of icons. So far I went with this grouping, but it was made somewhat haphazardly and could be improved, e.g. the cyan feels too close to the blue, and I'm not even sure it needs its own hue for just one kind of function.

• $\color{#af2938}{█}$ red: delete, detach, cancel, exit
• $\color{#825b01}{█}$ yellow (which is brown at that lightness): edit, save, export
• $\color{#227702}{█}$ green: create, link, accept
• $\color{#017176}{█}$ cyan: move
• $\color{#0268a5}{█}$ blue: go, jump, open, view
• $\color{#654abb}{█}$ purple: copy, paste, filter

I'm very much open to your input, and I can give it more thought tomorrow as well.

[Serg-Norseman]

The choice of colors, at least for now - I like it. Dark, calm, contrasting. My preferences )))

[kazerniel]

I think I'll change it to

• $\color{#af2938}{█}$ red: delete, detach, cancel, exit
• $\color{#825b01}{█}$ brown: edit, move, paste, save, export
• $\color{#227702}{█}$ green: create, link, copy, accept
• $\color{#0065b0}{█}$ blue: go, jump, open, view, filter
• $\color{#813faa}{█}$ purple: misc. (bookmark, settings, organizer, help, about)

[Serg-Norseman]

Removed one hard to distinguish color? I approve :)

[Serg-Norseman]

Eto.Forms works strangely with toolbars on Wpf backend. I have encountered this before, and I have code for it - it sets a fixed size for toolbar buttons. Since I made a mistake and my old icons for all non-standard sizes are 20x20, and the new ones are 24x24 (which is better and more visible), I will need to make a patch later so that the size of the toolbar buttons is an option in the theme file.

[Serg-Norseman]

I looked and looked... at first I wasn't sure. Now I'm absolutely sure: icons of strictly genealogical context (pedigrees/scroll, trees, possibly maps and statistics) should be a separate color. A good color for this is the scroll - brown? or purple? Perhaps this color should be taken only for the genealogical context. Or choose another one.

Blue is a very nice color, but it feels like it doesn't fit in this case. Purple maybe. Brown seems best.

[kazerniel]

Thanks for the input, brown would fit best aesthetically, though then we'll have to change the general editing colour (what brown covers now). I'll have more time to make changes tomorrow.

[kazerniel]

Ok, so the newest iteration of the colour system could be:

• $\color{#af2938}{█}$ red: something is removed or abandoned (ex.: delete, detach, cancel, exit)
• $\color{#825b01}{█}$ brown: strictly genealogical context (ex.: family trees, pedigree, stats, map)
• $\color{#227702}{█}$ green: something is created, confirmed or saved (ex.: create, link, accept, save, export)
• $\color{#0065b0}{█}$ blue: view/display changes (ex.: go, jump, open, view, filter, slideshow)
• $\color{#813faa}{█}$ purple: general editing (ex.: edit, move, copy, paste, organizer, file properties)
• $\color{#636363}{█}$ grey: misc. non-file-related things (ex.: settings, help, about)

bookmarks should keep a brighter colour to be noticeable on the tree (the only place where I could see them appear), maybe in a green $\color{#03d22e}{█}$ to make the hue far away from both the male/female default colours, while still implying a positive effect

---

I updated the existing new icons according to this.

[Serg-Norseman]

Excellent! I have no objections or additions :)

[codersclub]

"Every marker is different for every taste" ;)
The best color is the one that a specific user likes!
Therefore, the best solution would be to put color preferences in the settings section of the selected theme.
And then we can organize competitions - whose theme is more beautiful :)

[Serg-Norseman]

"Every marker is different for every taste" ;) The best color is the one that a specific user likes! Therefore, the best solution would be to put color preferences in the settings section of the selected theme. And then we can organize competitions - whose theme is more beautiful :)

@codersclub I think you don't understand what is being discussed here.

We are discussing the colors of semantic groups of icons in a specific design theme by @kazerniel. This is his design theme, the icons he proposed.

What are you proposing? Customization and dynamic color change in icons?!

But design colors in general are configurable in theme files. This feature has existed for several years. There are three experimental themes of mine and now there will be a theme by @kazerniel. There are no others yet. And no contests are possible, because no one else has even tried to propose anything yet.

[kazerniel]

Btw originally the modern icons are svg vector files, so if they were embedded in that format, technically their colour could be set via code, though I don't know how well the current programming framework would handle this, just wanted to put it out there 😅