IMPORTANT
BLP2PNG does not have a graphical user interface. You can drag-and-drop files onto it and it will convert them, or you can use it from command-line environments such as development tools (as I do). If you're looking for a tool with a file picker and buttons this isn't it.
Description
This tool is used for converting bi-directionally between BLP and PNG images. The tool fully supports alpha channels and can be used as a drag-and-drop converter or from the command line. It can also convert your existing TGA files to PNG.
BLP2PNG will convert the file based on the original type:
- BLP are converted to PNG
- BMP are converted to PNG
- TGA are converted to PNG
- PNG are converted to BLP
Why PNG when everybody uses TGA?
PNG is a modern image format and is better supported by more tools and even most web browsers. Support for PNG in Photoshop is much better than it is for TGA, which makes editing high-quality textures for addons a lot easier. If you prefer working in TGA then by all means keep using the many existing tools for converting those images. I use this tool for converting WoW's artwork to PNG so I can use it as a reference for my own artwork. I also use this tool to convert my own artwork to BLP files for use in my addons, including GroupCalendar and Outfitter. If you prefer PNG like I do, this tool will make things much easier for you.
Version 1.1 changes:
- Supports DirectX 4/5 textures used in WoW 2.0
Installation Guide
- Exit "World of Warcraft" completely
- Download the mod you want to install
- Make a folder on your desktop called "My Mods"
- Save the .zip/.rar files to this folder.
- If, when you try to download the file, it automatically "opens" it... you need to RIGHT click on the link and "save as..." or "Save Target As".
- Extract the file - commonly known as 'unzipping'
Do this ONE FILE AT A TIME!
- Windows
- Windows XP a built in ZIP extractor. Double click on the file to open it, inside should be the file or folders needed. Copy these outside to the "My Mods" folder.
- WinRAR: Right click the file, select "Extract Here"
- WinZip: You MUST make sure the option to "Use Folder Names" is CHECKED or it will just extract the files and not make the proper folders how the Authors designed
- Mac Users
- StuffitExpander: Double click the archive to extract it to a folder in the current directory.
- Verify your WoW Installation Path
That is where you are running WoW from and THAT is where you need to install your mods.
- Move to the Addon folder
- Open your World of Warcraft folder. (default is C:\Program Files\World of Warcraft\)
- Go into the "Interface" folder.
- Go into the "AddOns" folder.
- In a new window, open the "My Mods" folder.
- The "My Mods" folder should have the "Addonname" folder in it.
- Move the "Addonname" folder into the "AddOns" folder
- Start World of Warcraft
- Make sure AddOns are installed
- Log in
- At the Character Select screen, look in lower left corner for the "addons" button.
- If button is there: make sure all the mods you installed are listed and make sure "load out of date addons" is checked.
- If the button is NOT there: means you did not install the addons properly. Look at the above screenshots. Try repeating the steps or getting someone who knows more about computers than you do to help.
Translations
When you download a mod, please be sure that the mod is compatible with your translation of wow. Some mods only work on the US versions, while some only work on some of the various European versions. These variations are called "Localizations".
TOC Numbers (Out of Date Mods)
When Blizzard patches WoW, they change the Interface number. This means that all mods will be "out of date" unless or until the author releases a new version for that interface. Some people go into the .toc files and update the numbers themselves, but this is STRONGLY advised against as it will cause problems locating possible incompatibilities addons. When you log into WoW after a patch, you DO NOT have to delete your interface directory. All you have to do is simply tell WoW to ignore the interface numbers and load all the mods anyway. All you have to do is, while at the "character select" screen, look in the lower left corner and click on the "addons" button. A window will pop up listing all your installed mods.
If you look in the upper left corner of that window there should be a box that says "Load Out of Date AddOns". You want to CHECK this box. Now simply go into WoW normally and all your mods should load. As of the 1.9 patch, you will have to do this after EVERY patch/update that Blizzard posts! If you encounter any problems with a mod after a patch, please be sure to let the author of the mod know so they can fix it.
See also: About "Out Of Date AddOns"
Mac Support
WoW addons are not platformed based. As such, they can be used on either Mac or PC. You can extract both .zip and .rar files on a Mac using StuffitExpander.
Directory Structure
World of Warcraft
|_ Interface
|_AddOns
|_*AddonName*
|_ *AddonName*.toc
|_ *AddonName*.xml
|_ *AddonName*.lua
|_ (possibly others as well)...
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Mundocani saidI use it under Vista routinely and don't know of any issues.
Some people expect BLP2PNG to have a GUI, but this tool is intended to be used as a drag-and-drop converter or called from within a development environment such as Visual Studio. Be sure to read the included notes on how it works.
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Midnighte saiddoesnt run on vista that i can figure out.
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Mundocani saidVersion 1.1 changes
- Supports DirectX 4/5 texture compression used in WoW 2.0
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Mundocani saidVersion 1.0.5 changes
- Fixed bug with color palette on 1-bit alpha images
(sorry for not noticing that curse had hosed its own copies of previous versions, I don't actually check this project page very often)
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Beutju saidGood program, but it would be very kind to add a GUI, and to document the commands... With my explorer program (SpeedCommander) I cannot drag&drop the blp on the exe and I don't want to use the normal explorer...
Thanks!
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markf saidI've installed this, but it doesn't seem to do anything. There's no --help type option to see if i'm running the command correctly either.
i've tried BLP2PNG somefile.blp BLP2PNG somefile.blp somefile.png
i've run "strings" on the exe to see if there were any clues to how to use it. i've run it from a DOS shell, and a cygwin bash shell.
it just always immediately comes back with nothing. From the cygwin bash prompt I get a return code of 255 (-1).
any chance of the source being released so i can try compiling under my cygwin shell?
addendum: ok, finally got it to work by drag/dropping the blp onto the exe, and it created the file in the same dir. was my file being created from the command line too, but i just couldn't find it?
tia, Mark
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Mundocani saidThe readme.txt file included in the archive includes instructions for using it from the command line. From the readme:
----------------------------
Command line operation
----------------------------
BLP2PNG.exe file [-o folder]
file Specifies the file you want to convert
folder Specifies the folder you want the output file placed in. The file will have the same name as the original but with the new extension. If this folder isn't specified then the file will be placed in the same folder as the original
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markf saidhmm, the download is only the exe, there is no archive that i can see. thanks for clarifying the issue though. useful addon.
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Mundocani saidAh crap, I meant to upload the .zip file not the .exe itself. Sorry about that :P
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Mundocani saidI've uploaded the correct file this time, a .zip archive which includes a readme with some instructions. The .exe is the exact same one as before.
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markf saidfantastic, thanks!
edit: the -o option doesn't work for me, only the drag 'n drop.
and the notes say
"If this folder isn't specified then the file will be placed in the same folder as the original"which doesnt happen either.
it's not a drastic problem, i'm not batch converting them. would be nice to find out why it's not working in command line mode at all though (for me). I looked on my entire filesystem and didn't find the converted file anywhere.
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Mundocani said> the -o option doesn't work for me, only the drag 'n drop.
Hm, that's strange since I use it almost exclusively in command line mode myself (except when extracting Blizzard's artwork).
It sounds like something is wrong with the way the source file is specified. Since I use it in a limited environment it's very possible there's a bug with handling deviations from how I normally invoke it. Try using a full path to specify the source file and see if that works.. Also, are there spaces in the path? Maybe quoted parameters aren't working properly. Not sure what else to check, but I'll keep my eyes open.
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Saiiyna saidI have Png Files I have created using Gimp 2.2 I run BLP2PNG levitate.png and I get nothing. Any idea why?
Edit: maybe I am doing it wrong but the command line doesnt work and neither does the drag and drop.
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Mundocani said> I have Png Files I have created using Gimp 2.2 I run BLP2PNG levitate.png and I get nothing. Any idea why?
Make sure your image width and height is a power of two (2, 4, 8, 16, 32, etc.). They don't have to be the same (ie, 32 by 128 is fine), but they must be a power of two.
Also try using the full pathname instead of the just the file name and see if that works. I may have a bug where implicit pathnames don't work.
> Edit: maybe I am doing it wrong but the command line doesnt work and neither does the drag and drop.
When you drag-and-drop the file there's not a file named levitate.blp created in the same folder?
If you'd like I can look at your file and see if there's something unusual about the way Gimp is creating PNGs. Mail it to blp2png@$$removethis$$johnstephen.org and just remove the $$removethis$$ part. I'll take a look and try to figure out why it's failing.
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Mundocani saidInvoking from the command line appears to require full pathnames to use (I normally invoke this tool from VisualStudio which always provides full pathnames for paramters). I'll get this corrected so that it finds the file in the current working directory if a full pathname isn't specified.
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Mundocani saidThis version should now resolve partial pathnames correctly when used from the command line as well as properly displaying error messages to the output window. Unfortunately this also means that it flashes a console window on the screen when used in drag-and-drop mode (it'll just appear and disappear, no need to actually close it or anything).
Maybe someday I'll be smart enough to figure out how to make an application which works well both when used from the command line AND from the Windows GUI <sigh>
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Beohram saidThanks Baylord of Thunderlord (Mundocani)
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Mundocani saidVersion 1.0.2 Changes:
- Handles uncompressed BLP with 1 bit alpha correctly (used mostly by Blizzard's cursor icons)
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Sarien_Telfair saidWell this behaves strangely when run (and makes me nervous). All I get is a flash of a command prompt screen then it closes and nothing. No converter, no dialog boxes... nothing. Please explain how do make this work.
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Phanx saidI think you can use it from the command line, but I don't know the syntax. The easiest way is just to drag-and-drop BLPs or PNGs or TGAs or BMPs onto the program, and it'll spit out a converted PNG or BLP file.