Hacking iMenu for DSTwo...

[Terminator02]

I have an issue with switching between pages. For some reason, it always starts an app/acts fidgety when I flick the screen sideways.
You have to make the icons not react to being held.

Also, can you program 'argv' into the iMenu?

what is argv???

and I know it's annoying, I've told him too, and suggested something, just scroll in between the dock and the middle row of icons for now

 

[YayMii]

what is argv???

'argv' is a programming command used in homebrew that allows easier access to the file system of the DS. There are some homebrew that requires argv support in order to work properly (such as PPSE-DS).

@everyone complaining about icons: I made my own icons for S8DS, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D and Quake, copied icons for Warcraft TD, Colors, PocketPhysics (CrayonPhysics) and cellsDS (TonePad) from the iTunes Apps store, and improved the Moonshell2 icon, all using Photoshop (I used the scaling filters for the iTunes icons).

 

[Terminator02]

@everyone complaining about icons: I made my own icons for S8DS, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D and Quake, copied icons for Warcraft TD, Colors, PocketPhysics (CrayonPhysics) and cellsDS (TonePad) from the iTunes Apps store, and improved the Moonshell2 icon, all using Photoshop (I used the scaling filters for the iTunes icons).

but not everyone has access to photoshop, is too lazy and/or doesn't know how

 

[CannonFoddr]

@everyone complaining about icons: I made my own icons for S8DS, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D and Quake, copied icons for Warcraft TD, Colors, PocketPhysics (CrayonPhysics) and cellsDS (TonePad) from the iTunes Apps store, and improved the Moonshell2 icon, all using Photoshop (I used the scaling filters for the iTunes icons).

but not everyone has access to photoshop, is too lazy and/or doesn't know how

But there's GIMP (which is free) and since the graphics are 40x42 they can use any graphic found in the 'plugin post or Vatoloco Download (which also includes borderless icons)

Just because one of these icons is for a particular program - there's no reason you can't 'reuse' the graphics for another program

 

[Terminator02]

@everyone complaining about icons: I made my own icons for S8DS, Doom, Wolfenstein 3D and Quake, copied icons for Warcraft TD, Colors, PocketPhysics (CrayonPhysics) and cellsDS (TonePad) from the iTunes Apps store, and improved the Moonshell2 icon, all using Photoshop (I used the scaling filters for the iTunes icons).

but not everyone has access to photoshop, is too lazy and/or doesn't know how

But there's GIMP (which is free) and since the graphics are 40x42 they can use any graphic found in the 'plugin post or Vatoloco Download (which also includes borderless icons)

Just because one of these icons is for a particular program - there's no reason you can't 'reuse' the graphics for another program

I know, and I do use icons from vatoloco's pack, and if I have to, from the plug-in post (it leaves a weird looking border around it)
but still, not everything is covered in there

 

[Gh0sti]

i hope spinal can figure out a way to make the menu load faster it would be the best menu ever

 

[CannonFoddr]

i hope spinal can figure out a way to make the menu load faster it would be the best menu ever

Faster ?? it only take ~ 8 seconds from when I boot the DSTwo card, but I guess compaired to the SC version (which only take ~3sec) I guess it IS slow

(for some people - I actually don't mind it)
--------------
On a separate note, I know Spinal 'having a (unfortunate) break' on development for a while, & I can't be bothered to go through all the pages to see if anyone else has had this problem - but is anyone getting 'screen corruption' along the top edge of the bottom screen ??

Spoiler: Like this ??

At first I thought it was because I've got all the iMenu ini 'pointing' to '/_dstwoplug/' folder for the the nds/plg files & Icons (as you can see they are 'bordered' icons) but I changed them & added icons etc into the iMenu folders & it still happens

I've even used different 'mask.bmp' files (I'm using just one 'mask.bmp' for all the added icons like 'appleassault' & 'VideoGameHero' since all the masks seem the same anyway) & also checked the bottom screen background (I've changed it to a 'BlinDEDBlack' type screen to match the rest of the skins I'm using on the DS2 card) - but it's still happening

[FYI - having the ini's point to the /dstwoplug/ folder saves me having to copy over all the bmps/nds/plg into appropriate iMenu folders - just in case I don't stick with iMenu

]

 

[Gh0sti]

idk cannon, he said hes starting from scratch on his project because what he wants to do he needs to, its a great idea dont get me wrong, i wonder though if he could get help from the SC team to make it better though

 

[CannonFoddr]

idk cannon, he said hes starting from scratch on his project because what he wants to do he needs to, its a great idea dont get me wrong, i wonder though if he could get help from the SC team to make it better though

Didn't read that bit about 'starting again', could explain why there's been no updates for a while

Still no harm in asking - just in case I've done something wrong or if some1 else had the same problem & figured out what it was, after all it IS a great alternative from the standard DSTwo.nds, even if it is a little buggy

 

[RoMee]

On a separate note, I know Spinal 'having a (unfortunate) break' on development for a while, & I can't be bothered to go through all the pages to see if anyone else has had this problem - but is anyone getting 'screen corruption' along the top edge of the bottom screen ??

Spoiler: Like this ??

At first I thought it was because I've got all the iMenu ini 'pointing' to '/_dstwoplug/' folder for the the nds/plg files & Icons (as you can see they are 'bordered' icons) but I changed them & added icons etc into the iMenu folders & it still happens

I've even used different 'mask.bmp' files (I'm using just one 'mask.bmp' for all the added icons like 'appleassault' & 'VideoGameHero' since all the masks seem the same anyway) & also checked the bottom screen background (I've changed it to a 'BlinDEDBlack' type screen to match the rest of the skins I'm using on the DS2 card) - but it's still happening

the imenu has been working fine for me..I have heard that too many plugins will make the imenu "slower", but I don't have more than 2 page of plugins so I don't know for sure, I've never heard of screen corruption before
QUOTE[FYI - having the ini's point to the /dstwoplug/ folder saves me having to copy over all the bmps/nds/plg into appropriate iMenu folders - just in case I don't stick with iMenu

]

why not just back up _dstwoplug folder? that's what I did

and I though spinal was starting from scratch because the changes he wants to make was too hard?

 

[CannonFoddr]

FYI - I think I've found out why I was getting screen corruption (well it has been fixed now)

The reason - I found I had 5 ini files with the 'dock=1' line in them for some reason.
Once I deleted one of them - the screen corruption had dissappeared

All I need to do now is try & arrange the icons somehow so they're not 'mixed up'
(I would prefer to have HB Games on one 'page', Media related on another & Emulators/Utils on another)

EDIT: Ok - the ordering seems to be is dependant on the order you copy/cut/paste the ini files back onto the SD Card into the iMenu's /ini/ folder

 

[Terminator02]

EDIT: Ok - the ordering seems to be is dependant on the order you copy/cut/paste the ini files back onto the SD Card into the iMenu's /ini/ folder

just like the regular plug-in menu eh?

i just hope there is a better way to organize them in the future versions

 

[CannonFoddr]

EDIT: Ok - the ordering seems to be is dependant on the order you copy/cut/paste the ini files back onto the SD Card into the iMenu's /ini/ folder
just like the regular plug-in menu eh? ..i just hope there is a better way to organize them in the future versionsSo do I - personnally I would like a way to 'tell' iMenu what page/position I would prefer the file to be on..

A bit like the 'dock=' line but perhaps a 'position=[1-xx,A-H]' instead, maybe like
CODE

[plug setting]
icon=fat1:/_imenu/_images/iReader.bmp
mask=fat1:/_imenu/_images/iReader_mask.bmp
name=iReader
file=/_imenu/_plg/ireader.plg
dock=0
position=1A

where '1'='page 1' and 'A' is top left ('H' is bottom right corner)
----------
I can see there may be some problems with this though....

IF there's 2 ini's with same positions, what goes first ??
> Perhaps the 'date created' could come into play for this - the one copied to SDcard first takes priority
IF there is more than 8 ini's that have the same 'position=' line, what happens then ??
> Perhaps any 'overlap' get pushed onto the next page
IF there is not enough ini's for a page (i.e 8 are needed per page) then what happen there as well ??
> Perhaps the gaps can be filled with any ini found that don't have a 'position=' line in it
If you state a 'page' that where you don't have enough ini's to fill up to, what happens ?? (e.g. you have 'position=12A', but you only have 8 ini files[2 pages worth])
> I can only guess that 'blank' pages are skipped until page '12'

Mind you it would also be nice to have a 'tap/drag to organise' option in it as well

 

[alidsl]

I wouldn't mind being able to have gaps in iMenu, like even if there isn't a 1H but there is a 2A then 1H is blank

 

[YayMii]

i hope spinal can figure out a way to make the menu load faster it would be the best menu ever

Faster ?? it only take ~ 8 seconds from when I boot the DSTwo card, but I guess compaired to the SC version (which only take ~3sec) I guess it IS slow

(for some people - I actually don't mind it)

Actually, the default plugin menu loads instantly (if you exclude the time the DS normally takes to boot up a cart). iMenu takes 5-7 seconds to load.
And it really bothers me because it wastes time because pageturning is a little buggy and sometimes starts a random file.