How to use "Mica backdrop" with TC on Windows 11

[AntonyD]

2Tringi
but Mr.Ghisler already answered to you that:
"One has a slightly darker background than the other, but you can already change the background color in
Configuration - Options - Color - Others - Dark mode: Background color"

so what else do you want beside that? Your video dos NOT showing anything very special or very noticeable...

[Tringi]

You really don't see the difference?

The video is showing the background is not a single color. They call it a "backdrop" (blur, grain and hue). It's rendered by Windows itself. It's dynamically adjusting to user's wallpaper and settings. It makes the application consistent in appearance with all other Windows 11 applications. It changes when the window is activated/deactivated, just like all other UWP and modern apps.

And that modern appearance can be achieved with 2 or 3 simple calls to Windows API.

If you are using Windows 11 maybe try to enable it yourself, like I described in the video description, or in this comment: viewtopic.php?t=79806#p439895 ...perhaps one needs to see it in action.

[AntonyD]

You really don't see the difference?

really. no jokes.

Perhaps a person with great artistic taste sees these minor differences and may even need them - to satisfy his sense of beauty.
But all these “games with colors” are alien to the common man. He/she will put up one thing that is pleasant and will continue to WORK
with this tool, and not admire the subtle tints of shades of a million colors on the BG.

[SSc]

I am a common man and i have no great artistic taste. But I do recognize the differences! And I welcome anything that helps to make Total Commander's dusty interface look a bit more modern. In this respect: Thanks for your initiative, Tringi. I would like to see integration in Total Commander. But I understand that this will not be implemented, as only you and I can see and appreciate the differences. So I'll just make do with your tool from GitHub.

[Tringi]

So, it's been 2 years. Still really zero interest in getting the good old Total Commander a modern facelift?

[Horst.Epp]

So, it's been 2 years. Still really zero interest in getting the good old Total Commander a modern facelift?

Why should we ?
The facelift you want doesn't add any function to TC as a File manager.
There are other file management tools available which have a lot of fancy gimmicks.
None of them is needed for real file management.

[Tringi]

Like I already argued, visual consistency with the rest of the OS reduces cognitive load and makes using computer slightly less tiring.
And keeping visual style up-to-date might bring in new users who'd otherwise dismiss Total Commander as something antique on the sole basis of appearance. I know a lot of people do that today, and Christian needs to earn his salary to maintain and improve this great tool.

Or would the slight visual refresh truly deter you from using Total Commander?
The new icons didn't, did they? And making new set of icons is orders of magnitude more work than calling a couple of functions.

[Stiltzkin]

Like I already argued, visual consistency with the rest of the OS reduces cognitive load and makes using computer slightly less tiring.
And keeping visual style up-to-date might bring in new users who'd otherwise dismiss Total Commander as something antique on the sole basis of appearance. I know a lot of people do that today, and Christian needs to earn his salary to maintain and improve this great tool.

Or would the slight visual refresh truly deter you from using Total Commander?
The new icons didn't, did they? And making new set of icons is orders of magnitude more work than calling a couple of functions.

I am a common man and i have no great artistic taste. But I do recognize the differences! And I welcome anything that helps to make Total Commander's dusty interface look a bit more modern. In this respect: Thanks for your initiative, Tringi. I would like to see integration in Total Commander. But I understand that this will not be implemented, as only you and I can see and appreciate the differences. So I'll just make do with your tool from GitHub.

just my 2 cents: i agree with both statements. but i also know that anything design and "modern-look" related is not a priority sadly.

just take a look at the screenshots on the official site: https://www.ghisler.com/screenshots/en/

and judging from the assorted user screenshot i've seen posted on this forum win95 grey with win 3.1 icons ist still king around here.

[Tringi]

just take a look at the screenshots on the official site: https://www.ghisler.com/screenshots/en/

Funnily enough, those screenshots show that modern XP rebar gradient I mention in the first post.
How I was excited when it first appeared and refreshed and modernized the style and look of Total Commander.
How time flies.

[supra107]

The screenshots on dark wallpapers don't show the Mica effect well, hence why Mr. Ghisler was confused about what's the request about. If you're on Windows 11, the best way to understand Mica is to open the Settings app and use a bright, colorful wallpaper, like that of a landscape.

In fact, the best way to understand why this would be such a nice addition, just look at Win11's UI. The taskbar, the start menu, the quick settings/notifications flyout, hell, even File Explorer utilizes Mica to some extent. It's written all over 11's design and for all the bad things you could say about 11, Mica is so far the prettiest transparency effect Windows had since Aero. Though unlike Aero, it's been designed with both light as well as dark modes and apply to more than just the titlebar, giving a very pretty looking background to software that we stare at daily. We use Total Commander daily, so why wouldn't we want it to look a little pretty while we're at it?

It shouldn't be that complex of a feature to implement given how the bulk of it is done by DWM and you can already do tricks to force Mica on Win32 software, albeit with a varying degree of success often causing breakage due to applying it to the wrong spot in the UI, which is why a native support for the Mica backdrop would be great to see. While native Mica relies on system's native light/dark mode colors that could be implemented in TC, albeit with a lot of work and readily usable libraries like these, it shouldn't be necessary as I believe DWM can handle mixing in software's custom colors with the Mica backdrop as well.

We had the XP rebar, we have the color settings, we have the font settings, we have the icon settings, hell, we even got the dark mode, I'd say it's not outlandish to ask for a toggle to use the DWM Mica backdrop as clearly, there is both place and demand for purely cosmetic features in TC. We already have the "Flat user interface" and "Windows XP theme background" settings, and I think a "Mica backdrop (Windows 11 only)" toggle would fit right in there.