I've been looking for information on how to create an animated cursor for CursorFX. Two useful pages have been https://forums.stardock.com/447934/cursorfx-creating-your-own-custom-cursor-theme and https://www.stardock.com/products/cursorfx/help/editor.htm. But creating an animated cursor involves a strip of images within a single .png file. Two utilities for creating animated cursors are mentioned on various web pages: AniUtil.exe and AnimStrip.exe. Where can I find either of these or some utility to create animated cursors? And what is the current help page for making cursors for CursorFX? Thanks.
Hello,
From what I know, AniUtil.exe no longer available and for AnimStrip.exe, you can refer here: https://forums.wincustomize.com /500368/ (reply#18). And, no specific help page on it, just post your question here in the forum and the community will try to help you if they can.
ThanksBasj,Stardock Community Assistant.
Thank you for the reply. The link given to download AnimStrip is no good. AniTuner looks like it may do the job: Create animated cursor for Windows 11/10 with AniTuner (thewindowsclub.com). There is also RealWorld Cursor Editor, which seems somewhat more rinky-dink: RealWorld Cursor Editor - make animated cursors (rw-designer.com). It is an odd oversight that Stardock does not have a tool for cursor creation.
The reason behind that is simple.
Stardock doesn't want the user to create new mouse cursor anymore.
first of all, in previous version, they used the .CurXpTheme format cursor wich was a .zip file renamed .CurXpTheme. You could extract file from them, modify them and create your own theme based on the work of someone else. This created copyright issue they deemed to fix.
Stardock created the .CursorFx file format wich is propriatary (own by them) and they do not want to give up "how" to make a .CursorFx file. Meaning, nobody can export to that file format except them. Wich in turn might kill the business.
Then, their own "editor" only allow to import PNG file wich is an Image format.
PNG file CANNOT be animated. However, it exist a format called aPNG wich *IS* the animated form of an animated PNG (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APNG) (there exist only a *few* editor able to create APNG files
But the Stardock editor for the cursor doesn't allow to import APNG, furthermore, it doesn't seem to support it.
Meaning... they don't want us to create .CursorFx file and they don't allow us to even create animation for the cursor we want to create
and their Editor is very limited (or broken) Try to open an existing Cursor Theme, remove a cursor inside of it, save it and put it in place, reboot and you'll see that the visual change you made is not taken into consideration beside the "remark" you can update.
Just my 2 cents but in order to make the business of customization grow up, they should make the CursorFx format open source.
YES the work need to be copyright and respect and due diligence should be given to thoses creating original ART. Nevertheless, because of the current business model, content creator are very limited in what they can do.
Same goes for WindowsBlinds. in order to edit or create a theme, you need to use SkinStudio. A program nowhere to be found and all link extinct. when you try to download it, it bring you back to the download page of WindowsBlinds
and every forum that talk about this got erased.
so... go ahead... erase me.
Skin Studio is available to all licenses holders of WindowBlinds or users having an active Object Desktop subscription in their Stardock account
Paul ScrogginsAssociate Technical Support Analyst
hi,
I'm a registered user of WindowBlinds,
when I go to my product, I see a link to SkinStudio, that's true, when I click on it, I'm brought to the page to buy WindowBlinds.
so, again, NO, not available.
Yes I'm using my registered user account.
link doesn't work
Hello,Sorry to hear you are having issues. Please raise support ticket using the link below, use the product not receive option. Include all information details. Remember to record down the ticket number for future reference if needed. Do not raise multiple ticket, that will make your ticket back to the end of the line. Send once and wait. Ticket will be answer by the order they send in.
https://stardock.atlassian.net/servicedesk/customer/portal/4/group/13
ThanksBasj,Stardock Community Assistant
Also available via the Stardock Help Center (The Support button on our site)
https://support.stardock.com/space/SHC/1326284823/Where+can+I+get+SkinStudio+to+edit+skins%3A
It's located it the CursorFX folder here: C:\Program Files (x86)\Stardock\CursorFX
Firstly, yes, to the person a few post up, Windowblinds editor was super tricky to find. I think the issue is that the language they use on their site, makes it sound like they are linking you to it but only sends you in a loop. I eventually found it through Object Desktop. The wording on ther site is very misleading.
That said, the CursorFX thing is such a travesty. I enjoy editing skins for MYSELF. I' good with photoshop and Illustrator, but not with programs like these, if they don't have easy editing. I miss being able to use an existing theme as a base and build from it...for personal use only.
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