Add Color From Screen Cursor Crosshairs

[indigofairyx]

Add from Screen:
It would help to have some sort of visual indicator of the picker being active. A crosshair for instance, or at least an arrow. Atm there is nothing/everything: a caret-prompt in text editors, various other shapes depending on what window element you hover. Makes it difficult to aim at the right spot. And it can be confusing. QCM does not seem to be in picker mode, until you dare to click nevertheless.

↑↑↑↑ i agree and tried to use dllcalls to change windows cursor to crosshairs and could not get it work. ( i might add I'm a total amateur at playing with code. only started to try any of this 1.5years ago. ) i know its possible for now ill keep this on my wish to revisit another time.

unresolved suggestion from #2

[Stefanoko]

I understand. It would have been nice to have, but no worries. You made the right decision by focusing on innovative features instead of trying to re-invent the wheel with yet another color picker. Some of them are hard to beat with their zoom-windows and fine-tuning sliders. For easy tasks like picking from a vast background expanse, your built-in function is good enough.

Just to make sure I am not missing out on something: Using "Run Color Picker" from the +AddColor flyout will do the same thing as running it from the main popup menu, right?

In both cases, the actual import/grabbing of a color will happen via "Add from Clipboard", is this correct?

Btw, this is one of my favorite pickers I find myself coming back to. The actual picking takes place in its magnifier-window, the text over BG-color preview allows you to change the text, its font and color. Fully portable:
https://www.blacksunsoftware.com/colormania.html

[indigofairyx]

yes "Run Color Picker" is the same menu item in two spots. i found myself using that link often so i put on the main menu to get to it faster.

its just a shortcut to run the "colorpicker = " from the -SETTINGS.ini. if you don't have a existing file path set in the ini that menu item will hide itself

ill give you're a look.

i like, and there minor integration with... https://annystudio.com/software/colorpicker/

when using the standard add color menu item, if JCP is open it will read the edit field and place the hex as a suggestion into the inputbox

[indigofairyx]

i like ColorManias layout, and AHK can read the text in the active color field.

i can't seem to find .... is there a hotkey from colormania that will copy the color under the mouse without activating the click and drag dropper?? doesn't seem to be. no mention of it in the helpfile.chm either.

what i love about Just Color Picker, when its running i can use a hotkey at any time to capture\copy the color under the pointer at any time, Alt+X. you can customize that key.

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in any case have some fun with the + Add Color menu. in the next update both Just Color Picker and ColorMania have new intergrations where you can add from the window without it even being active has long they are set to HTML Hex mode.

[Stefanoko]

As if you were reading my mind. With both pickers being top notch, it occured to me how great it were to have both available. Before I could even start wrapping my mind around the idea of creating a small ahk-menu that let's me choose, you already integrated a more comfortable solution, providing direkt access to each of them. Love it.

For ColorMania, it works flawless (v.2025.05.20).
With JCP, there seems to be a small glitch. The flyout does not show its icon and when you click the flyout-entry, it does not open the app, it just takes you the exe-folder.

No shortcut in ColorMania, I am afraid. Their aproach is different, they use a 2-step process:

1. First you drag the eyedropper-icon across your screen to select the broader context. Upon releasing the mouse, the zoom window will freeze (not live anymore like with JCP)
2. Now you left-click inside the frozen zoom-window to hone in on pixels. I usually click several spots, then use the backward and forward buttons above it to decide what to keep.

Helpful when you work on hi-res screens with fine details. You pick right where your eyes are focused. Hand movement does not happen elsewhere while having to keep watch of a detached zoom window that is separate from your picking area. I also like the dynamic color wheel, the way it corresponds to the sliders.

Both have their pros and cons. JCP gets the job done faster, provided your hand is steady and you don't need to fuss about getting the exact pixel. Alt+X is easy enough to press with one hand. Unless it gets overridden by another app, but that's always the risk with shortcuts in general, especially when you work portable, on different host systems.

Both pickers offer text over background previews. And both are similar in features.