Results 1 to 4 of 4

Thread: [RESOLVED] Creating .ico files

  1. #1

    Thread Starter
    New Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Burnsville, MN
    Posts
    5

    Resolved [RESOLVED] Creating .ico files

    I hope this is in the right form, if not, my apologies.

    I'm trying to create an .ico file for an application I'm making. I've never made an icon file before and I can't get it to look right. In IconWorkshop it looks fine in the previewer, and if I preview the image in windows, it looks good. But, when I put it in my application, it, for lack of a better term, looks like crap. It looks bad in the title bar of the form and bad in the start bar when the application is open, I think it's just the 16x16 icon thats giving me trouble...any pointers, or anyone willing to fix it so I can look at it and get a better idea of how to make these files?

    I have bitmaps and the icon file attached.
    Attached Files Attached Files

  2. #2
    Hyperactive Member Max Peck's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Posts
    384

    Re: Creating .ico files

    Make sure the color depth of the icon is more than 256 colors.

    Even so ... a 16-square icon is tough to make look real good, there's not much data there to render an image with.

    -Max
    The name's "Peck" .... "Max Peck"

    "If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." - Red Adair

  3. #3
    VB-aholic & Lovin' It LaVolpe's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Beside Waldo
    Posts
    19,541

    Re: Creating .ico files

    When creating icons for applications. It is generally recommended to include following to also support backward compatibility for older systems. None of these are absolutely required. But including them in the same icon resource enables Windows to choose the correct size and color depth (bit depth) for various parts of the screen (window titlebar, toolbars, desktop, explorer file views, etc)

    @ 16x16: 4 bit (16 color) & 8 bit (256 color)
    @ 32x32: Same as 16x16 plus 32 bit
    @ 48x48: 8 bit & 32 bit
    @ 128x128: 8 bit & 32 bit (for XP and above only)
    @ 256x256: 32 bit in PNG format (for Vista and above only)

    If you dig about on MSDN.com, you can find the suggestions mentioned above. Here is a thread that discusses it a bit and offers other links to browse

    Note that when Windows cannot find the correct size icon for whatever it needs, it will scale the one it does find. Scaled icons generally look horrible and color depth can be changed too as discussed on this MSDN page (look for Choosing an Icon about 2/3 way down page)

    What language are you using to develop your application? The language may have limitations on what icon color depth you can use. For example, VB6 does not support 32 bit icons directly.
    Insomnia is just a byproduct of, "It can't be done"

    Classics Enthusiast? Here's my 1969 Mustang Mach I Fastback. Her sister '67 Coupe has been adopted

    Newbie? Novice? Bored? Spend a few minutes browsing the FAQ section of the forum.
    Read the HitchHiker's Guide to Getting Help on the Forums.
    Here is the list of TAGs you can use to format your posts
    Here are VB6 Help Files online


    {Alpha Image Control} {Memory Leak FAQ} {Unicode Open/Save Dialog} {Resource Image Viewer/Extractor}
    {VB and DPI Tutorial} {Manifest Creator} {UserControl Button Template} {stdPicture Render Usage}

  4. #4

    Thread Starter
    New Member
    Join Date
    Jun 2011
    Location
    Burnsville, MN
    Posts
    5

    Re: Creating .ico files

    Quote Originally Posted by LaVolpe View Post
    What language are you using to develop your application? The language may have limitations on what icon color depth you can use. For example, VB6 does not support 32 bit icons directly.
    I'm on Visual Studio Ultimate using Visual Basic.

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  



Click Here to Expand Forum to Full Width