Custom icons in Logic X?

I know it's a crazy day with lots of questions. But if someone knows how to add custom icons to Logic X I'd greatly appreciate it.

 

The usual icon folder is not in the resources folder and is instead spread out among several other resource folders. I tried searching for .png but I can't find where the new icons are located so I don't know where I can add mine. I also searched for .gif and .tiff and still no luck

Thanks!

Seems like the Custom Icons are gone for now.

Since there are track folders now, I guess not as big of a deal. Custom icons is how I could deal with navigating a huge orch template

This saddens me. I made big, readable, custom-colored icons many years ago, and I do rely on them as visual cues. Those little standard pictures of a flute or oboe or what-not may be detailed when they're enlarged. But in a real-world Arrange Page... er... the Main window, they're not of much help, considering the normal height of one track in a large orchestral arrangement.

Another thread here suggests custom icons are still supported in LPX, albeit a little more complicated to do than before....

Thanks Beej.

 

If anyone would like to cut and paste an example of how to edit a plist to accommodate custom icons, I'd be grateful. I've never done it before. I didn't even know the user could edit a plist. Is this one of those "Open the Terminal" things?

 

This feels like an issue to be addressed in a subsequent version... or it's one of those kludges that annoys deeply, then prompts others to ask why it's such a big deal, which in turns annoys still more deeply.

I wonder if some of the people wanting custom icons are the same people decrying LPX's more cartoonish interface? Nothing looks classier and "pro" than your Arrange Window sporting a bunch of mis-matched, ironic icons!

 

Personally, I like the custom icons, and I like the skeuomorphic aspects of LPX. At least I'm consistent!

Yes if someone could make some instructions on how to add custom icons that would be great. I tried but failed.

Also, does anyone know if there is a key command to open/close all Track Stacks at once? I'd like that option when navagating a large orchestral template. thanks!

i've also found that all my custom icons have been moved to the new user directory at /Users/user/Music/Audio Music Apps/Images/Icons

 

still trying to figure out how to get custom icons going

pkm at the SoundsOnline forum has posted a way to add custom icons:

http://www.soundsonline-forums.com/showpost.php?p=730337&postcount=62

Wow! Thanks for that link.

i've also found that all my custom icons have been moved to the new user directory at /Users/user/Music/Audio Music Apps/Images/Icons

 

No, nothing has been moved, they are just symbolic links to the actual files in the user library app support Logic folder, where they've always been.

Ditto thanks to ajscorpio. That's the kind of step-by-step help I need to venture there, like a phrase book for a language I do not know.

pkm at the SoundsOnline forum has posted a way to add custom icons:

http://www.soundsonline-forums.com/showpost.php?p=730337&postcount=62

 

Has anyone successfully done this?

or does anyone have any info on any other way to use custom icons?

 

The new interface looks great, but no custom colors and no custom icons bum me out.

 

Thanks

jtnyc, I haven't attempted this myself (because I am concerned that I will need to repeat the process every time Apple releases an updated version of Logic X) but Robby Berman on the Apple Support Communities website says that he has done it:

https://discussions.apple.com/message/22520443?ac_cid=tw123456#22520443

Hmm.... seems a bit adventurous for me right now. I will miss my icons though. Maybe a more straight forward method will show up.

i have done it. it's tedious tho.

Hmm.... seems a bit adventurous for me right now. I will miss my icons though. Maybe a more straight forward method will show up.

I've been kind of searching for what to write for my first MacApp store...

Maybe this could be it!

 

An app where you manage your track icons (converts to this "multi-layer" TIFF format) and then when LogicProX is updated - and everything you copied in there gets overwritten?), you could run the app to copy your icons back in.

 

If I could charge 99c for it, I could be... a few dollars better off

i have done it. it's tedious tho.

 

 

Please could you explain how you get rid of this?

 

Thank you very much!

 

Chicco

Hmm.... seems a bit adventurous for me right now. I will miss my icons though. Maybe a more straight forward method will show up.

I've been kind of searching for what to write for my first MacApp store...

Maybe this could be it!

 

An app where you manage your track icons (converts to this "multi-layer" TIFF format) and then when LogicProX is updated - and everything you copied in there gets overwritten?), you could run the app to copy your icons back in.

 

If I could charge 99c for it, I could be... a few dollars better off

 

I would gladly pay10 times that for an app that deals with it. I'm still hoping Apple with implement and easier way.

 

And put back custom colors and new with next midi channel!!!

I'm still hoping Apple with implement and easier way.

I was thinking to myself, surely they'll do that, it's a "first pass". But then again, it's been 4 years.

It's a cruel thing to leave it out and not at least allow a moderately convenient backdoor way of doing it.

No doubt a manager or committee decision.

i have done it. it's tedious tho.

 

 

Please could you explain how you get rid of this?

 

Thank you very much!

 

Chicco

 

here are the instructions i followed

http://www.soundsonline-forums.com/showpost.php?p=730337&postcount=62

This is a bummer as I use custom icons for all of my softsynths and rely on images much more than text to quickly navigate my arrangements. I would love a way to assign default icons to software instruments. Currently I use the channel strip settings to do this, but seems that it could be easily managed much better.

 

Still if there was an app like the old iconizer that was drag and drop to add icons (and allowed saving and importing icon sets it would be incredible). I would gladly pay for it.

This is a ham-fisted alternative to the inventive but intimidating plist editing described in the link above.

 

I'm renaming some stock icons. I add "Z_" to the tiff file names so that they drop to the bottom of the column view of Finder.

 

Then (after exporting my own PNG files into TIFF's using Preview), I'll rename my custom icons using the names of the previous stock tiffs and put them into the same folder.

 

This method may not be appropriate for you, especially if you have a lot of custom icons and you want to preserve accessibility to the icons they give you.

 

But it works for me because A. I do not need, say, that Flute picture, and B. I can immediately replace it with my butt-ugly but immediately readable, self-made, boldly yellow and black "FL" icon. As a bonus, in Logic X, my stealth, pseudo-named Flute shows up in the "Winds" section of the icon menu.

 

If I need the previous, stock Flute icon, I can just rename it. It's still there. But renaming it obscures if from Logic.

 

Short rant. The design of a stock icon like the flute is pretty and detailed and professional. It looks great in the new Library pane. But in the work-a-day world of Arrange, track height and the resulting icon size in the track header does not allow any of the TIFF's artistic qualities to come through. It looks like a stick on an angle, like many of the other winds. This is why we need custom icons; each user needs to solve that problem, making a tiny space visually useful.

This is a ham-fisted alternative to the inventive but intimidating plist editing described in the link above.

 

I'm renaming some stock icons. I add "Z_" to the tiff file names so that they drop to the bottom of the column view of Finder.

 

Then (after exporting my own PNG files into TIFF's using Preview), I'll rename my custom icons using the names of the previous stock tiffs and put them into the same folder.

 

This method may not be appropriate for you, especially if you have a lot of custom icons and you want to preserve accessibility to the icons they give you.

 

But it works for me because A. I do not need, say, that Flute picture, and B. I can immediately replace it with my butt-ugly but immediately readable, self-made, boldly yellow and black "FL" icon. As a bonus, in Logic X, my stealth, pseudo-named Flute shows up in the "Winds" section of the icon menu.

 

If I need the previous, stock Flute icon, I can just rename it. It's still there. But renaming it obscures if from Logic.

 

Short rant. The design of a stock icon like the flute is pretty and detailed and professional. It looks great in the new Library pane. But in the work-a-day world of Arrange, track height and the resulting icon size in the track header does not allow any of the TIFF's artistic qualities to come through. It looks like a stick on an angle, like many of the other winds. This is why we need custom icons; each user needs to solve that problem, making a tiny space visually useful.

 

Hi Plowman,

 

I am exited to try your method out, but I can't seem to locate where Logic X stores the icons. Can you or anyone who knows let me know.

 

Thanks -

Found it.

 

If anyones interested, they are located in Logic Pro X App package contents (right click on LPX app, select show package contents). Then go to frameworks / MAResources. framework / Resources. It's a bit crowded in there as it's not just track icons that are in there. There is 3500 tiff files in there. I followed Plowmans instructions and it worked like a charm. I will never use the "Winds" icons, so I used them. Be sure to use a category that has enough icons in it to accommodate you needs.

 

I'm wondering if these will get erased with updates, so just to be sure I would back them up.

 

Thanks Plowman!!!

A friend of mine is a programmer - I bet he would clean up if he made an app for this. Not having custom icons is the only thing holding me back from using Logic X on my big projects right now. I have so many plugins I have to have them in order to navigate everything visually. My templates are huge. But I'll give Plowman's approach a try

im in the right folder..but i only have 646 icons no where 3500 & no instr. icons..

an advice?

thx

 

Found it.

 

If anyones interested, they are located in Logic Pro X App package contents (right click on LPX app, select show package contents). Then go to frameworks / MAResources. framework / Resources. It's a bit crowded in there as it's not just track icons that are in there. There is 3500 tiff files in there. I followed Plowmans instructions and it worked like a charm. I will never use the "Winds" icons, so I used them. Be sure to use a category that has enough icons in it to accommodate you needs.

 

I'm wondering if these will get erased with updates, so just to be sure I would back them up.

 

Thanks Plowman!!!

found it

Hi fup -

 

That's odd. That folder should have 3503 files in it. I did notice another resources folder that appears to be that same folder (alias). it is very close to the one I directed you to. Go to contents / frameworks / MAResources framework / Versions / Current / Resources. Mine is identical to the other one, but maybe check it out. Are you sure your in MAResources framework?