Solve : Change Desktop Shortcut Text Color from White to Black??

1.	Solve : Change Desktop Shortcut Text Color from White to Black??
Answer» Anyone know how to change the Text Color of Shortcuts and Icons with Text Displayed under them from the default of White to say BLACK or any other color for that matter? I know that i can changethe background color of teh text box of teh iron, but that looks ugly and too primitive windows looking. I have a background picture of my daughter playing outside and its awkward having my icons grouped around darker areas of the picture. Sure I could size the picture to only take up part of the screen instead of stretching. But I don't want to do that. Been digging in advanced properties and searching google for others who may have found a solution for this, and some suggest installing some software like something called Iconoid, but I am hesitant to installing any DESKTOP tools as for I have never seen any that don't have cons to them. Anyone ever used Iconoid or can suggest a better fix for this? Here is the link to Iconoid to check out: http://www.sillysot.com/Microsoft say there is no way to set a default colour for desktop icon text in Windows 7. The way it works is this: the icon font colour can be only be a grey scale value somewhere between pure white and pure black. Windows sets it depending on background brightness, defaulting to white unless that would not be clearly visible. Note that you have to log off and on again to see any changes. It does seem as if 3rd party software is the only way around this, but some people (like yourself) who don't fancy doing that, have contented themselves with either or both of: setting the font to be bold, and enabling drop SHADOWS. Iconoid works perfectly for changing the font color of your Desktop icons. Just tried it: I have to say personally I don't like desktop icons; my own desktop is solid black in colour and has zero icons or gadgets. So this problem never affects me. I also really don't like software installers which go ahead without asking and put an icon on the desktop. Quote The way it works is this: the icon font colour can be only be a grey scale value somewhere between pure white and pure black. Windows sets it depending on background brightness, defaulting to white unless that would not be clearly visible. Salmon ... Interesting information. Wasn't aware of Windows setting the text color depending on background brightness. And interesting that Transfusion got green when it should be grey scale? Thanks Transfusion for testing that software and reporting with screenshot at your own risk Wonder how this software is overriding the text color? I also dug in the registry thinking that maybe a hex value may be associated with text color for icons etc, but didnt find anything yet. Maybe I will install this Iconoid to a virtual machine after taking a backup of the registry and then compare the original registry against the I am guessing altered registry with this software to see what key is being altered to change the text color. Guessing for the change to take and be permanent, it may be a hex value in registry maybe that can be altered when the option is OTHERWISE greyed out in options.Quote from: DaveLembke on October 08, 2011, 04:23:17 AM And interesting that Transfusion got green when it should be grey scale? Transfusion has green icon text because he is using Iconoid, which overrides the as-installed Windows 7 greyscale behaviour. Something I have just realised is that when Windows computes the best shade of grey for the desktop icon font, it's not the wallpaper image (jpg or whatever) that it looks at, it's the underlying desktop colour. If you have an image set as wallpaper, you will never see this desktop colour, but its setting affects the desktop icon font colour. That is, set the colour to a very dark one, and you'll get a white icon font. Set the colour to a very light one, and you'll get a black icon font. Also if you enable drop shadows, these will be mid grey so you will pretty well always be able to see the text anyhow. I don't think these 3rd party icon text colour changers work by modifying the registry because in unmodified Windows 7 the desktop icon font colour is not stored there (not everything is done via the registry). I believe they intercept a part of the Windows desktop icon painting code and substitute their own routines. Iconoid's web may offer the source code, I'll check this, but meantime a reading of the Iconoid version history suggests this. Of COURSE they may store their own settings in the registry (where else?) but you would not be able to uninstall the 3rd party application and still keep the modified font colour. Quote from: Salmon Trout on October 08, 2011, 06:16:22 AM I believe they intercept a part of the Windows desktop icon painting code and substitute their own routines. Iconoid's web may offer the source code, I'll check this Yup. Iconoid 2.3.4 was the last version written in Visual Basic and the download includes the source.

Answer»

Anyone know how to change the Text Color of Shortcuts and Icons with Text Displayed under them from the default of White to say BLACK or any other color for that matter? I know that i can changethe background color of teh text box of teh iron, but that looks ugly and too primitive windows looking.

I have a background picture of my daughter playing outside and its awkward having my icons grouped around darker areas of the picture. Sure I could size the picture to only take up part of the screen instead of stretching. But I don't want to do that.

Been digging in advanced properties and searching google for others who may have found a solution for this, and some suggest installing some software like something called Iconoid, but I am hesitant to installing any DESKTOP tools as for I have never seen any that don't have cons to them.

Anyone ever used Iconoid or can suggest a better fix for this? Here is the link to Iconoid to check out: http://www.sillysot.com/Microsoft say there is no way to set a default colour for desktop icon text in Windows 7. The way it works is this: the icon font colour can be only be a grey scale value somewhere between pure white and pure black. Windows sets it depending on background brightness, defaulting to white unless that would not be clearly visible. Note that you have to log off and on again to see any changes. It does seem as if 3rd party software is the only way around this, but some people (like yourself) who don't fancy doing that, have contented themselves with either or both of: setting the font to be bold, and enabling drop SHADOWS. Iconoid works perfectly for changing the font color of your Desktop icons. Just tried it:
I have to say personally I don't like desktop icons; my own desktop is solid black in colour and has zero icons or gadgets. So this problem never affects me. I also really don't like software installers which go ahead without asking and put an icon on the desktop.
Quote

The way it works is this: the icon font colour can be only be a grey scale value somewhere between pure white and pure black. Windows sets it depending on background brightness, defaulting to white unless that would not be clearly visible.

Salmon ... Interesting information. Wasn't aware of Windows setting the text color depending on background brightness.

And interesting that Transfusion got green when it should be grey scale? Thanks Transfusion for testing that software and reporting with screenshot at your own risk

Wonder how this software is overriding the text color? I also dug in the registry thinking that maybe a hex value may be associated with text color for icons etc, but didnt find anything yet. Maybe I will install this Iconoid to a virtual machine after taking a backup of the registry and then compare the original registry against the I am guessing altered registry with this software to see what key is being altered to change the text color. Guessing for the change to take and be permanent, it may be a hex value in registry maybe that can be altered when the option is OTHERWISE greyed out in options.Quote from: DaveLembke on October 08, 2011, 04:23:17 AM

And interesting that Transfusion got green when it should be grey scale?

Transfusion has green icon text because he is using Iconoid, which overrides the as-installed Windows 7 greyscale behaviour.

Something I have just realised is that when Windows computes the best shade of grey for the desktop icon font, it's not the wallpaper image (jpg or whatever) that it looks at, it's the underlying desktop colour. If you have an image set as wallpaper, you will never see this desktop colour, but its setting affects the desktop icon font colour. That is, set the colour to a very dark one, and you'll get a white icon font. Set the colour to a very light one, and you'll get a black icon font. Also if you enable drop shadows, these will be mid grey so you will pretty well always be able to see the text anyhow.

I don't think these 3rd party icon text colour changers work by modifying the registry because in unmodified Windows 7 the desktop icon font colour is not stored there (not everything is done via the registry). I believe they intercept a part of the Windows desktop icon painting code and substitute their own routines. Iconoid's web may offer the source code, I'll check this, but meantime a reading of the Iconoid version history suggests this. Of COURSE they may store their own settings in the registry (where else?) but you would not be able to uninstall the 3rd party application and still keep the modified font colour.

Quote from: Salmon Trout on October 08, 2011, 06:16:22 AM

I believe they intercept a part of the Windows desktop icon painting code and substitute their own routines. Iconoid's web may offer the source code, I'll check this

Yup. Iconoid 2.3.4 was the last version written in Visual Basic and the download includes the source.

Solve : Change Desktop Shortcut Text Color from White to Black??

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