transparent icons in toolbar?

[Curt Clifton]

Mark,

On Mar 14, 2006, at 6:11 PM, Mark Burgess wrote:

> I've searched high and low for instructions for creating custom
> transparent icons for OS X but it's surprisingly hard to learn how to
> (a) how to create them, and (b) how to apply them to a file. I can
> copy/paste the OS9 way (through the get info window) but no matter
> what I try I lose the transparency.

Here's the convoluted process I use:

1. Export image with transparency (from OmniGraffle) in pdf format  
_using a square region_.
2. Launch Icon Composer (part of Apple's Developer Tools, I think).
3. Drag the pdf file onto every size of image in the Icon Composer  
window.
4. Save from Icon Composer.
5. Drag the Icon file onto IconDroplet (a freeware application that I  
found on VersionTracker).

This last step creates a do-nothing application whose icon is the  
same as my image.  To use the icon with an Applescript, there are two  
more steps:

6. In the Finder, Get Info on the application created in step 5 and  
on your Applescript.
7. Copy the icon from the application and paste it onto the  
Applescript (the OS9 way).

Hope that helps.  And I'd love to hear that there is a simpler way!

Cheers,

Curt