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Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Get help with creating, editing & fixing problems with skins
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MourningStar
Posts: 287
Joined: June 12th, 2016, 2:40 am

Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by MourningStar »

I have a white desktop background and request help with the following :

1. I have edited the skin (to my limited knowledge) with ' StringEffect=SHADOW'. The current month 'dates' now display satisfactory on the white background. However, I cannot locate/figure out where to do this for the month and year.

2. I am not sure if my editing applied the shadow to the weekday labels because the text is within a gray box and I want to know how to remove this box altogether and apply the shadow (if not applied by item-1) here as well.

3. How do I change the color/apply shadow to the pre-/post-month dates, week-six dates and the month/year? Actually IOW, how to do this to all displayed text (days, dates, month, year)?

-thx
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balala
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by balala »

MourningStar wrote: January 21st, 2020, 6:14 pm I have a white desktop background and request help with the following :

1. I have edited the skin (to my limited knowledge) with ' StringEffect=SHADOW'. The current month 'dates' now display satisfactory on the white background. However, I cannot locate/figure out where to do this for the month and year.

2. I am not sure if my editing applied the shadow to the weekday labels because the text is within a gray box and I want to know how to remove this box altogether and apply the shadow (if not applied by item-1) here as well.

3. How do I change the color/apply shadow to the pre-/post-month dates, week-six dates and the month/year? Actually IOW, how to do this to all displayed text (days, dates, month, year)?
First of all, we can't help you at all, unless we know the skin you're working with. So, please post either the code or a link.
But something else maybe can be done. You can try adding a BackgroundMode=2 and a SolidColor=0,0,0,150 options (obviously you can use any color you like) to the [Rainmeter] section of your code. These options add a semi-transparent black background to the whole skin.
Please let me know if this helped. If it didn't, post please the required code or link.
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MourningStar
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by MourningStar »

balala wrote: January 21st, 2020, 6:22 pm First of all, we can't help you at all, unless we know the skin you're working with.
https://www.deviantart.com/smurfier/art/LuaCalendar-6-0-280738925
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balala
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by balala »

The simplest solution: replace the SolidColor option of the [Rainmeter] section within the LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\Default\Styles.inc file with SolidColor=0,0,0,180. Note that there are five such Styles.inc files:
  • LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\Enigma\Styles.inc
  • LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\DefaultWeeks\Styles.inc
  • LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\DefaultEvents\Styles.inc
  • LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\Default2\Styles.inc
  • LuaCalendar\@Resources\Styles\Default\Styles.inc
Which one have you to edit, depends. Give it a try, to find it out.
Obviously instead of SolidColor=0,0,0,180 you can use any color you want, just make sure it is dark enough.
Is it ok now?
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MourningStar
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by MourningStar »

balala wrote: January 21st, 2020, 6:52 pmIs it ok now?
No, not really. I hoped the OP revealed my serious lack of savy with such things. I don't even know where all of those files reside. My application of item-1 was via r-clik on the skin and selected Edit skin. It was basically my 'guess' as to where to add that 'StringEffect=Shadow' line.

Perhaps it is outside the scope of this forum to take one such as I by the hand and 'light my way' thru this maze. No bad feelings, I will try and muddle my way thru this.

-thank you.
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balala
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by balala »

MourningStar wrote: January 21st, 2020, 7:16 pm I don't even know where all of those files reside. My application of item-1 was via r-clik on the skin and selected Edit skin.
Find the Skins folder. If you right clicked the skin and clicked Edit skin and finally you got the skin's code open in the default text editor, check the location of that file. By default it should be something like C:\Users\YourName\Documents\Rainmeter\Skins\LuaCalendar\LuaCalendar.ini. At least if you've installed Rainmeter in the default location and you're using it so. However in some cases it might be different (for me it definitely is, because I changed the path of the Skins folder). Just check it.
Now if you have the location, open the folder which contains the LuaCalendar.ini file. There you have a folder named @Resources. Open it. Identify the Styles folder and open it as well. There you have five folders, as I said previously: Default, Default2, DefaultEvents, DefaultWeeks and Enigma. Open each of them, one by one and find the Styles.inc file, contained into each such folder. Make the previously posted replacement in each Styles.inc file, save and close them.
Now refresh the skin. Right click it and click Refresh skin.
Have you got the black background on the skin?
MourningStar wrote: January 21st, 2020, 7:16 pm Perhaps it is outside the scope of this forum to take one such as I by the hand and 'light my way' thru this maze.
Wrong!!! The scope of this forum is exactly this: "to take one such as you by the hand and 'light his way' thru this maze." If not all of my descriptions are detailed enough from the beginning it is because I do suppose many people know what and how to do. Sorry if I've hurried too much.

So, have you got the black background?
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MourningStar
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by MourningStar »

Thank you for your help! (I apologize, not you)

under documents????!!!! :o (whoah, silly me for thinking it was somewhere in C:/Programs/...)
balala wrote: January 21st, 2020, 7:38 pmSo, have you got the black background?
now I'm really lost. Where did I request a black background???!!
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balala
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by balala »

MourningStar wrote: January 21st, 2020, 10:12 pm under documents????!!!! :o (whoah, silly me for thinking it was somewhere in C:/Programs/...)
Yes, the Skins folder containing the Rainmeter skins, is usually placed into the Documents. Usually and probably in most cases this is C:\Users\YourName\Documents\Rainmeter\Skins. Details
MourningStar wrote: January 21st, 2020, 10:12 pm now I'm really lost. Where did I request a black background???!!
Agree, you didn't. However my first thought was to create a black background, because with such a background you get visible the string into your skin, when you have a white (or light) wallpaper. This is the easiest way to get them visible, in my opinion.
If this isn't ok, let me know, to check how can you set the shadow. But this is not extremely easy, due to the structure of the config in cause.
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MourningStar
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by MourningStar »

thx balala.

As per the OP, I use a white background. I need white text and it does not display unless a shadow is applied. In the LuaCalendar.ini file (via edit skin) I added this : StringEffect=Shadow under all the labels. As said in the Op, this affected the 'dates' and this is looks good.

However, it did not 'shadow' the month or year and perhaps the weekday (SMTWTFSS). I am unsure of the weekday because of the colored box around it. I would like to know how to

shadow ALL text (day-month-year)

add color to specific day

add colored box around specfic day

thank you
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balala
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Re: Help w/LuaCalendar - Color & Shadow

Post by balala »

MourningStar wrote: January 22nd, 2020, 5:51 pm I need white text and it does not display unless a shadow is applied.
Well, in fact I rather believe the text is displayd, but if you have a white background and a white text on it, it's not visible.
MourningStar wrote: January 22nd, 2020, 5:51 pm In the LuaCalendar.ini file (via edit skin) I added this : StringEffect=Shadow under all the labels. As said in the Op, this affected the 'dates' and this is looks good.
What section have you added the StringEffect=Shadow option to and in which file?