moonlit Posted May 1, 2006 Author Share Posted May 1, 2006 Hey guys, sorry it took so long to get back to you all... The process actually involves using a small program called Resource Hacker... there are many tuts around teh interweb so I won't go in to that here, but basically, the idea is that you use Resource Hacker to extract the images from the Windows core files and edit/replace them with custom designs of your choice... careful as you go and make backups because they really are essential files and one wrong move and cause Windows to get KIA... But the files I've edited so far are: WindowsSystem32SHELL32.DLL << About Windows... boxes WindowsSystem32MSGINA.DLL << Logon stuff WindowsEXPLORER.EXE << Start menu graphics I will be changing colours of title bars and stuff, I have done so on the lappy, I'm just trying to sort out a cool colour scheme :) WindowsSystem32NTOSKRNL.EXE << I'm working on this as we speak - this contains the boot screen... the boot screen is I think the hardest part - you have to make your logo conform to a predefined Windows palette (or hack your own) which makes it a little more tricky than the rest... Once I've done the rest of the theme I'll post the results and maybe a how-to up somewhere... watch this space for a link :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted May 1, 2006 Author Share Posted May 1, 2006 Hey there's an idea, we could hold a competition to see who can contruct the best 'skin' for xp. Of course it would have to be through actually editing the resource files and not using a pre-built application (like from windowblinds) to streamline the construction process. (Although I'm not sure how those work either, never messed with them). Yeah that's fair I think... if you want to distribute your finished theme though, you have to create the same at least 3 times; WinXP Build 2600, SP1 and SP2 - these all include Home/Pro graphics so that's not too bad... though it seems that SP2 has some graphics missing... shouldn't cause problems though, I don't think... We could have best Hak.5 theme, best Evil Server theme and I'm sure we could think of a few more. Yeah that would be cool! I think we'd get some real nice entries coming in for that... what does everyone else think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted May 1, 2006 Author Share Posted May 1, 2006 Sorry, third post in a row, I know, but... :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TonyBlack Posted May 1, 2006 Share Posted May 1, 2006 nice, realy nice...a link to a how to? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted May 1, 2006 Author Share Posted May 1, 2006 'Fraid it's gonna have to be our old friend Google for the moment... I'll be writing a how to soon, but that's gonna take me a little while... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armadaender Posted May 1, 2006 Share Posted May 1, 2006 moonlit - Fantastic! I love it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neod101 Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 No that's the weird thing. I have a semester's worth of microeconomics shoved into my brain (thank you aderol) and I'm able to ramble off anything that I need to know without hesitation but the little things like forgetting to post the link are finally catching up to me. By the sound of it most of your memory is used up with these exams. P.S. I realize this is a very late time to make the comment. Oh and very nice work Moonlit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W4RP3D Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 Hey there's an idea, we could hold a competition to see who can contruct the best 'skin' for xp. Of course it would have to be through actually editing the resource files and not using a pre-built application (like from windowblinds) to streamline the construction process. (Although I'm not sure how those work either, never messed with them). We could have best Hak.5 theme, best Evil Server theme and I'm sure we could think of a few more. Any supporters? Good idea ill give it ago when I get a bit of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Technologique Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 Ungh, if you're working this kinda thing on a lappy, you'll probably face the pain in the ass that is the boot screen. I did this kinda thing for ".geek" (you'll find out about that sooner or later) yesterday, and couldn't get the boot screen to work, even though I was overwriting the NTOSKRNL.exe file in safe mode (F8 key, bless thee). So, an allnighter was pulled to fix this problem, and eventually it dawned on my fragile mind. NTOSKRNL.exe wasn't the file beeing booted at the bootscreen for my lappy. I'm not sure whether this is just the case for Vaio's, but if you're having trouble getting your customised bootscreen to load, look for a file called NTKRNLPA.exe. I found this at around seven am, and as soon as I opened it, I realised it contained the same information as the original NTOSKRNL.exe. So, a quick bitmap change later, and a restart, and the bootscreen is just how I want it. Just thought y'all'd like to know in case you face the same problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hillmiester Posted May 2, 2006 Share Posted May 2, 2006 Nice project you have going here, keep up the good work ;). Doe's that Start in the Start button now say Hak5? :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melodic Posted May 3, 2006 Share Posted May 3, 2006 more screenies moonie :P and betas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted May 4, 2006 Author Share Posted May 4, 2006 argh! sorry guys, would have some great new pics for you all and maybe a guide or download or /something/ only I just finished scraping the remains of a virus that stepped in my path from off of harddrive... hum... will keep you all posted on further development...! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darren Kitchen Posted May 4, 2006 Share Posted May 4, 2006 I feel your pain moonlit. I'm working on ep10 on a borked box. Ahh, cannot wait to reformat on the 6th! Been putting it off for... Um... 10 months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted May 4, 2006 Author Share Posted May 4, 2006 heh don't I know /that/ feeling ;) formatting is not nice - I used to do it all the time, but as our hard drives get larger, so do our heart attacks when things go wrong... ho-hum, the price we pay, I suppose... hope ep#10 can overcome the evils that lurk within your machine! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt {Undead} Posted May 28, 2006 Share Posted May 28, 2006 Them styles are teh ownage!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChevronX Posted October 9, 2006 Share Posted October 9, 2006 Thanks, I now know how to replace the locked image, always wanted to do that, seems easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted October 9, 2006 Author Share Posted October 9, 2006 woah, that's one hell of a bump... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armadaender Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 woah, that's one hell of a bump... After a read one of my previous posts from last may without knowing, I was a bit scared. That was one helluva bump. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rFayjW98ciLoNQLDZmFRKD Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 so you gonna make it open source and post the code etc? It's not so much code but instead knowing how to mess around with XP itself and edit the os' resource files. Here's a g4... *original techtv comes to mind, chokes back tears* ...tutorial that gives an idea as to how someone can create their own login screen for XP. Understanding how this works will in turn, allow you to figure out how to modify other aspects of XP including your start menu, about, welcome screen, etc. Good luck, have fun. edit: I'm an idiot, here's the link. http://www.g4tv.com/screensavers/features/...gin_Screen.html Snif! I miss the screen savers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armadaender Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 Holy cow, I don't remember ever posting that. Creepy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted October 10, 2006 Author Share Posted October 10, 2006 lol go back through everything you've ever posted (your profile, click View all posts by <yourname>) and you'll be VERY scared ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
addisonzinser Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 looks nice :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt {Undead} Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 lol go back through everything you've ever posted (your profile, click View all posts by <yourname>) and you'll be VERY scared ;) lol i did that last night trying to find this thread, gave up in the end tho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt {Undead} Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 Ive been having a look around the files using res hack, noticed there was a number of pics for the msgina.dll for the windows login screen, does anyone know which pics under which numbers are actually the picture that appears at the login screen. Maybe as a community we can design some hak5 login logos, start menu side bars, logout boxes, maybe some custom text since i noticed some files had things like log and logout and you could edit the text. Im gonna mess about myself but I think I and everyone else should somehow backup there whole hdd before hand. Maybe ghost your hdd to a usb hdd using some ghosting software such as norton ghost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonlit Posted October 11, 2006 Author Share Posted October 11, 2006 It's actually near the Windows XP logos but it appears to be blank, it's all handled by bizarre pallettes, loads of guides online ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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