How create png icons on os4 ?

For now i have found the good tool called png icon editor (hollywood based app btw). With that app i can works with png icons heavy: scale, rotate, glow, crop, add text on it, draw (pixeling) on it and so on.

But the main problem, that when i just load new png image (just dl from google images), i not have mainly transparently area (i.e. i have it, but that area are white, but must be black).

So, the question: by which editor i can make from "bad" png images, png image with transparent layer, which i will use later for making an icon ?

I know that is possible to do with Photoshop, but maybe any way to do it on os4 ? (i tryed PersonalPaint, but looks like it's a bit outdated in that terms).

Will be good if someone can write some "step by step" answer :) Thanks in advance.

@kas1e

I use photogenics

@kas1e

I'm also interested in such a solution.

Here is how I proceed to create an icon :

I create my design on Amiga with different software and I finish with TVPaint. Then I export in TARGA with alpha (from TVPaint). Then I open the document in Gimp on my Linux box. Making adjustement, layer, effect, importing, etc. Then save in png with alpha and in XCF. I use createicon to assemble the png. If it's not OK. I open the file on the Amiga with gimp (in amicygnix). Make adjustement (moving some layer, adjusting glow, etc).
Then I use the XCF2PNG (which support Alpha) and It's finish. (well I use createicon if the project is an icon)

I will love a X2XCF command to be able to directly work in Gimp on OS4.

@davebraco

A quick google search on "png2xcf" found this:
http://foo2bar.com/image/Png2Xcf.html

Might be useful for you...

@salass00

Of course it is!

I did search for xtoxcf and x2xcf only :)

Many thanks, will try it now.

(there are even more converters on that website)

Did anybody tried this converter?

The script is trying to convert a small file for about 10 min now.

@davebraco

For now i think more fast and easy way for us: just save in photoshop as alpha with png channel, then correct everything in the "png icon editor" on os4.

Btw, maybe GIMP on amycygnix can do that "save png with true alpha" ?

@kas1e

Gimp saves png with alpha too but currently the OS4 version can only deal with xcf.

But xcf2png make png with alpha. and it works perfectly with createicon.

I also try the pngeditor program which is a really nice tool. But usually I don't want a glow on the whole icon.

@davebraco

I use png_icon_editor for scalling: for example i have 10 icons in my amidock, which are different by size, so by png_icon_editor i just do what must to do amidock itself - resizing :)

So all what we need it's GIMP on amycygnix , then save file as xcf, then xcf2png, and we have png with alpha. For what you need "X2XCF" then ?:)

For example if I want to make an icon with an picture of an Amiga 1000 or place a logo that I have created with SodiPodi. Well I can't open this picture or logo in gimp OS4 as it only opens xcf files.

@kas1e

Quote:

Amiga: remember when computing was fun? :D

@davebraco
So, we need:
1. any_format2xcf convertor
2. open that in amyxygnix gimp
3. save as xcf again, but now, with alpha
4. cxf2png convertor

Right ?

ps. convertors on which Salas00 pointed, for me not works also (OWB, maybe problem because of OWB).

@trixie
:))

@kas1e

Interesting that nobody mentioned ArtEffect 4. I use a mixture of ArtEffect 4 which nicely works with PNG incl. alphachannel and sometimes Photogenics 5 for changing/manipulating the alpha. Adding glow effects and "emblems" with the PNG_Icon_Editor.

@kas1e
Hi,
You don't have to use "create icon" or anything else to assemble an icon.

1) Just save your design in Png24 format (with transparency) in any Raster Graphics Editing Software...

2) Then just rename the extention of the file from ".png" to ".info"

3) Finally use CopyIcon v44 (which is on Aminet) to apply it to the file that you want to be viewed with your icon design.

If you want to do it all on OS4, you first have to find a software to save your png's with transparency. Supporting Alpha Channel does not mean it will support transparent colors. The software has to support the "Palette Transparency" function of the PNG datatype.

Personal Paint, ImageFx and Art Effect can save PNG's, but I'm not SURE if they can save with palette trasparency... Don't know if Photogenics can do, but I'm also not sure it will.

If you have one of these software, try to save as Gif with Transparency and then convert it using "gif2png" which is again on Aminet.

If you are able to run GIMP, there is no problem then... Follow the above 3 steps...

Good Luck...

@Alpyre

I don't use "create icon" :) My question was exactly about how (by which software) create png images with normal alpha channel on OS4. Looks like as cha05e90 pointed - ArtEffect 4 can do that. Will try it right now.

Refering to Personal Paint, i trying it today with no luck. I hope ArtEffect4 will solve all the problems.

@Alpyre
createicon is used to create a dual state icon.

@cha05e90
Thanks for the tips I will give it a try.

@cha05e90?

Photogenics 5 can change "color" of the alpha channel too ? (i mean it was for example white, but need to make it black) ? Or ArtEffect can do that too ?

@kas1e

ArtEffect loads and saves existing alpha channels of png images - it is not that straightforward when it comes to *manipulate* alpha channels. I use it mostly for sizing png images with alpha channels AND to make an alpha channel if an image do not have it. This can be done by the masking tools of ArtEffect and generating an alpha from this mask.

I find it far easier to really *manipulate* alpha channels with Photogenics5. You can even load *any* image as an alpha - so this might be your friend: Make the channel you like (i.e. colour it yourself or invert the existing one) and load it to your png of choice in Photogenics. Voil?.

Maybe this can be done with ArtEffect, too - but I didn't find an easy access to this...

EDIT: BTW - if you change your white alpha channel to a black one you will not see anything from the picture afterwards - or is it only a part of the image you want to "mask out"?

EDIT II: ... you don't need Copy2Icon for making *real* icons - you can use any existing app/project icon, use the "info" from wb menu and hit RAmiga-L (for loading an image), load the png image, save.That's it. You can even do this seperately for the selected icon state. You must have the png icon plugin installed, of course.

@cha05e90
Quote:
I don't think you even need PNG icons to get an alpha channel. The "info" window appears to save "system" icons as 32 bit AIFF images which I have been able to load into IMageFX4. I can edit the image and the alpha channel, save with alpha channel and load into an icon with the "info" window. I am not sure, but the ImageFXlite on OS4Depot may be able to perform the same functions.

@xenic

That is correct, the png module isn't needed at all for that.