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Customizing the Leopard Dock

post #1 of 65
10/26/07 at 6:13pm
Thread Starter 
OK, count me as one of those that doesn't like the gray dock. I figured out how to change its color and even its opacity. Here's what it looks like now.



I'm not going to go over basics such as hidden files, how to use sudo, etc. You will need to start with a bit of knowledge to do this. Here are the general instructions for how to do it:

1. Locate and make backup copies of these 4 files located in /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock/Contents/Resources

scurve-l.png
scurve-m.png
scurve-sm.png
scurve-xl.png

2. Modify them in your favorite photo editor. I used Photoshop and painted them black then reduced the layer opacity to around 50%. You can experiment with colors, gradients, and even add textures. I went with flat black because I felt the curve in the original made the dock appear too busy.

3. Replace the originals in Dock.app (at the path above). Restart the dock (killall Dock).

Thanks to Marvin for giving me the idea to try this. If you know of any other ways to customize the dock or any other new Leopard interfaces please share.

By request, the PNG's I used for the Dock above can be downloaded here: http://rapidshare.com/files/66838383/Black_Dock_Mod.zip
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post #2 of 65
10/26/07 at 6:28pm
I found this nifty app which turns the dock into the same 2d view that you see when you place it on the side of the screen.

http://www.eternalstorms.at/utilities/2dornot2d/

Now I just need to find the graphics to replace to make that look like the tiger one.. (I hate both new docks..)
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post #3 of 65
10/26/07 at 6:52pm
actually, I like the secondary, non-3D dock (that you can change in terminal, apparently). though, of course, this is only based on pictures, as my leopard doesn't come until next Wednesday
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post #4 of 65
10/26/07 at 7:12pm
The 2D one is much easier to view the little LEDs that replaced the black triangles. Thanx for the link.

And while you're reverting the dock to tiger style, want to find a way to fix the icons for folders too? The new ones are ugly.
Serving humanity one sarcastic comment at a time.
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Serving humanity one sarcastic comment at a time.
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post #5 of 65
10/26/07 at 7:50pm
oh, and while we're at it...is there a way to make the apple menu bar thingy more transparent? I liked it a lot more in the earlier builts where you could see through it easier. reminds me of vista (a good thing...visually, at least)
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post #6 of 65
10/26/07 at 11:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

OK, count me as one of those that doesn't like the gray dock.

Thank you for that post. Your dock looks great!
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post #7 of 65
10/27/07 at 4:10am
Yeah I didn't like the s-curve either. It's looking good. One other thing I changed before was the small white strip at the front of the Dock. It's hardly noticeable until you change it. Also, typing killall Dock needs the capital D.
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post #8 of 65
10/27/07 at 7:29am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marvin View Post

Yeah I didn't like the s-curve either. It's looking good. One other thing I changed before was the small white strip at the front of the Dock. It's hardly noticeable until you change it. Also, typing killall Dock needs the capital D.

I like the white strip at the front. It gives the "plate of glass" thickness.
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post #9 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:02am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

I like the white strip at the front. It gives the "plate of glass" thickness.

Why are the new little LEDs reflecting off that white strip? It doesn't make sense and bugs me to no end.
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post #10 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:16am
It won't let me replace scurve-l.png

I replaced the others but it won't let me do that one for some reason.
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post #11 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:27am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Footloose301 View Post

It won't let me replace scurve-l.png

I replaced the others but it won't let me do that one for some reason.

You will probably need to use sudo to get the permission required to replace it.

eg: $ sudo cp ...
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post #12 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:31am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by JonE View Post

Why are the new little LEDs reflecting off that white strip? It doesn't make sense and bugs me to no end.

Although the effect is not perfectly accurate, I think they were trying to approximate shining a small light through semi-transparent glass, and some of the light would in fact would come through the edge like that if the light was held close to the glass near the edge. I don't think it would look exactly like that though. I am sure some talented folks will come up with better effects.
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post #13 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:35am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

You will probably need to use sudo to get the permission required to replace it.

eg: $ sudo cp ...

Thanks. I just deleted it and replaced it and it worked. I actually downloaded the png files here. Some guy posted these on another forum for everybody. The ones I made were solid black. His looked better.

Heres the http://www.mediafire.com/?1vprwelidjd to the BLACK DOCK!
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post #14 of 65
10/27/07 at 8:55am
Heres mine.



Sorry they came out so small. iWeb made them that size....
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post #15 of 65
10/27/07 at 9:33am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Footloose301 View Post

Thanks. I just deleted it and replaced it and it worked. I actually downloaded the png files here. Some guy posted these on another forum for everybody. The ones I made were solid black. His looked better.

Heres the http://www.mediafire.com/?1vprwelidjd to the BLACK DOCK!

Can you point me to that forum post?
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post #16 of 65
10/27/07 at 9:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

Can you point me to that forum post?

macprodan posted it here a little over 2 weeks ago
http://forum.insanelymac.com/lofiver...55535-100.html
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post #17 of 65
10/27/07 at 10:10am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JonE View Post

Why are the new little LEDs reflecting off that white strip? It doesn't make sense and bugs me to no end.

Yeah it looks a bit silly. I can't remember if it's actually a reflection or if it's just part of the file for the dot so you might be able to scrub it out.

Another thing is that the Dock supports transparency in the texture so you can sort of make the Dock as short as you like. The trouble is the reflection is not dependent on the opacity of the texture so it reflects fully on transparent areas.

One thing I've just thought of though is that you might be able to modify the flat Dock texture to make it look 3D but just really short. Since it doesn't reflect, it should be ok to put some transparency in there. Just make a black trapezoid shape.
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post #18 of 65
10/27/07 at 10:12am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marvin View Post

Yeah it looks a bit silly. I can't remember if it's actually a reflection or if it's just part of the file for the dot so you might be able to scrub it out.

Another thing is that the Dock supports transparency in the texture so you can sort of make the Dock as short as you like. The trouble is the reflection is not dependent on the opacity of the texture so it reflects fully on transparent areas.

One thing I've just thought of though is that you might be able to modify the flat Dock texture to make it look 3D but just really short. Since it doesn't reflect, it should be ok to put some transparency in there. Just make a black trapezoid shape.

The bottom reflection is a part of the png.
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post #19 of 65
10/27/07 at 10:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

2. Modify them in your favorite photo editor. I used Photoshop ...

Your PS icon looks like PS 7 which crashes for me and others. Did you get it to work somehow?

m

Life is too short to drink bad coffee.

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Life is too short to drink bad coffee.

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post #20 of 65
10/27/07 at 10:44am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mstone View Post

Your PS icon looks like PS 7 which crashes for me and others. Did you get it to work somehow?

m

It's not PS 7. I just like the icon for some reason.
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post #21 of 65
10/27/07 at 12:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

It's not PS 7. I just like the icon for some reason.

how do you unlock the files to edit them? i tried to in get info but i couldn't.
MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
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MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
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post #22 of 65
10/27/07 at 12:20pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich-Myster View Post

how do you unlock the files to edit them? i tried to in get info but i couldn't.

This is how to change icons: http://macs.about.com/od/osx/a/change_icons.htm
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post #23 of 65
10/27/07 at 12:50pm
Apple has really screwed up the Dock... and the Dock was screwed up to begin with.

Proud AAPL stock owner.

 

GOA

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Proud AAPL stock owner.

 

GOA

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post #24 of 65
10/27/07 at 1:22pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

This is how to change icons: http://macs.about.com/od/osx/a/change_icons.htm

to change the dock itself, not the icons on it.
MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
Reply
MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
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post #25 of 65
10/27/07 at 1:46pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich-Myster View Post

to change the dock itself, not the icons on it.

> mkdir ~/Documents/DockBackup

> mkdir ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited

> cp /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resources/scu* ~/Documents/DockBackup

> cp /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resources/scu* ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited

Then after editing the files in Edited folder (or replacing with ones you downloaded):

> sudo cp ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited/scu* /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resource

Enter the Admin password when prompted then:

> killall Dock

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post #26 of 65
10/27/07 at 1:54pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Daffy_Duck View Post

> mkdir ~/Documents/DockBackup

> mkdir ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited

> cp /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resources/scu* ~/Documents/DockBackup

> cp /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resources/scu* ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited

Then after editing the files in Edited folder (or replacing with ones you downloaded):

> sudo cp ~/Documents/DockBackup/Edited/scu* /System/Library/CoreServices/Dock.app/Contents/Resource

Enter the Admin password when prompted then:

> killall Dock


i've decided i'm not even going to bother with it. i keep the dock on the side of the page anyways. haha.
MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
Reply
MacBook Pro
2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2GB 667 DDR2 SDRAM - 2x1GB
120GB Serial ATA Drive@5400rpm
SuperDrive 8x
15" Glossy Widescreen Display

with a wireless Apple keyboard

and

iPod Touch
8GB
Reply
post #27 of 65
10/27/07 at 4:55pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rich-Myster View Post

i've decided i'm not even going to bother with it. i keep the dock on the side of the page anyways. haha.

You don't have to use the terminal at all if you're not comfortable with it.

Just go to the Dock.app in your CoreServices folder inside the System folder.
Right-click it and do show package contents.
Then go to Contents/resources.
Some of the PNGs in there are what you edit.
To make a backup first, just drag the resources folder anywhere and then don't edit it at all - put a lock on it if you want.
Then take another copy that you will be editing on your desktop or something.
Open one of the files in that copy, edit and save it.
In the system folder, move the corresponding file to trash.
Then drag in the one you've saved and it will ask for your password.
Finally restart the dock as mentioned above with killall Dock.
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post #28 of 65
10/27/07 at 6:30pm
Why can't the dock highlight the running apps a little better. Maybe a glowing box around them? That LED is hard to see.

- Mark

http://www.gmu.edu/departments/economics/wew/index.html
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- Mark

http://www.gmu.edu/departments/economics/wew/index.html
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post #29 of 65
10/29/07 at 12:49pm
Can someone post Tiger's triangle PNGS? I want to use those to replace the blue orbs...
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post #30 of 65
10/29/07 at 1:05pm
Hey people viewing this thread. Anyone has the tiger dock's pngs? Can extract from your OS?
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post #31 of 65
10/29/07 at 1:22pm
I try not to let stuff like this bug me.

But obviously, thats just me.
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post #32 of 65
10/29/07 at 1:59pm
I might try this dark dock... I like the look of it.
Into the at, for.
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Into the at, for.
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post #33 of 65
10/29/07 at 2:17pm
I like the whiter look better on dark backgrounds, and the black on whiter ones. It would be nice to be able to adjust the tint of that.. .Should be easy to do using core animation.

Apple never takes advantage of this stuff.
Into the at, for.
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Into the at, for.
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post #34 of 65
10/29/07 at 8:07pm
Daffy, is there anyway you can post or send me your dark dock files, I really like how yours work but I can't get photoshop working at the moment...

Thanks
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post #35 of 65
10/31/07 at 12:08am
here's some fun docks I came up with. Some ideas worked better than others, but editing and replacing images did not prove to be too difficult at all.

I can upload the .png files for any of them if anyone is interested.
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post #36 of 65
10/31/07 at 12:12am
oh i really like the grass one! how did you do it?

edit: you should do one with the crisscross metal design on firetrucks. That'd be cool

maybe wood floor?

i could go on forever
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post #37 of 65
10/31/07 at 5:44am
Hey, i love the dock on the far bottom, without the grey 3d floor but keeping the reflections. very nice! Would it be possible for you to upload it somewhere? Great work
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post #38 of 65
10/31/07 at 8:49am
Instead of loading them all individually, I just zipped them all up! There's actually a couple more sets in here as well. Enjoy!
http://www.mediafire.com/?3lyxzcxe2tw
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post #39 of 65
10/31/07 at 9:35am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by mangosquash View Post

Instead of loading them all individually, I just zipped them all up! There's actually a couple more sets in here as well. Enjoy!
http://www.mediafire.com/?3lyxzcxe2tw

Nice work mango!
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post #40 of 65
10/31/07 at 12:20pm
Added some sepia to the mix to go with my wallpaper on the dock.....I like it atleast ;]

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