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Skinning FAQ

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theMikeAG
I have a question you might want to consider for the FAQ.

How do I access the skins folder?

When I was first looking for the skins folder, I was really confused, because the people at IRC were talking about an Osu Main Folder that I didn't know existed. It took me a while, but I finally managed to find the Main Folder... In the properties screen!

You might want to give newbies like me a "heads up" about these sorts of things. Just a suggestion. ;)
ShirouTsuki_old
question! D:

how do I test out my own skin? $:
like, I want to see how it looks, what adjustments should I make for better game play...
I've tried switching files (ie. my count down with the default's) and that's no use...
I've tried dragging folder with the skin I'm working on into the game, but that's useless too (it's already in the Skin folder for OSU! but it doesn't show up in OSU!)

please help? :/

another question is about designing the fruits... could someone explain the functions of ie. fruits-pear and ie.fruits-pear-overlay? D: I see that in the Taiko skin (which is totes awesome :D) , the fruits-pear is blank and that the fruits-pear-overlay isn't... and then when I play catch the fruits, the fruits change colours? @@" *sadface*
I'm so confused! D:
help plox! D:

BTW I'm honestly not very familiar with gameplay or anything 'bout OSU! for that matter, so sorry for the dumb questions >>"
Ziggy Zigzagoon
Is there a way to include "warning sounds" that play when the health bar gets low or dangerously low?
Gens
...might be a little late but oh well.

shiroutsuki wrote:

question! D:

how do I test out my own skin? $:
Just put it in another folder along with the rest skins and choose it in Options - Skins. Make sure you have a skin.ini and everything.

shiroutsuki wrote:

another question is about designing the fruits... could someone explain the functions of ie. fruits-pear and ie.fruits-pear-overlay?
The normal fruit image (no -overlay) gets recolored in-game according to the colors you can set either in the skin or the beatmap, while the overlay doesn't get recolored at all and appears above the other image.

shiroutsuki wrote:

BTW I'm honestly not very familiar with gameplay or anything 'bout OSU! for that matter, so sorry for the dumb questions >>"
Don't worry, this is what this thread is for.

Ziggy Zigzagoon wrote:

Is there a way to include "warning sounds" that play when the health bar gets low or dangerously low?
As far as I know, nothing of the sort has been implemented lately so no.
James2250

Ziggy Zigzagoon wrote:

Is there a way to include "warning sounds" that play when the health bar gets low or dangerously low?
I like the idea though :P
Ziggy Zigzagoon
For those of you wondering, I have in mind to make my own Trauma Team skin (especially since the other is apparently cancelled). My described feature would have had Angie say "Vitals Dropping!" and "Vitals are Critical!" at certain HP points.
Xaffy
Is there somewhere to get the new cursor/cursor trail? The template still has the old ones.
Loofah_old
The new default cursor trail seems to last much longer than the old one. I would very much like to know the skin.ini command to achieve this.
keegster2
:? how do i add a skin? i try to download it but its just a rar file. (i'm trying to download the kirby osu skin, BTW.)
James2250
You need to download a program like 7zip or something to extract the rar. Then just put the folder in your skins folder
keegster2

James2250 wrote:

You need to download a program like 7zip or something to extract the rar. Then just put the folder in your skins folder
:? i dont have 7zip. can you download it for free?
MLGnom
Yes, 7zip is a free program. (You can download WinRar too, it's also free ). Just search for them using google.
keegster2
thanks, but my dad wont let me. he says it will mess up my moms computer. (im 10, so i have to use my mom or dads computer.)
James2250
They let you download osu but they don't let you download a simple extracting program.......I see some logic flaws there but ok
Tell them they can scan it for viruses or something before you use it (depending on your computer it is probably the first download)

http://www.7-zip.org/download.html
keegster2
again. my jerk dad says no. im pretty much kirby osu-less now. :(
Mara
WinRAR is okay too.
Nezqi
skinning is cool and all, but sometimes on maps the skins are a little.. flashy, and get in the way of my gameplay. Is there any way to disable custom skins?
IppE

Ghostoo666 wrote:

skinning is cool and all, but sometimes on maps the skins are a little.. flashy, and get in the way of my gameplay. Is there any way to disable custom skins?
If its a map specific skin, just delete the skin elements from the map folder.
tyfaa
N A L U
Some skins have different sounds (like menuclick,back,etc.) than original ones in the template skin.
Where do I get different sounds? Or do we just edit sounds? :@
Q13
Because skins take up a lot of space I decided to write a quick tip for those that want to reduce the size of their's skin images without quallity loss. If you aren't using Photoshop, either look for similarities in the program you are using or use a image size compresor from/on the internet. :P

How to reduce the image size of your skin images using Photoshop:

1. After you created your image and you are ready to save it as a .png go to File-> Save for Web & Devices.
2. At the top you will see 4 tabs. Click on the one that says 2-Up to compare the quality.
3. For best quality choose PNG-24 from the Preset list (on the right)
4. Don’t forget to check the box near Transparency if you need it. (No point on using it on the spiner-background for example)
5. Click Save. On the window that pops up, at Format, choose Images Only.

Note that on some images it may not work that well (Like the C from the Template Skin as it has plenty of effects). But every kb counts. :)

I'll provide pictures, if necesary. ;)

I don't know what you could do with the sounds, sorry.

Also, will the questions answered and asked be added to the first post some time in the future? There are only 6 pages now and I browsed them easilly but if the questions add up, some of them may be repeated.
chibilawl

keegster2 wrote:

again. my jerk dad says no. im pretty much kirby osu-less now. :(
Can you give me the link to the skin? I'll give you a ZIP download link.
hatsune_miku7
"cuteskinsv2 by .ini file missing" , how to fix it :( ,help me :((
Dragon From Dark
does anybody know how to make sounds??? I'm trying to change the *real* fail sound into what i want, but it seems doesn't work... I'm so depressed here
OsuMe65
you can also use 72dpi before starting to design any skin element without using save for web and devices...

i tried it while making my first osu skin and there's nothing wrong...
rcmero

hatsune_miku7 wrote:

"cuteskinsv2 by .ini file missing" , how to fix it :( ,help me :((
Most likely the skin folder has no "skin.ini" file or something similar inside. Try adding one from another skin and see if that works.
Harri_old
Thank you good sir. Getting skins nao.
pStarDustq

LuigiHann wrote:

Okay, this will be a literal "Frequently asked questions," not a full tutorial. Ask a question and I can answer it here.

How do I make a skin?
Oh boy. If you have to ask, it's going to be tricky. First off, download the "template skin for skin makers" through Osume, and read the readme.txt and all the notes in the skin.ini file. Then download one, several, or even all of the other available skins, and look at what they do, comparing what you see in the game to the files in the folder. Then make a copy of the template skin folder, edit the skin.ini to fit your skin, and start playing around with the pngs in Photoshop or a similar program (You can't make a decent skin in MS Paint, sorry. You need something that can create transparent png files). Experimentation is the best way to learn your way around, and once you think you have something worth sharing (or if you really need help) zip up the folder (right click the folder and hit send to -> compressed/zipped folder), delete any files that you haven't edited (to save space) and post it in a new thread here as an attachment, with some screenshots. The skinning community (mostly me, sigh) will be happy to lend a hand.

The background changes color! Why?
Because Peppy says so. Beatmappers can select a background color when mapping a song, so your background will be overlayed with that color. You should probably just make your playfield.png black and white, but you can add a hint of color. Just be aware that it will be recolored for gameplay. The menu-button-background works the same way.

The same rules apply to the approachcircle.png and hitcircle.png, which will change color along with the combo.

The countdown is hard to skin properly.
That's not a question, but it's true. Count1.png will be the bottom layer, so you have some leeway with that, but for 2 and 3, you should follow either the template skin or the EBO skin as closely as possible to avoid a mess. These sprites are aligned based on their left border, so variations in shape and size will mess everything up.

Why isn't anybody commenting on my skin?
There are a few possibilities:
A) It sucks
B) The topic is too obscure, so people don't bother with it
C) For the most part, only skinners browse the skinning section, so don't assume it's A or B. Sometimes nobody comments because nobody has checked it out. Be patient, ask about it in IRC, and keep improving your skin even if nobody is saying anything.

Also, make sure you post some screenshots, keep your first post updated with the most recent download, and bump your thread when you update, so people know what to expect before they download.

What do I have to do to get my skin added to the updater?

This isn't a very democratic process, as it's largely up to me and Peppy's whims. But to increase your odds of being "published" in the updater, make sure your skin is:
A) Complete. You don't need to skin every little thing, but the gameplay sprites, at the very least, should all match the theme.
2) Fun. It should be fun to play Osu using your skin. Anything too distracting, obnoxious, or ugly might ruin the experience, even if it does fit the theme, so make sure the priority is on making it enjoyable to play with.
3) Clean. I'm a stickler for this. Make sure your sprites have smooth edges, so they don't look like crap when Osu resizes them. I suggest using an outer glow or drop shadow when appropriate. Also, delete any remnants of the template skin. They waste space and make your skin look unfinished when I browse the folder.


I'll try to organize this better once I have some more questions. So ask away.

N A L U wrote:

Some skins have different sounds (like menuclick,back,etc.) than original ones in the template skin.
Where do I get different sounds? Or do we just edit sounds? :@

N A L U wrote:

Some skins have different sounds (like menuclick,back,etc.) than original ones in the template skin.
Where do I get different sounds? Or do we just edit sounds? :@
_Skye
Why my skin is not on all songs? how to fix it?
Kousagi_Fushigi

mixas5 wrote:

Why my skin is not on all songs? how to fix it?
Couse some of beatmaps has its own skin :D
_Skye

Kousagi_Fushigi wrote:

mixas5 wrote:

Why my skin is not on all songs? how to fix it?
Couse some of beatmaps has its own skin :D
Is it possible to make that my skin would be on beatmaps with its own skins? You know what I mean.
Bread
uh is it okay if I change some parts of a skin for personal uses?

Like.. I downloaded this reaally nice skin but I don't really like the cursor or the combo burst picture :(

Is it okay if I remove it or switch it out for something from another skin, or is that like.. taboo. I'm only asking this because I heard deleting the background for a song wasn't permitted so does the same apply to skins or what? Just wanted to make sure beforehand, thanks in advance ^__^
MLGnom

Breadly wrote:

uh is it okay if I change some parts of a skin for personal uses?

Like.. I downloaded this reaally nice skin but I don't really like the cursor or the combo burst picture :(

Is it okay if I remove it or switch it out for something from another skin, or is that like.. taboo. I'm only asking this because I heard deleting the background for a song wasn't permitted so does the same apply to skins or what? Just wanted to make sure beforehand, thanks in advance ^__^
Yes you can, it's personal use, no one will know what you did to a skin. ^^;

All that you can't do is uploading skin and claiming that you made that skin and all parts are your job etc.
Dianshiro
i really want to make it, but i think i will failed, because i'm still a newbie.. Q.Q
wav
[old post]
wav
[old post]
Tesu
:oops:
[Kamen]
Does anyone have a link to a skin where it looks like the original but the combo burst's are very clean as in just bursts the number 300 without the orange small explosion effect. Would help me a heap if anyone can find it :D
Mamisero
I've got a question.
I want to contact someone and ask if I can use a customized spinner from their beatmap for my skin, with credit given of course.
But this person hasn't been active since 2010.
What should I do? ;_;
Bittersweet
Credit the person, send a pm saying what you did and hope that if the person shows up itll be ok :D If not, youll just need to change the files.
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