Danation
11-23-2008, 01:25 AM
The Beginner's Guide to Seem Editing
The basics of understanding what seems are and how to change them.
By Danation
I realize that this is a bit of a long guide, but seem editing is one of the most important modding methods. I've tried to put in everything I wish I knew when I was new.
What is seem editing?
Well, if you've read a few things about modding, seem editing may sound confusing. Honestly, though, it just comes down to this: Your phone has tens of thousands of settings, so in order to organize them, the phone developers put all of the settings into tables of hexadecimal values we call “seems.” Once you understand the purpose of specific values, you can then make exciting changes to customize your phone.
There are a variety of programs and methods to change values in seems that all work well. Use which ever one you're most comfortable with. As long as it get the job done right, it doesn't matter what method you used.
However, some ways are more difficult and time consuming than others, so I'm going to show you the cleanest, easiest, and simplest way I've found to seem edit. This example's specifics are for the v3re or the v3r, but the method itself should work for any phone that you can seem edit.
In this example, a v3re (or v3r) user can edit a seem that will allow them to store text messages on the phone, rather than the SIM card (allowing you to store 2-5 times as many texts.)
Programs needed:
The latest P2kTools (I currently use 3.0.8.864)
Make sure you followed the Get Connected guide: http://modmymoto.com/wiki/index.php/Razr_v3_get_connected
Make sure you back up your phone with Flash & Backup 3.
Connect your phone and open P2kTools. Click on the Seem editor. Select the seem you want to edit. Today we're looking at seem 0032_0001. Click “Load from phone” and then click “Save to file” (so you have a backup in case something goes wrong.)
54971
Then find the offset (which means the location) of the value you need to change.
Offsets:
Put simply, offsets are like coordinates in Battleship (A1,B4, etc.) except the values are in hexadecimal format. It's really easy: offset 41 is row 4, column 1. In this example, we need offset 9A (row 9 column A. In P2kTools, it looks funny, but you should be able to figure it out: The row would be 0x090 and the column would be x0A.)
54981
Click on the offset. Notice at the bottom of the screen there are a bunch of check boxes. Those are the individual bits of the offset. Often seem edits only require one bit being changed. In our example, we need Seem 0032_0001 offset 9A bit 1 set to 1 (“checked”) instead of 0 (“unchecked.”) So go ahead and click the check box under the number 1.
As a side note (for future seem editing,) if you wanted to change the entire value of an offset, not just one bit, it's simple. Click on the offset (to select it.) Then double click it (to select the contents), hit the backspace button (to clear the previous value,) and type in the desired hex value. This is referred to as "direct hex editing."
Click save to phone. Then click the picture of the phone and select “Restart phone.”
Congratulations, you just edited a seem!
54991
To finish the mod, open your phone and go to the "Message Center." Push the menu button and select "Inbox Setup." Select "Text Msg Setup." It will say “Store to:SIM” (Our seem edit allowed us to see this menu item.) Push your middle button and select “Phone.” Your text messages will now be stored to your phone.
Text values stored in seems:
Programs needed:
P2kTools
XVI32
Sometimes text such as filepaths and/or words are stored in seems. To view and edit the text, you will need the program XVI32. Open P2kTools and save the desired seem to your computer. Then open it in XVI32. The text values for the offsets are shown on the right side of the screen. To change them, click on the right screen section and type. Whatever is currently there will be replaced by what you're typing.
55001
You can modify them to be whatever you need them to be (for ideas, see these two guides: “Remapping keys for the v3re” (by myself) http://www.modmymoto.com/forums/showthread.php?t=341941 and 'Change cl.gif on the Go” (unknown author) http://modmymoto.com/wiki/index.php/Razr_v3_Change_CL_gif_on_the_go) Then click save. In P2kTools, click Load from File, select the file, and save it to your phone.
Regular seem editing with XVI32
Many people prefer to edit seems with XVI32, not with P2kTools. The process is similar.
One major difference lies in finding offsets. To find the offset you need to hit Ctrl-g on your keyboard. Select the "hexadecimal" radio button rather than the "decimal" one and type in the hex offset you're looking for. Click ok and it will take you to that offset.
To change the entire value of the offset, called "direct hex editing", select the offset on the left screen section and type in the desired value (it will overwrite what was there.) To change specific bits, click the Tools menu and select Bit Manipulation.
When you're finished, click "Save." Open up P2kTools, type in the desired seem, click Load from File, find the file you just edited, click Save to Phone, and restart your phone.
If you have any questions, feel free to PM me or post here. If you find any errors or have any suggestions, post here or PM me, as well.
Guarantee and Disclaimer: I have used all of the methods and modifications listed above, and my guarantee is that they work on my phone exactly how I described. It is my belief that the above modifications will work on any Motorola RAZR v3re, but I cannot guarantee that they will work on all phones, even phones of the previously mentioned model. I cannot take any responsibility for any damage caused by phone modification, even if it is by my instruction. Modify your phone at your own risk. Please make sure to back up your phone and do careful research before making any modifications.
The basics of understanding what seems are and how to change them.
By Danation
I realize that this is a bit of a long guide, but seem editing is one of the most important modding methods. I've tried to put in everything I wish I knew when I was new.
What is seem editing?
Well, if you've read a few things about modding, seem editing may sound confusing. Honestly, though, it just comes down to this: Your phone has tens of thousands of settings, so in order to organize them, the phone developers put all of the settings into tables of hexadecimal values we call “seems.” Once you understand the purpose of specific values, you can then make exciting changes to customize your phone.
There are a variety of programs and methods to change values in seems that all work well. Use which ever one you're most comfortable with. As long as it get the job done right, it doesn't matter what method you used.
However, some ways are more difficult and time consuming than others, so I'm going to show you the cleanest, easiest, and simplest way I've found to seem edit. This example's specifics are for the v3re or the v3r, but the method itself should work for any phone that you can seem edit.
In this example, a v3re (or v3r) user can edit a seem that will allow them to store text messages on the phone, rather than the SIM card (allowing you to store 2-5 times as many texts.)
Programs needed:
The latest P2kTools (I currently use 3.0.8.864)
Make sure you followed the Get Connected guide: http://modmymoto.com/wiki/index.php/Razr_v3_get_connected
Make sure you back up your phone with Flash & Backup 3.
Connect your phone and open P2kTools. Click on the Seem editor. Select the seem you want to edit. Today we're looking at seem 0032_0001. Click “Load from phone” and then click “Save to file” (so you have a backup in case something goes wrong.)
54971
Then find the offset (which means the location) of the value you need to change.
Offsets:
Put simply, offsets are like coordinates in Battleship (A1,B4, etc.) except the values are in hexadecimal format. It's really easy: offset 41 is row 4, column 1. In this example, we need offset 9A (row 9 column A. In P2kTools, it looks funny, but you should be able to figure it out: The row would be 0x090 and the column would be x0A.)
54981
Click on the offset. Notice at the bottom of the screen there are a bunch of check boxes. Those are the individual bits of the offset. Often seem edits only require one bit being changed. In our example, we need Seem 0032_0001 offset 9A bit 1 set to 1 (“checked”) instead of 0 (“unchecked.”) So go ahead and click the check box under the number 1.
As a side note (for future seem editing,) if you wanted to change the entire value of an offset, not just one bit, it's simple. Click on the offset (to select it.) Then double click it (to select the contents), hit the backspace button (to clear the previous value,) and type in the desired hex value. This is referred to as "direct hex editing."
Click save to phone. Then click the picture of the phone and select “Restart phone.”
Congratulations, you just edited a seem!
54991
To finish the mod, open your phone and go to the "Message Center." Push the menu button and select "Inbox Setup." Select "Text Msg Setup." It will say “Store to:SIM” (Our seem edit allowed us to see this menu item.) Push your middle button and select “Phone.” Your text messages will now be stored to your phone.
Text values stored in seems:
Programs needed:
P2kTools
XVI32
Sometimes text such as filepaths and/or words are stored in seems. To view and edit the text, you will need the program XVI32. Open P2kTools and save the desired seem to your computer. Then open it in XVI32. The text values for the offsets are shown on the right side of the screen. To change them, click on the right screen section and type. Whatever is currently there will be replaced by what you're typing.
55001
You can modify them to be whatever you need them to be (for ideas, see these two guides: “Remapping keys for the v3re” (by myself) http://www.modmymoto.com/forums/showthread.php?t=341941 and 'Change cl.gif on the Go” (unknown author) http://modmymoto.com/wiki/index.php/Razr_v3_Change_CL_gif_on_the_go) Then click save. In P2kTools, click Load from File, select the file, and save it to your phone.
Regular seem editing with XVI32
Many people prefer to edit seems with XVI32, not with P2kTools. The process is similar.
One major difference lies in finding offsets. To find the offset you need to hit Ctrl-g on your keyboard. Select the "hexadecimal" radio button rather than the "decimal" one and type in the hex offset you're looking for. Click ok and it will take you to that offset.
To change the entire value of the offset, called "direct hex editing", select the offset on the left screen section and type in the desired value (it will overwrite what was there.) To change specific bits, click the Tools menu and select Bit Manipulation.
When you're finished, click "Save." Open up P2kTools, type in the desired seem, click Load from File, find the file you just edited, click Save to Phone, and restart your phone.
If you have any questions, feel free to PM me or post here. If you find any errors or have any suggestions, post here or PM me, as well.
Guarantee and Disclaimer: I have used all of the methods and modifications listed above, and my guarantee is that they work on my phone exactly how I described. It is my belief that the above modifications will work on any Motorola RAZR v3re, but I cannot guarantee that they will work on all phones, even phones of the previously mentioned model. I cannot take any responsibility for any damage caused by phone modification, even if it is by my instruction. Modify your phone at your own risk. Please make sure to back up your phone and do careful research before making any modifications.