Fishfish0001 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I just figured I'd share my experiences trying to make my own skin to match my site. First off, I gave up. I was thinking that with such a simple looking site that I have, it would mainly just be a bunch of image edits, and some color changes. Nope, not true. Sadly it is tons of edits, and I just can't keep up with everything. I wanted to have my posts spread apart by about 20 pixels, but if I do that, the other parts of the board get messed up. When I change some h3 titles, they all go haywire. Also, most classes are scattered in about 5 different parts, and it makes it really annoying having to go to 5 different parts of the class to change one thing. It would be nice if each class was all contained as one, rather then having one part at the top of the sheet, another midway down, another at the bottom, etc. Also, it seems like some classes could be combined into one, so you edit one, and it takes effect across multiple parts, rather then 5,000 small edits everywhere. The editor is also not friendly to use at all, and as was pointed out in another topic, we need to be able to link it up with editing programs easily. I always try to hit tab in it, since thats how I work, and boom, it messes it up. I think IPS needs to take some time and clean up all the CSS code, its just mind boggling how much there is, and its to hard to deal with. I really wanted my own custom skin, and I have one done for my main site, but porting it to IPB has been a nightmare, and I've given up with it. Also, I would rather have it so that classes are carried across the system, and tabs were uniform and all. I hate that the messenger, profile settings page, members page, search, etc, are all on different classes and styles. Its a PITAto change all of that. I would be so much nicer if I could edit one button class area, and it take effect across the board.tl;dr - The system is to scattered and bulky to make custom skins without spending weeks doing so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy T Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I agree that 3.1 is hard to skin specially comparing it to 2.3 which was much easier to skin. I made a few skins for 2.3 but have not even come close to deciphering 3.1 to be able to make skins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Christian Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I agree that 3.1 is hard to skin specially comparing it to 2.3 which was much easier to skin. I made a few skins for 2.3 but have not even come close to deciphering 3.1 to be able to make skins. I have to disagree with you there. 3.1 is a hell of a lot easier than 2.3. Do you not remember having to edit EVERY single image for new topic / reply etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan H. Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 It would be nice if each class was all contained as one, rather then having one part at the top of the sheet, another midway down, another at the bottom, etc.Also, it seems like some classes could be combined into one, so you edit one, and it takes effect across multiple parts, rather then 5,000 small edits everywhere. ...That's precisely what that first complaint of yours achieves. The CSS is laid out in a logical and generally easy to tweak manner, provided you understand some of the complexities of CSS and can use it effectively. Simplicity and forum software with a default stylesheet weighing 60 KB don't exactly go hand in hand. If it's the sheer size that's a problem for you, well, there's not a whole lot that can be done about that. If you're having trouble with your styles affecting too many things, then you need to tweak the selector [or find a different one] to make it unique to the specific case you're working with--basic CSS. This is almost always possible in IPB. But for separating posts, just put a margin on .post_block. Being able to tab in the editor would be nice. As for using an external one, IN_DEV with a mapped skin lets you do so. I'm sure there's a guide around somewhere. I agree on the tabs, but they'll probably take care of that in 3.2. As for buttons, well, there are half a dozen different kinds... each one has a different place and intent. That's just how it is. IPB is a large and complex piece of software... if you're going to learn to skin it, you do need to expect to spend some time learning its system. Once you do, I'm not going to say it's necessarily a breeze, but it makes sense. As Tom said, it's easier than it used to be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inu Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 At fist, I had a super hard time with the new skinning system as well. In fact, I was able to radically changed how I wanted templates to look in 2.3 in a few hours but then I upgraded and those few hours turned into eons. But after getting used to it, I find it a whole LOT neater than 2.3 and I don't struggle nearly as much to find what I am looking for. I do agree that it's not as newbie friendly and time consuming to learn. It would be nice to see some sort of in-depth generator similar to dreamweaver, but I doubt that will come true. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morrigan Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 I honestly have to agree with those that say 3.1 is easier to skin. I actually was complaining about this when skinning another forum software the other day, I hate having to edit a million images so they match my theme. Now, admittedly, I have super custom skins on my forums and I have no problem tweaking as needed. Quick inspect of the Class/ID and I can change about everything on the forum in about 5 minutes if I don't like it. I don't know about weeks to skin either. I skinned RPers Anonymous in about a week or two and that was because a lot of the images were being made by my graphics admin. I skinned my site Knights of Cydonia in less then 12 hours on New Years Eve (more like 6 because I didn't get started until about 6PM instead of noon like I tried to). I do think that some stuff needs to be a bit more universal but at the same time there are many things that don't flow through but the really important things do. I think part of it is so that you can both individually skin it if you want and also to reduce on the amount of CSS that is loaded per page when it's not needed. I think that the Skin Generator helps with some basic stuff and when they add a row1/row2 color choice it will be perfect. For the editor, I find that systems like that actually irritate me so I won't mind that it gets put in (especially if I can turn it off). **I must add that having only 33 images to change is a landslide better then the many, many, many, that you had to do in 2.3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Interferon Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Given the nature of the constantly changing system and how it breaks compatibility with template modifications, I would question whether IPB is actually even "skinnable" at all. Look at all the skins out there to download. Almost all of them just change a few colors and keep the same ugly design. The others get broken with every new update, or are incomplete because the author doesn't have a certain app. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Given the nature of the constantly changing system and how it breaks compatibility with template modifications, I would question whether IPB is actually even "skinnable" at all. Look at all the skins out there to download. Almost all of them just change a few colors and keep the same ugly design. The others get broken with every new update, or are incomplete because the author doesn't have a certain app. IP.Board is definitely skinnable. There are tons of skins that are more than just color changes. Yes, skins can get broken during an update, but that's the nature of evolving software. I've not used any forum software other than IP.Board, but I'd be surprised if others let you make radical changes to a skin, then when you upgraded the forum software it automatically applied all of the changes from the previous default skin to your modified skin. Even if the skin author doesn't keep a skin up to date, there's the merge center that assists you in finding what you need to do to update the skin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morrigan Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Given the nature of the constantly changing system and how it breaks compatibility with template modifications, I would question whether IPB is actually even "skinnable" at all. Look at all the skins out there to download. Almost all of them just change a few colors and keep the same ugly design. The others get broken with every new update, or are incomplete because the author doesn't have a certain app. Those have to be some really radical changes that break the entire thing. I do some pretty heavy editing and rarely (if ever) had I had to revert template bits just to get usability back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishfish0001 Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 Well not exactly the best responses, but Im not complaining, as obviously I didn't try hard enough. I think if IPS would better integrate the skin editing with an external program it would help me out more, as the online interface is too hard for me to find stuff and follow it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taylor J Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 About skinning in a external editor see ?do=embed' frameborder='0' data-embedContent>About skinning in a external editor see ?do=embed' frameborder='0' data-embedContent> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishfish0001 Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 About skinning in a external editor see [url=" [/url] I saw that, and liked it :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Magic Hands Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I agree that 3.1 is hard to skin specially comparing it to 2.3 which was much easier to skin. I made a few skins for 2.3 but have not even come close to deciphering 3.1 to be able to make skins. This is my feeling exactly. I felt that the learning curve of 3.1/3.0's skinning system was a helluva lot harder than 2.3's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inu Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 About skinning in a external editor see You have no idea how happy that link made me. : ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Christian Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 This is my feeling exactly. I felt that the learning curve of 3.1/3.0's skinning system was a helluva lot harder than 2.3's. What was hard about it for you? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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