The next step is to prepare the image to be used as the Start button. Note: In this example, the article also added standard lines to divide the image into three equal parts for button states (the first line is at 54px and the second is at 108px). Also, open the image you want to use as the Start button next to it, as in the example below: When the image window opens, select the Fill tool and fill the background with black. * Leave Color Mode as RBG with 8 bits per channel. Just keep in mind the higher the DPI, the bigger the file size will be. There isn't any difference between using 72 and 96 DPI, but some users may prefer to use the same DPI as Windows uses. * The Resolution setting is very interesting.
* To fit the standard Windows 7 DPI Start button, the image size must be 54 x 162. Ĭreate a new image with the following settings: The next page that appears will display the currently selected DPI setting:ĭepending on the DPI selected, you will need to create a Start button with one of the following image sizes:įor the purposes of this tutorial, the article will work with the standard 100% DPI. In this window, click the link labeled Make text and other items larger or smaller, as seen here: However, if you are not sure and want to check again, right-click on the desktop and select Screen Resolution. Here is an example of the same resolution with 3 DPI settings: In general, you can see the DPI you're using according to the size of the current Start and Taskbar buttons. The DPI setting (Dots Per Inch) in Windows determines the size that everything on the screen displays, making the text and buttons larger without changing the screen resolution. To get started, you must have an image editing application, Photoshop is one of the most powerful and widely known applications, but any one that works with bitmap (BMP) and supports layers Transparent alpha will also work well.īe sure to check the DPI setting before proceeding. Hope you find this article helpful! Requirements and tools
In the following article, will guide you how to create the Start button as you like.