how to get vlc movie window like on front page

[batsone42]

Thank you all for your responses. I really, sincerely, appreciate all of the help.

DJ wrote:

I hate to say this but I'm a bit confused here too!

Are you confused about my issue or confused about the suggested fixes?

Also DJ wrote:

That rather bland looking interface is the wxWidgets interface. If you want a different look you will need to change this from the default to the skins 2 module. wxWidgets only offers the embedded or non embedded modes.

To be clear my goal is not so much wanting a different look. What I want to do is to have access to the video display settings (hue, saturation, brightness, contrast, etc.). Whether I can do that with the 'silver skin' (if it is a skin) as shown on the VidoeLAN front page or another skin doesn't matter to me. The problem is I have only been able to access these controls from the Extended GUI (by selecting this under Settings from the front of the player). And I have only been able to do this with the blue-bordered and beige looking player. As seen here:

Opening the Extended GUI


The Extended GUI Video tab which allows changes to video image:

If you want a different look you will need to change this from the default to the skins 2 module.

After changing to the skins 2 module (which I am doing by clicking Settings, then Switch Interface, then Skins 2), the player looked like this:



Once again, as with the different skins I have tried, there is no Settings option that I can find for accessing the Extended GUI (which gives access to changing hue, saturation, contrast and brightness). As with other skins, Ctrl-G does nothing. Trying another approach, within this player in the Skin 2 mode I tried selecting Extended GUI in the Prefences under Main Interfaces but it appears to be only an option for wxWidget mode. So, not surprisingly, this also did not give me access to the Extended GUI (tried Ctrl-G) since it is in the Skins 2 mode.

j-b wrote:

GO in your Display settings in your config panel.

When I checked the settings it had been set to 'Modified Theme' but I think that was because I choose to have my desktop a solid color. I would guess it should be set to the default display (i.e. Windows XP theme). Correct?

Anyway I tried changing to the Windows XP theme, and re-opening the player in both default mode and skins 2 mode and this did nothing to change the appearance of my unskinned player (it had the same blue-border with beige interior). With the display set to Windows XP theme, I then tried re-installing the VLN program (I selected 'Delete Preferences and Cache' on 'Chose Components' page of install process) and still no silver skin.

Questions:

~ Am I correct in understanding that the 'silver skin' look of the player from main page of the VideoLAN website is not actually a 'skin' but is the designed look of the basic GUI unskinned? And that mine does not appear silver simply because of my Display Properties setting?

~ Are the settings for video hue, saturation, contrast, etc.ONLY available through the default, unskinned mode?

After this post, if I can't be helped further here, I will try posting this issue in the Windows Forum as suggested by funman (though I believe this thread is in the Windows forum but maybe you mean starting a new thread). I was thinking maybe I should post in the Skin Forum.

I never thought this would be as much trouble as it is turning out to be. But on a positive note I can highly recommend this player. Seems to be the only player which handles so many types of media and without having to fool with applying other programs to play them. I really like being able to see all types of media when opening a new file (like iso's along with avi, mpg, etc.) If only I could make adjustments to the video in anything other than this blue-bordered thing!

Again, thanks for your help and patience.

[juneof44]

If you want VLC to look like the picture on the main page, you must change your Windows theme and/or color scheme. How to do it is shown here:
https://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/usi ... /look.mspx

Please read the ENTIRE linked page. You are going to want to make sure your Theme is Windows XP and your Color Scheme is Silver.

Edit:

~ Am I correct in understanding that the 'silver skin' look of the player from main page of the VideoLAN website is not actually a 'skin' but is the designed look of the basic GUI unskinned? And that mine does not appear silver simply because of my Display Properties setting?

Yes, you are correct. Applications that are designed for Windows can inherit the look and feel of Windows' current display settings. The person who took the screenshot for the main page had their VLC set to default (unskinned) and was using the silver color scheme for Windows. That means that Calculator, Notepad and Internet Explorer all look silver on that person's computer. If you change your settings, all programs that do inherit Windows' display settings will look silver as well.

So, to answer your original question "how do I get mine to look like that?" the exact answer is, change the Windows display settings. Now, if you just want a "different" look, that's where VLC skins can come to the rescue. Perhaps, if you want the look of silver without changing your Windows display settings, you could make a skin of your own! That would probably give you a greater understanding of this issue and make the community thankful for your contribution.

[batsone42]

Bingo!!! That was the solution.

I didn't know about that option.

Thank-you! Thank-you!

As to designing a skin, well, that sounds a bit daunting but then again I am totally ignorant of what the process would involve. I'd be willing to give it a try. What programs would I need for getting started?

Again, I really appreciate the effort each of you have made in helping me.
My cone humbly bows to you all.

[juneof44]

Glad you were able to get the results you wanted.

As for the skin design, yes, I'm sure it would be a pain in the butt, but if you're graphically inclined, it takes creating graphics and plotting out the position and behavior of the graphics in an XML file. So, the tools involved would be Notepad and a graphic creation program.

http://www.videolan.org/vlc/skins2-create.html

The "create you own skin" comment was an extreme second road, I must admit. If you're satisfied with the look and feel now, I'd save the skin creations for another day.

[DJ]

Thank you all for your responses. I really, sincerely, appreciate all of the help.

DJ wrote:

I hate to say this but I'm a bit confused here too!

Are you confused about my issue or confused about the suggested fixes?

Also DJ wrote:

That rather bland looking interface is the wxWidgets interface. If you want a different look you will need to change this from the default to the skins 2 module. wxWidgets only offers the embedded or non embedded modes.

To be clear my goal is not so much wanting a different look. What I want to do is to have access to the video display settings (hue, saturation, brightness, contrast, etc.). Whether I can do that with the 'silver skin' (if it is a skin) as shown on the VidoeLAN front page or another skin doesn't matter to me. The problem is I have only been able to access these controls from the Extended GUI (by selecting this under Settings from the front of the player). And I have only been able to do this with the blue-bordered and beige looking player. As seen here:

Opening the Extended GUI


The Extended GUI Video tab which allows changes to video image:

If you want a different look you will need to change this from the default to the skins 2 module.

After changing to the skins 2 module (which I am doing by clicking Settings, then Switch Interface, then Skins 2), the player looked like this:



Once again, as with the different skins I have tried, there is no Settings option that I can find for accessing the Extended GUI (which gives access to changing hue, saturation, contrast and brightness). As with other skins, Ctrl-G does nothing. Trying another approach, within this player in the Skin 2 mode I tried selecting Extended GUI in the Prefences under Main Interfaces but it appears to be only an option for wxWidget mode. So, not surprisingly, this also did not give me access to the Extended GUI (tried Ctrl-G) since it is in the Skins 2 mode.

j-b wrote:

GO in your Display settings in your config panel.

When I checked the settings it had been set to 'Modified Theme' but I think that was because I choose to have my desktop a solid color. I would guess it should be set to the default display (i.e. Windows XP theme). Correct?

Anyway I tried changing to the Windows XP theme, and re-opening the player in both default mode and skins 2 mode and this did nothing to change the appearance of my unskinned player (it had the same blue-border with beige interior). With the display set to Windows XP theme, I then tried re-installing the VLN program (I selected 'Delete Preferences and Cache' on 'Chose Components' page of install process) and still no silver skin.

Questions:

~ Am I correct in understanding that the 'silver skin' look of the player from main page of the VideoLAN website is not actually a 'skin' but is the designed look of the basic GUI unskinned? And that mine does not appear silver simply because of my Display Properties setting?

~ Are the settings for video hue, saturation, contrast, etc.ONLY available through the default, unskinned mode?

After this post, if I can't be helped further here, I will try posting this issue in the Windows Forum as suggested by funman (though I believe this thread is in the Windows forum but maybe you mean starting a new thread). I was thinking maybe I should post in the Skin Forum.

I never thought this would be as much trouble as it is turning out to be. But on a positive note I can highly recommend this player. Seems to be the only player which handles so many types of media and without having to fool with applying other programs to play them. I really like being able to see all types of media when opening a new file (like iso's along with avi, mpg, etc.) If only I could make adjustments to the video in anything other than this blue-bordered thing!

Again, thanks for your help and patience.

Well in actuality a bit of both! But the reality is the the picture you are refering to is of an earlier version of VLC and the Windows theme is different. Thus causing the difference in colors. It could also be a theme in another operating system. There are no preferences that allow this change other than within Windows themes.

BTW The Blissta skin does provide color, contrast etc. But most of the functions are available with any skin in the menus.

[batsone42]

Additional comment regarding Extended GUI and changing Video characteristics:

I may be mistaken but it would seem that none of the skins have provision for Video Image adjustment. Although there are at least two skins (Blissta, and Chaos) which have extra Audio controls (i.e. an Equalizer). I would think adjusting the video image would be a higher priority than audio (IMO). Maybe incorporating that into the skins is more complicated than adding an audio equalizer? Anyway, I am very happy to have the player with the silver look and access to Image adjustment via the Extended GUI. That is terrific. Along with it's funcionality, it really makes the player tops in my book.

Thanks again to all.

[DJ]

The Equalizer in Blissta is the video controls.

[batsone42]

DJ wrote:

The Equalizer in Blissta is the video controls.

Really? For adjusting video contrast, brightness, etc.? Where? How exactly?


You must be kidding. . .

[DJ]

Hmm! In my version it opens the video controls. I downloaded it just shortly after the completion and posting of the skin. Perhaps the author has changed it.

I do use it in minimum mode because I use VLC mostly for movies and don't want a big interface when I call the interface in full screen mode. The control marked Equalizer in the minimum interface opens the video GUI

[batsone42]

The control marked Equalizer in the minimum interface opens the video GUI

I don't know DJ, the control marked Equalizer? I don't see that. Do you have this as a choice on the face of the mini-mode player itself? On my player the button to the left of the speaker symbol (which looks like an Equalizer) is Show Extras Menu . . .



. . . and clicking that opens up this:



I don't see a video GUI access anywhere on the mini-mode player or Extras Menu.
Maybe you could email me your Blissta skin file?

[batsone42]

Does anybody know how to access Video image adjustment for Blissta skin?

[DJ]

I always keep a couple of versions of VLC on my machine to help people. It seems that when VLC is not installed the Blissta skin works differently than it does when VLC is installed. I'm not quite sure how this is possible. I only know what it is doing. Sorry! For any misunderstanding here.