Creating a bootskin

from Stardock Forums

I've given my whole operating system an "old school" feel. I changed all the icons, start menu button, etc. to look more like Windows 9x. I'm using Windows XP SP2. Now I'd really like to change my boot screen. I've already created one and my computer is using it but I'm not happy with it (the 2nd link I posted will show you why!). So I have a job which should only take a minute to do BUT don't have the software to do it. Would anyone here be willing to convert this 640x480 PNG http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/totalrod2/WindowsSplash2.png?t=1215837168 to a 24-color Bitmap for me? I'll pay you for your time. I tried doing it with Windows Paint and got these results: http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i98/totalrod2/WindowsSplash2-1.jpg?t=1215837342  The sky is all one color....GREY! Not what I had in mind. Can anyone do this?

Bryan

totalrod2@aol.com

bootskin
4,730 views 7 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
a 24-color Bitmap for me?
End of quote


bootskin needs 16 color not 24
Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top
Oops, sorry. I thought it was 24. Then can someone convert this to a 16 color Bitmap? It shouldn't take more than a couple minutes of your time and I'm willing to pay you for the trouble.
Bryan
TouchTasks - Access tasks with ease on Windows touchscreens.
Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top
Thanks Jafo!!
I just rebooted my computer to see if it worked. It works beautifully. You're the man! If you ever want any old icons or screensavers (Windows 95 to 2000), let me know. I have all of them.
Bryan
Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

I have followed all the tutorials on how to create a bootskin and they only problem i am having is all the tutoirals say zip the file with winzip then rename whatevername.zip to whatevername.Bootskin and double click on it. I cant change the .zip ext. Can you help me on this?How else can I get it to work?

Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top

You need to change some settings.  It's described here:  https://forums.wincustomize.com/65866/page/3


To rename a file from one extension to another (i.e. change the last three letters) you need to first unhide the showing of file extensions.
Under Windows XP Home and Pro: 

Go to Control Panel. 
Select Appearances and Themes. 
Select Folder Options. 
A window appears with a number of tabs on it. 
Select the View tab. 
In the list of options that appears, find the "Hide extensions of known file types" and uncheck the box.


Once the settings are changed, it works like a charm.

Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting willow1, reply 5
I have followed all the tutorials on how to create a bootskin and they only problem i am having is all the tutoirals say zip the file with winzip then rename whatevername.zip to whatevername.Bootskin and double click on it. I cant change the .zip ext. Can you help me on this?How else can I get it to work?
End of willow1's quote
Bootskin for Vista and bootskin for XP are very different.  You cannot edit Vista Bootskins.