XP Taskbar Style

[=== by nerio ===]

Find out how to emulate the look of Microsoft’s “silver” skin for windows XP.

XP Taskbar style

Recreate WinXP’s “Silver” style taskbar

[=== by nerio ===]

For this tutorial the subject will be very simple but very usefull, if you learn this trick you could make something really cool with some additions…....all depand on your imagination!!

It’s about XPstyle, that any skinners or themers could use to get nice effects : for example Astonshell taskbar or button….....but play around to find something diffrent!

So, grab a new document : 200px/100px white background. and take your rectangular marquee selection tool.

Makeyour selection fixed size of 150px/60px this is good enough to start with. then stroke it by 1px/inside with the color of #66667E, don’t loose selection yet!!!!

Now, easyly you go to selct—>Modify—>Contract selection by 1px, make a new layer and….....

Make your colors like that , Foreground #ACABC3 and the background to #F1F0F6 and take the linear gradient tool and make a gradient from the top to bottom while holding SHIFT button to keep your gradient line straight, it should be like what i have (Hopefully).

Now, deselect CTRL+D, then go and grab your 1px line selection, and make a selection near the upper part of the button like i have in picture, and expand it by 1px or 2 this depanding on how lighten your button you prefer it!!

Make a new layer, Fill your selection with the white color : #FFFFFF, go to filter—>blur—>Gaussian Blur , it will be blurred like shown here but if play around you should find your settings!!!

Load a selection from your center gradient, select your 1px white layer, and invert selection then hit delete. this will remouve the excess of the one px line outside the button itself!! Deselect CTRL+D.

OPTIONAL:

you could add another 1px line at the very bottom of the shape to add more depth to the button and realism on a new layer then blur it and give down the opacity of this layer to about 36%. it should be good.

That’s it, any question ask in the Forum.