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Add Distinct Visual Elements for Non-Production Versions (icon, splash screen, etc) #922
Description
Non-production builds for Processing currently look mostly identical to official releases, making it difficult to recognize at a glance that you're using a non-production version. This could lead to confusion among testers and contributors, and create mix-ups when reporting issues.
I suggest we introduce distinct visual markers for pre-release versions (test, beta, dev, or nightly builds). This will help users immediately recognize they are running a non-production version of Processing.
Proposed Changes
- App Icon – Use an alternate icon for non-production builds, such as adding a yellow ribbon with
Test,Beta, orDevdepending on the build type. - Splash Screen – Include a clear indicator that the user is running a pre-release version.
- Version Label in UI – Add a visible label (e.g., "Test Build," "Beta," "Nightly") in the title bar.
- Instructions for testing – Include a README in test builds only with specific instructions for testing.
Activity
SableRaf commentedon Jan 17, 2025
Making separate issues for this particular topic may be overkill but I wanted to test Github's new sub-issues 😃
Stefterv commentedon Jan 17, 2025
I was wondering where the giant list came from :)
Stefterv commentedon Jan 18, 2025
For the beta we cannot really use an indicator in the way we've done it so far. The beta's have been release assets and have not been re-compiled for the final release. I assume there would be no variance in building it again but the current setup is not really conducive to doing it.
Stefterv commentedon Jan 18, 2025
In the gradle version I've already made it so that you can run the released version and the build version at the same time. Maybe we can look into having a different settings folder etc...
Also still thinking of creating a little helper tool that helps with installing testing versions etc...
SableRaf commentedon Jul 17, 2025
Since e6d6a93 we show a "Welcome to the Beta" popup message for all versions higher than the latest stable release.
processing4/app/src/processing/app/UpdateCheck.java
Lines 138 to 140 in 3f36db5
@Stefterv Could this same check be used to switch to an alternate splash screen and app icon?
Screenshots
Stefterv commentedon Jul 17, 2025
I'd like to avoid running a blocking internet check at application launch, also the settings are not initialised so we won't be able to save that data.