How to make your own icons

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How to make your own icons

Postby pennsteve » Fri Sep 05, 2008 11:50 pm

This is a bit long, sorry. Perhaps I should make a video tutorial. lol

This really isnt as difficult as I make it sound.

This is how I make an icon using paint, multiple image resizer (http://www.adventuremaker.com/phpBB2/vi ... php?t=1877), and the icon editor in AM.

Even though my icon will be 32x32, I start with 64x64 so its easier to draw an icon.

PAINT
First open paint and set the attributes to 64x64. Next draw your icon, or you can paste a picture. To do this, click edit, then paste from, and then choose the file (picture) on your computer you want to use. I'll say I made a shovel icon and named it shovel1.jpg

After you have drawn your icon or used a picture, click file, save as, and rename it. I save mine to desktop so its easy to find.

IMAGE RESIZER
Next, open multiple image resizer. Right click in the white area and then click "add individual image" and add your image (shovel1).
Next, click "window", and "save options". When the window opens click "Save processed images to folder" and then choose where you want it to go (i use desktop). In that same window under "processed image file type", select "Windows Icon (.ico)". Now close this window.

Next, at the bottom, select "resizing options". Click "height and width" and in those windows put 32 and 32. At the bottom of the entire window to the left click "Go". After you click that, another GO button will appear in the middle of the screen. Click it. You have now resized the icon to 32x32 and saved it as an ico file. (It's now on my desktop with the original jpg image).

ICON EDITOR
Next, open adventuremaker and open the icon editor. It is located in the external programs section. Once it is open click "file" and then click "open". Choose the icon you just made. It will appear in the editor.

In the bottom right you will see an area titled Mouse Buttons. You want the bottom two "transparent and inverse". Click the button to choose the bottom 2. Left click is transparent. You can choose to make it any color, (i use yellow). Now you can left click around all of the white areas and make them yellow (they will become transparent when you save the icon).

To speed it up a bit, look to the left. Click the picture of the paint roller. Now you can cover most of the white area with one click. Some pixels around the image might be missed. You can click those individually.

Once you have it done, click "file" and "save as" and then save it where you want to save it.

You now have a transparent icon that can be used in your games.
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Postby Lyberodoggy » Sat Sep 06, 2008 8:17 am

Thanks!!!
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Postby pennsteve » Sun Sep 07, 2008 3:38 am

YW. I'm sure most of you knew how to do this. I figured it all out and thought I would post it so the new people would know how to do it.

It's really not very difficult after you do it a few times. There are probably programs out there that can do this all in one, but its probably not free.
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Postby Mystery » Sun Sep 07, 2008 11:30 am

Thanks pennsteve :)

Just a few ideas:
You can resize your image already in Paint. Choose "image"->"attributes", and enter the size that you want.

To resize an image, save it as .ico file, and to create a transparent background, there are free software that you can use, e.g.
GIMP http://www.gimp.org/
IrfanView http://www.irfanview.com/
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Postby pennsteve » Wed Sep 10, 2008 11:48 pm

Anyone know of a program that can make a transparent background on jpeg or gif files instead of ico? I want to make a game, but when I convert the photographs to ico it loses color, and also when I open it in the icon editor from AM, it only shows part of the icon, even if I make it small.
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Postby Lyberodoggy » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:44 am

Gimp and Irfanview do the job.

Don't use alpha channeled bitmaps... Prefer transparent gifs.

Photoshop also does the job, but it's way too expensive...
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Postby mercedes » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:47 am

There are all kinds of software that handle transparency..

GIMP

http://www.snapfiles.com/get/paintnet.html

Also if you want to make a transparent GIF, then i suggest you save it as 24bmp, you will find you get a much nicer transparency..:)

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Postby pennsteve » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:49 am

I have paintnet but havent used it yet. Didnt realize it could make transparencies.
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Postby mercedes » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:53 am

Yes...its easier than Gimp too...not that gimp is hard actually, the menus are more confusing then anything..

I hadn't realized that Lyberodoggy had posted too...:P Sorry Kid..!~:)

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Postby Lyberodoggy » Thu Sep 11, 2008 12:58 am

Hehe, we posted at the same time... and two opposite answers :lol:
Anyways, I prefer Gifs because they are more compact and small...
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Postby mercedes » Thu Sep 11, 2008 1:03 am

Oh I should clarify that...I prefer GIFs too..i meant if i was going to turn a picture from a JPG to a GIF...i would save it as a BMP first, then turn into a gif..:)

There we go...:P

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Postby Von Zeppelin » Tue Dec 23, 2008 12:28 am

I have used the icon maker soft... IconCool Studio...
it makes really great icons in no times, and is VERY easy to operate... but unfortunately, icons made by it, though normal icons in any other sense, won't work in the game, and it gives out the error massege, when you run the game and go to the point where your .ico must go to the inventory
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Postby mercedes » Tue Dec 23, 2008 12:46 am

For some reason that happens with icons in AM .its because it only recognizes Windows version 3. If u resave your image..with irfanview...or maybe the one u have might do so...then it should work...Some software saves it as a bigger file...then AM won't play it...


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Postby Von Zeppelin » Tue Dec 23, 2008 1:14 am

Thanks for suggestion :)
I'll try to resize it... though I saved it as 48x48

I'll try
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Postby pennsteve » Tue Dec 23, 2008 1:38 am

Update to my original post. You can actually make the icons in paint. Use the 32x32 dimensions. Save it as JPEG or whatever. Open it in paint.net and use the zoom feature, then use the eraser to erase everything around the drawing you made. Next save as GIF, it will give you settings. I put mine all the way to the right (youll see what I mean).

After that I open it in Multiple Image Resizer. Set the "save" as .ico and set dimensions as the same as it already is, 32x32.

These icons work in the software. :)
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Postby Von Zeppelin » Tue Dec 23, 2008 1:45 am

sorry I didn't get it!
What if I make gif in photoshop or imageready? it is way easyer...

and setting transparency and all the other stuff is way easyer there

so I have gif that I want to use as an icon, what should I do next?

EDITED: Seems I just didn't got what is MIR... I have read first post again and everything is clear, downloading it now...

Thanks for help :)
Last edited by Von Zeppelin on Tue Dec 23, 2008 2:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby pennsteve » Tue Dec 23, 2008 2:13 am

Von Zeppelin wrote:sorry I didn't get it!
What if I make gif in photoshop or imageready? it is way easyer...

and setting transparency and all the other stuff is way easyer there

so I have gif that I want to use as an icon, what should I do next?


Ok, make the transparent gif any way you like, then open it in Multiple Image Resizer (you can get it here.....http://www.snapfiles.com/get/mirnet.html) and make it into an icon.
I will now tell you how to do it.

I usually make my gifs no larger than 32x32. Not sure how they would work if you make anything larger. Lets assume you made the gif 32x32. Open Multiple Image Resizer.

The first thing I do is add the gif. Next I go to the top menu and click on "window" and click on "save option". I then put WHERE I want it saved in the "Save processed Images to Folder" section (usually my desktop).

Next, in the same window (save options) I go to the "Processed image file type" and make sure it will be saved as .ico.

I then close the Saved Options box, and at the bottom I click on "Resizing Options". I make sure it is set to the same size as my gif, which as I said, is usually 32x32.

Next click GO at the bottom........then click GO in the center of the screen. It will save it as an icon file to whatever folder you entered.
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Postby Von Zeppelin » Tue Dec 23, 2008 2:16 am

Yep, at first I thought you were talking about AM Picture resizer, so didn't got what you were saying, now everything is clear, I edited my above post seconds before your answer :)

Thank you very much, you are great help guys! :wink:

EDITED: OOPS... Seems my windows XP isn't compatible with this software... :(
pity...

It says it needs XP service Pack 2 or higher...
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Postby mercedes » Mon Jan 12, 2009 5:41 am

I just wanted to add to this..as opposed to starting a new tutorial..It's not much of a tutorial..just something i've discovered works well..
How to also make a good ICON/GIF..with rather nice quality to it...is Webdings or Wingdings..:D

You simply open up whatever program..even paint..Choosing the transparent option to create TEXT...and choose Wingdings or Webdings..

You can get anything from CD's Tapes..hands..arrows..bombs..envelopes..filefolders..papers..alot of it..

Choose the color..for the "Text/webding/wingding"...
Choose a color for the backround..---Save it as a bmp...open it up in whatever icon maker u have..and thats it..:D

Or you can make it in any software that supports layers..and merge the textlayer with the backround and then open it up...in icon maker..Saves so much work than drawing them or having to download some..~

Enjoy~
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Postby auxlen » Wed Feb 04, 2009 6:08 pm

some great help there. many thanks. ifranveiw is such an amazing find. now i can use photos as icons. (which is what i always wanted to do.
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