diff --git a/src/edt/edt/edtMainService.cc b/src/edt/edt/edtMainService.cc
index f2a91af17..0f97e0166 100644
--- a/src/edt/edt/edtMainService.cc
+++ b/src/edt/edt/edtMainService.cc
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@
 #include "laySelector.h"
 #include "layFinder.h"
 #include "layLayerProperties.h"
+#include "laybasicConfig.h"
 #include "tlProgress.h"
 #include "edtPlugin.h"
 #include "edtMainService.h"
diff --git a/src/laybasic/laybasic/gsiDeclLayLayoutViewBase.cc b/src/laybasic/laybasic/gsiDeclLayLayoutViewBase.cc
index cef7e30bf..db6c1c5d5 100644
--- a/src/laybasic/laybasic/gsiDeclLayLayoutViewBase.cc
+++ b/src/laybasic/laybasic/gsiDeclLayLayoutViewBase.cc
@@ -1603,6 +1603,17 @@ LAYBASIC_PUBLIC Class<lay::LayoutViewBase> decl_LayoutViewBase ("lay", "LayoutVi
     "Returns an array of \\LayerPropertiesIterator objects pointing to the currently selected layers. "
     "If no layer view is selected currently, an empty array is returned.\n"
   ) +
+  gsi::method ("icon_for_layer", &lay::LayoutViewBase::icon_for_layer, gsi::arg ("iter"), gsi::arg ("w"), gsi::arg ("h"), gsi::arg ("dpr"), gsi::arg ("di_off", 0), gsi::arg ("no_state", false),
+    "@brief Creates an icon pixmap for the given layer.\n"
+    "\n"
+    "The icon will have size w times h pixels multiplied by the device pixel ratio (dpr). The dpr is "
+    "The number of physical pixels per logical pixels on high-DPI displays.\n"
+    "\n"
+    "'di_off' will shift the dither pattern by the given number of (physical) pixels. "
+    "If 'no_state' is true, the icon will not reflect visibility or validity states but rather the display style.\n"
+    "\n"
+    "This method has been introduced in version 0.28."
+  ) +
   gsi::event ("on_active_cellview_changed", static_cast<tl::Event (lay::LayoutViewBase::*)> (&lay::LayoutViewBase::active_cellview_changed_event),
     "@brief An event indicating that the active cellview has changed\n"
     "\n"
diff --git a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.cc b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.cc
index ad89580fa..4ae778d95 100644
--- a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.cc
+++ b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.cc
@@ -131,137 +131,6 @@ std::string ImageCacheEntry::to_string () const
 
 // ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
-static void 
-blowup (const tl::PixelBuffer &src, tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os)
-{
-  unsigned int ymax = src.height ();
-  unsigned int xmax = src.width ();
-
-  for (unsigned int y = 0; y < ymax; ++y) {
-    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < os; ++i) {
-      const uint32_t *psrc = (const uint32_t *) src.scan_line (y);
-      uint32_t *pdest = (uint32_t *) dest.scan_line (y * os + i);
-      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
-        for (unsigned int j = 0; j < os; ++j) {
-          *pdest++ = *psrc;
-        }
-        ++psrc;
-      }
-    }
-  }
-}
-
-static void 
-subsample (const tl::PixelBuffer &src, tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os, double g)
-{
-  //  TODO: this is probably not compatible with the endianess of SPARC ..
-  
-  //  LUT's for combining the RGB channels
-
-  //  forward transformation table
-  unsigned short lut1[256];
-  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 256; ++i) {
-    double f = (65536 / (os * os)) - 1;
-    lut1[i] = (unsigned short)std::min (f, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + pow (i / 255.0, g) * f)));
-  } 
-
-  //  backward transformation table
-  unsigned char lut2[65536];
-  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 65536; ++i) {
-    double f = os * os * ((65536 / (os * os)) - 1);
-    lut2[i] = (unsigned char)std::min (255.0, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + pow (i / f, 1.0 / g) * 255.0)));
-  } 
-
-  //  LUT's for alpha channel
-
-  //  forward transformation table
-  unsigned short luta1[256];
-  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 256; ++i) {
-    double f = (65536 / (os * os)) - 1;
-    luta1[i] = (unsigned short)std::min (f, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + (i / 255.0) * f)));
-  }
-
-  //  backward transformation table
-  unsigned char luta2[65536];
-  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 65536; ++i) {
-    double f = os * os * ((65536 / (os * os)) - 1);
-    luta2[i] = (unsigned char)std::min (255.0, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + (i / f) * 255.0)));
-  }
-
-  unsigned int ymax = dest.height ();
-  unsigned int xmax = dest.width ();
-
-  unsigned short *buffer = new unsigned short[xmax * 4];
-
-  for (unsigned int y = 0; y < ymax; ++y) {
-
-    {
-
-      const unsigned char *psrc = (const unsigned char *) src.scan_line (y * os);
-      unsigned short *pdest = buffer;
-
-      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
-
-        pdest[0] = lut1[psrc[0]];
-        pdest[1] = lut1[psrc[1]];
-        pdest[2] = lut1[psrc[2]];
-        pdest[3] = luta1[psrc[3]];
-        psrc += 4;
-
-        for (unsigned int j = os; j > 1; j--) {
-          pdest[0] += lut1[psrc[0]];
-          pdest[1] += lut1[psrc[1]];
-          pdest[2] += lut1[psrc[2]];
-          pdest[3] += luta1[psrc[3]];
-          psrc += 4;
-        }
-
-        pdest += 4;
-
-      }
-
-    }
-
-    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < os; ++i) {
-
-      const unsigned char *psrc = (const unsigned char *) src.scan_line (y * os + i);
-      unsigned short *pdest = buffer;
-
-      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
-
-        for (unsigned int j = os; j > 0; j--) {
-          pdest[0] += lut1[psrc[0]];
-          pdest[1] += lut1[psrc[1]];
-          pdest[2] += lut1[psrc[2]];
-          pdest[3] += luta1[psrc[3]];
-          psrc += 4;
-        }
-
-        pdest += 4;
-
-      }
-
-    }
-
-    {
-
-      unsigned char *pdest = (unsigned char *) dest.scan_line (y);
-      const unsigned short *psrc = buffer;
-
-      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
-        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
-        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
-        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
-        *pdest++ = luta2[*psrc++];
-      }
-
-    }
-
-  }
-
-  delete[] buffer;
-}
-
 void 
 invert (unsigned char *data, unsigned int width, unsigned int height)
 {
@@ -693,7 +562,7 @@ LayoutCanvas::paint_event ()
         } else {
           tl::PixelBuffer subsampled_image (m_viewport.width (), m_viewport.height ());
           subsampled_image.set_transparent (mp_image->transparent ());
-          subsample (full_image, subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
+          full_image.subsample (subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
           *mp_image_fg = subsampled_image;
         }
 
@@ -705,7 +574,7 @@ LayoutCanvas::paint_event ()
 
         tl::PixelBuffer subsampled_image (m_viewport.width (), m_viewport.height ());
         subsampled_image.set_transparent (mp_image->transparent ());
-        subsample (*mp_image, subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
+        mp_image->subsample (subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
         *mp_image_fg = subsampled_image;
 
       }
@@ -744,7 +613,7 @@ LayoutCanvas::paint_event ()
       } else {
         tl::PixelBuffer subsampled_image (m_viewport.width (), m_viewport.height ());
         subsampled_image.set_transparent (true);
-        subsample (full_image, subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
+        full_image.subsample (subsampled_image, m_oversampling, m_gamma);
         QImage img = subsampled_image.to_image ();
 #if QT_VERSION >= 0x050000
         img.setDevicePixelRatio (dpr ());
@@ -820,9 +689,9 @@ public:
   {
     if (mp_image_l) {
       unsigned int os = mp_image_l->width () / width;
-      blowup (*mp_image, *mp_image_l, os);
+      mp_image->blowup (*mp_image_l, os);
       bitmaps_to_image (fg_view_op_vector (), fg_bitmap_vector (), dp, ls, 1.0 / resolution (), mp_image_l, mp_image_l->width (), mp_image_l->height (), false, 0);
-      subsample (*mp_image_l, *mp_image, os, m_gamma);
+      mp_image_l->subsample (*mp_image, os, m_gamma);
     } else {
       bitmaps_to_image (fg_view_op_vector (), fg_bitmap_vector (), dp, ls, 1.0 / resolution (), mp_image, width, height, false, 0);
     }
@@ -833,7 +702,7 @@ public:
   {
     if (mp_image_l && mp_image->width () > 0) {
       unsigned int os = mp_image_l->width () / mp_image->width ();
-      subsample (*mp_image_l, *mp_image, os, m_gamma);
+      mp_image_l->subsample (*mp_image, os, m_gamma);
     }
   }
 
diff --git a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.h b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.h
index 32100c05d..d73f614b2 100644
--- a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.h
+++ b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutCanvas.h
@@ -257,10 +257,26 @@ public:
   void set_oversampling (unsigned int os);
 
   /**
-   *  @brief Set high-resolution mode (utilize full DPI on high-DPI displays)
+   *  @brief Gets the oversampling factor
+   */
+  unsigned int oversampling () const
+  {
+    return m_oversampling;
+  }
+
+  /**
+   *  @brief Set high resolution mode (utilize full DPI on high-DPI displays)
    */
   void set_highres_mode (bool hrm);
 
+  /**
+   *  @brief Gets the high resolution mode flag
+   */
+  bool highres_mode () const
+  {
+    return m_hrm;
+  }
+
   /**
    *  @brief Sets the depth of the image cache
    */
diff --git a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.cc b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.cc
index 4852504d7..dc176a9e5 100644
--- a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.cc
+++ b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.cc
@@ -36,6 +36,7 @@
 #include "tlExceptions.h"
 #include "tlDeferredExecution.h"
 #include "layLayoutViewBase.h"
+#include "layBitmapsToImage.h"
 #include "layViewOp.h"
 #include "layViewObject.h"
 #include "layConverters.h"
@@ -1527,6 +1528,181 @@ LayoutViewBase::set_selected_layers (const std::vector<lay::LayerPropertiesConst
   }
 }
 
+/**
+ *  @brief A helper function to create an image from a single bitmap
+ */
+static void
+single_bitmap_to_image (const lay::ViewOp &view_op, lay::Bitmap &bitmap,
+                        tl::PixelBuffer *pimage, const lay::DitherPattern &dither_pattern, const lay::LineStyles &line_styles,
+                        double dpr, unsigned int width, unsigned int height)
+{
+  std::vector <lay::ViewOp> view_ops;
+  view_ops.push_back (view_op);
+
+  std::vector <lay::Bitmap *> pbitmaps;
+  pbitmaps.push_back (&bitmap);
+
+  lay::bitmaps_to_image (view_ops, pbitmaps, dither_pattern, line_styles, dpr, pimage, width, height, false, 0);
+}
+
+tl::PixelBuffer
+LayoutViewBase::icon_for_layer (const LayerPropertiesConstIterator &iter, unsigned int w, unsigned int h, double dpr, unsigned int di_off, bool no_state)
+{
+  int oversampling = canvas () ? canvas ()->oversampling () : 1;
+  double gamma = 2.0;
+
+  bool hrm = canvas () ? canvas ()->highres_mode () : false;
+  double dpr_drawing = oversampling * (hrm ? 1.0 : dpr);
+
+  h = std::max ((unsigned int) 16, h) * oversampling * dpr + 0.5;
+  w = std::max ((unsigned int) 16, w) * oversampling * dpr + 0.5;
+
+  tl::color_t def_color   = 0x808080;
+  tl::color_t fill_color  = iter->has_fill_color (true)  ? iter->eff_fill_color (true)  : def_color;
+  tl::color_t frame_color = iter->has_frame_color (true) ? iter->eff_frame_color (true) : def_color;
+
+  tl::PixelBuffer image (w, h);
+  image.set_transparent (true);
+  image.fill (background_color ().rgb ());
+
+  //  upper scanline is a dummy one
+  tl::color_t *sl0 = (uint32_t *) image.scan_line (0);
+  for (size_t i = 0; i < w; ++i) {
+    *sl0++ = 0;
+  }
+
+  lay::Bitmap fill (w, h, 1.0);
+  lay::Bitmap frame (w, h, 1.0);
+  lay::Bitmap text (w, h, 1.0);
+  lay::Bitmap vertex (w, h, 1.0);
+
+  unsigned int wp = w - 1;
+
+  if (! no_state && ! iter->visible (true)) {
+
+    wp = w / 4;
+
+    //  Show the arrow if it is invisible also locally.
+    if (! iter->visible (false)) {
+
+      unsigned int aw = h / 4;
+      unsigned int ap = w / 2 - 1;
+      for (unsigned int i = 0; i <= aw; ++i) {
+        text.fill (h / 2 - 1 - i, ap, ap + aw - i + 1);
+        text.fill (h / 2 - 1 + i, ap, ap + aw - i + 1);
+      }
+
+    }
+
+  }
+
+  if (! no_state && no_stipples ()) {
+    //  Show a partial stipple pattern only for "no stipple" mode
+    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < h - 2; ++i) {
+      fill.fill (i, w - 1 - w / 4, w);
+    }
+  } else {
+    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < h - 2; ++i) {
+      fill.fill (i, w - 1 - wp, w);
+    }
+  }
+
+  int lw = iter->width (true);
+  if (lw < 0) {
+    //  default line width is 0 for parents and 1 for leafs
+    lw = iter->has_children () ? 0 : 1;
+  }
+  lw = lw * dpr_drawing + 0.5;
+
+  int p0 = lw / 2;
+  p0 = std::max (0, std::min (int (w / 4 - 1), p0));
+
+  int p1 = (lw - 1) / 2;
+  p1 = std::max (0, std::min (int (w / 4 - 1), p1));
+
+  int p0x = p0, p1x = p1;
+  unsigned int ddx = 0;
+  unsigned int ddy = h - 2 - p1 - p0;
+  if (iter->xfill (true)) {
+    ddx = wp - p0 - p1 - 1;
+  }
+  unsigned int d = ddx / 2;
+
+  frame.fill (p0, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w);
+  frame.fill (h - 2 - p1, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w);
+
+  for (unsigned int i = p0; i < h - 2; ++i) {
+
+    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0, w - p0);
+    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w - (wp - p1));
+    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0x, w - p0x);
+    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1x), w - (wp - p1x));
+
+    while (d < ddx) {
+      d += ddy;
+      frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0x, w - p0x);
+      frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1x), w - (wp - p1x));
+      ++p0x;
+      ++p1x;
+    }
+
+    if (d >= ddx) {
+      d -= ddx;
+    }
+
+  }
+
+  if (! no_state && ! iter->valid (true)) {
+
+    unsigned int bp = w - 1 - ((w * 7) / 8 - 1);
+    unsigned int be = bp + h / 2;
+    unsigned int bw = h / 4 - 1;
+    unsigned int by = h / 2 - 1;
+
+    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < bw + 2; ++i) {
+      fill.clear (by - i, bp - 1, be);
+      fill.clear (by + i, bp - 1, be);
+    }
+
+    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < bw; ++i) {
+      text.fill (by - i, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
+      text.fill (by - i - 1, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
+      text.fill (by - i, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
+      text.fill (by - i - 1, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
+      text.fill (by + i, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
+      text.fill (by + i + 1, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
+      text.fill (by + i, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
+      text.fill (by + i + 1, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
+    }
+
+  }
+
+  vertex.fill (h / 2 - 1, w - 1 - wp / 2, w - wp / 2);
+
+  lay::ViewOp::Mode mode = lay::ViewOp::Copy;
+
+  //  create fill
+  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (fill_color, mode, 0, iter->eff_dither_pattern (true), di_off), fill, &image, dither_pattern (), line_styles (), dpr_drawing, w, h);
+  //  create frame
+  if (lw == 0) {
+    single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0 /*solid line*/, 2 /*dotted*/, 0), frame, &image, dither_pattern (), line_styles (), dpr_drawing, w, h);
+  } else {
+    single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, iter->eff_line_style (true), 0, 0, lay::ViewOp::Rect, lw), frame, &image, dither_pattern (), line_styles (), dpr_drawing, w, h);
+  }
+  //  create text
+  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0, 0, 0), text, &image, dither_pattern (), line_styles (), dpr_drawing, w, h);
+  //  create vertex
+  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0, 0, 0, lay::ViewOp::Cross, iter->marked (true) ? 9/*mark size*/ : 0), vertex, &image, dither_pattern (), line_styles (), dpr_drawing, w, h);
+
+  if (oversampling > 1) {
+    tl::PixelBuffer subsampled (image.width () / oversampling, image.height () / oversampling);
+    image.subsample (subsampled, oversampling, gamma);
+    return subsampled;
+  } else {
+    return image;
+  }
+}
+
 void
 LayoutViewBase::merge_dither_pattern (lay::LayerPropertiesList &props)
 {
diff --git a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.h b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.h
index d34426ce8..9f7b188d5 100644
--- a/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.h
+++ b/src/laybasic/laybasic/layLayoutViewBase.h
@@ -581,6 +581,18 @@ public:
    */
   virtual std::vector<lay::LayerPropertiesConstIterator> selected_layers () const;
 
+  /**
+   *  @brief Gets a pixmap representing the given layer
+   *
+   *  @param iter indicates the layer
+   *  @param w The width in logical pixels of the generated pixmap (will be multiplied by dpr)
+   *  @param h The height in logical pixels of the generated pixmap (will be multiplied by dpr)
+   *  @param dpr The device pixel ratio (number of image pixes per logical pixel)
+   *  @param di_off The dither pattern offset (used for animation)
+   *  @param no_state If true, the state will not be indicated
+   */
+  tl::PixelBuffer icon_for_layer (const lay::LayerPropertiesConstIterator &iter, unsigned int w, unsigned int h, double dpr, unsigned int di_off, bool no_state);
+
   /**
    *  @brief Sets the layers that are selected in the layer browser
    */
diff --git a/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.cc b/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.cc
index 5b1ff584c..1ff0370c8 100644
--- a/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.cc
+++ b/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.cc
@@ -208,6 +208,8 @@ LayerControlPanel::LayerControlPanel (lay::LayoutViewBase *view, db::Manager *ma
     m_hidden_flags_need_update (true),
     m_in_update (false),
     m_phase (0), 
+    m_oversampling (1),
+    m_hrm (false),
     m_do_update_content_dm (this, &LayerControlPanel::do_update_content),
     m_no_stipples (false)
 {
@@ -1712,6 +1714,24 @@ LayerControlPanel::set_phase (int phase)
   }
 }
 
+void
+LayerControlPanel::set_highres_mode (bool hrm)
+{
+  if (m_hrm != hrm) {
+    m_hrm = hrm;
+    m_do_update_content_dm ();
+  }
+}
+
+void
+LayerControlPanel::set_oversampling (int os)
+{
+  if (m_oversampling != os) {
+    m_oversampling = os;
+    m_do_update_content_dm ();
+  }
+}
+
 static void 
 set_hidden_flags_rec (LayerTreeModel *model, QTreeView *tree_view, const QModelIndex &parent)
 {
diff --git a/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.h b/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.h
index 93aad12b6..87920ff57 100644
--- a/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.h
+++ b/src/layui/layui/layLayerControlPanel.h
@@ -208,6 +208,16 @@ public:
    */
   void set_phase (int phase);
 
+  /**
+   *  @brief Sets highres mode
+   */
+  void set_highres_mode (bool hrm);
+
+  /**
+   *  @brief Sets oversampling mode
+   */
+  void set_oversampling (int os);
+
   /**
    *  @brief Tell, if the model has been updated already (true) or if it is still under construction (false)
    */
@@ -347,6 +357,8 @@ private:
   bool m_in_update;
   std::vector<size_t> m_new_sel;
   int m_phase;
+  int m_oversampling;
+  bool m_hrm;
   tl::DeferredMethod<LayerControlPanel> m_do_update_content_dm;
   std::set<unsigned int> m_expanded;
   bool m_no_stipples;
diff --git a/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.cc b/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.cc
index fe3f1a97f..b2a284a11 100644
--- a/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.cc
+++ b/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.cc
@@ -24,7 +24,6 @@
 
 #include "layLayerTreeModel.h"
 #include "layLayoutViewBase.h"
-#include "layBitmapsToImage.h"
 #include "dbLayoutUtils.h"
 #include "tlLog.h"
 #include "tlTimer.h"
@@ -182,7 +181,8 @@ EmptyWithinViewCache::determine_empty_layers (const db::Layout *layout, unsigned
 LayerTreeModel::LayerTreeModel (QWidget *parent, lay::LayoutViewBase *view)
   : QAbstractItemModel (parent), 
     mp_parent (parent), mp_view (view), m_filter_mode (false), m_id_start (0), m_id_end (0),
-    m_phase ((unsigned int) -1), m_test_shapes_in_view (false), m_hide_empty_layers (false)
+    m_phase ((unsigned int) -1),
+    m_test_shapes_in_view (false), m_hide_empty_layers (false)
 {
   // .. nothing yet ..
 }
@@ -620,170 +620,11 @@ LayerTreeModel::empty_within_view_predicate (const QModelIndex &index) const
   }
 }
 
-/**
- *  @brief A helper function to create an image from a single bitmap
- */
-static void
-single_bitmap_to_image (const lay::ViewOp &view_op, lay::Bitmap &bitmap,
-                        tl::PixelBuffer *pimage, const lay::DitherPattern &dither_pattern, const lay::LineStyles &line_styles,
-                        double dpr, unsigned int width, unsigned int height)
-{
-  std::vector <lay::ViewOp> view_ops;
-  view_ops.push_back (view_op);
-
-  std::vector <lay::Bitmap *> pbitmaps;
-  pbitmaps.push_back (&bitmap);
-
-  lay::bitmaps_to_image (view_ops, pbitmaps, dither_pattern, line_styles, dpr, pimage, width, height, false, 0);
-}
-
-LAYUI_PUBLIC
 QIcon
 LayerTreeModel::icon_for_layer (const lay::LayerPropertiesConstIterator &iter, lay::LayoutViewBase *view, unsigned int w, unsigned int h, double dpr, unsigned int di_off, bool no_state)
 {
-  h = std::max ((unsigned int) 16, h) * dpr + 0.5;
-  w = std::max ((unsigned int) 16, w) * dpr + 0.5;
-
-  tl::color_t def_color   = 0x808080;
-  tl::color_t fill_color  = iter->has_fill_color (true)  ? iter->eff_fill_color (true)  : def_color;
-  tl::color_t frame_color = iter->has_frame_color (true) ? iter->eff_frame_color (true) : def_color;
-
-  tl::PixelBuffer image (w, h);
-  image.set_transparent (true);
-  image.fill (view->background_color ().rgb ());
-
-  //  upper scanline is a dummy one
-  uint32_t *sl0 = (uint32_t *) image.scan_line (0);
-  uint32_t transparent = QColor (Qt::transparent).rgba ();
-  for (size_t i = 0; i < w; ++i) {
-    *sl0++ = transparent;
-  }
-
-  //  TODO: adjust the resolution according to the oversampling mode
-  lay::Bitmap fill (w, h, 1.0);
-  lay::Bitmap frame (w, h, 1.0);
-  lay::Bitmap text (w, h, 1.0);
-  lay::Bitmap vertex (w, h, 1.0);
-
-  unsigned int wp = w - 1;
-
-  if (! no_state && ! iter->visible (true)) {
-
-    wp = w / 4;
-
-    //  Show the arrow if it is invisible also locally.
-    if (! iter->visible (false)) {
-
-      unsigned int aw = h / 4;
-      unsigned int ap = w / 2 - 1;
-      for (unsigned int i = 0; i <= aw; ++i) {
-        text.fill (h / 2 - 1 - i, ap, ap + aw - i + 1);
-        text.fill (h / 2 - 1 + i, ap, ap + aw - i + 1);
-      }
-
-    }
-
-  }
-
-  if (! no_state && view->no_stipples ()) {
-    //  Show a partial stipple pattern only for "no stipple" mode
-    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < h - 2; ++i) {
-      fill.fill (i, w - 1 - w / 4, w);
-    }
-  } else {
-    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < h - 2; ++i) {
-      fill.fill (i, w - 1 - wp, w);
-    }
-  }
-
-  int lw = iter->width (true);
-  if (lw < 0) {
-    //  default line width is 0 for parents and 1 for leafs
-    lw = iter->has_children () ? 0 : 1;
-  }
-  lw = lw * dpr + 0.5;
-
-  int p0 = lw / 2;
-  p0 = std::max (0, std::min (int (w / 4 - 1), p0));
-
-  int p1 = (lw - 1) / 2;
-  p1 = std::max (0, std::min (int (w / 4 - 1), p1));
-
-  int p0x = p0, p1x = p1;
-  unsigned int ddx = 0;
-  unsigned int ddy = h - 2 - p1 - p0;
-  if (iter->xfill (true)) {
-    ddx = wp - p0 - p1 - 1;
-  }
-  unsigned int d = ddx / 2;
-
-  frame.fill (p0, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w);
-  frame.fill (h - 2 - p1, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w);
-
-  for (unsigned int i = p0; i < h - 2; ++i) {
-
-    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0, w - p0);
-    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1), w - (wp - p1));
-    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0x, w - p0x);
-    frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1x), w - (wp - p1x));
-
-    while (d < ddx) {
-      d += ddy;
-      frame.fill (i, w - 1 - p0x, w - p0x);
-      frame.fill (i, w - 1 - (wp - p1x), w - (wp - p1x));
-      ++p0x;
-      ++p1x;
-    }
-
-    if (d >= ddx) {
-      d -= ddx;
-    }
-
-  }
-
-  if (! no_state && ! iter->valid (true)) {
-
-    unsigned int bp = w - 1 - ((w * 7) / 8 - 1);
-    unsigned int be = bp + h / 2;
-    unsigned int bw = h / 4 - 1;
-    unsigned int by = h / 2 - 1;
-
-    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < bw + 2; ++i) {
-      fill.clear (by - i, bp - 1, be);
-      fill.clear (by + i, bp - 1, be);
-    }
-
-    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < bw; ++i) {
-      text.fill (by - i, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
-      text.fill (by - i - 1, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
-      text.fill (by - i, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
-      text.fill (by - i - 1, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
-      text.fill (by + i, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
-      text.fill (by + i + 1, bp + bw - i - 1, bp + bw - i + 1);
-      text.fill (by + i, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
-      text.fill (by + i + 1, bp + bw + i, bp + bw + i + 2);
-    }
-
-  }
-
-  vertex.fill (h / 2 - 1, w - 1 - wp / 2, w - wp / 2);
-
-  lay::ViewOp::Mode mode = lay::ViewOp::Copy;
-
-  //  create fill
-  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (fill_color, mode, 0, iter->eff_dither_pattern (true), di_off), fill, &image, view->dither_pattern (), view->line_styles (), dpr, w, h);
-  //  create frame
-  if (lw == 0) {
-    single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0 /*solid line*/, 2 /*dotted*/, 0), frame, &image, view->dither_pattern (), view->line_styles (), dpr, w, h);
-  } else {
-    single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, iter->eff_line_style (true), 0, 0, lay::ViewOp::Rect, lw), frame, &image, view->dither_pattern (), view->line_styles (), dpr, w, h);
-  }
-  //  create text
-  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0, 0, 0), text, &image, view->dither_pattern (), view->line_styles (), dpr, w, h);
-  //  create vertex
-  single_bitmap_to_image (lay::ViewOp (frame_color, mode, 0, 0, 0, lay::ViewOp::Cross, iter->marked (true) ? 9/*mark size*/ : 0), vertex, &image, view->dither_pattern (), view->line_styles (), dpr, w, h);
-
-  QPixmap pixmap = QPixmap::fromImage (image.to_image ());
+  tl::PixelBuffer px = view->icon_for_layer (iter, w, h, dpr, di_off, no_state);
+  QPixmap pixmap = QPixmap::fromImage (px.to_image ());
 #if QT_VERSION >= 0x050000
   pixmap.setDevicePixelRatio (dpr);
 #endif
diff --git a/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.h b/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.h
index 902166bdd..fbd548814 100644
--- a/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.h
+++ b/src/layui/layui/layLayerTreeModel.h
@@ -123,17 +123,17 @@ public:
   QModelIndex index (lay::LayerPropertiesConstIterator iter, int column) const;
 
   /**
-   *  @brief Convert a QModelIndex to an iterator
+   *  @brief Converts a QModelIndex to an iterator
    */
   lay::LayerPropertiesConstIterator iterator (const QModelIndex &index) const;
 
   /**
-   *  @brief Get a flag indicating that an entry is hidden
+   *  @brief Gets a flag indicating that an entry is hidden
    */
   bool is_hidden (const QModelIndex &index) const;
 
   /**
-   *  @brief Set the animation phase
+   *  @brief Sets the animation phase
    */
   void set_phase (unsigned int ph);
 
diff --git a/src/layview/layview/layLayoutView_qt.cc b/src/layview/layview/layLayoutView_qt.cc
index e25e42ebb..f99154707 100644
--- a/src/layview/layview/layLayoutView_qt.cc
+++ b/src/layview/layview/layLayoutView_qt.cc
@@ -731,6 +731,20 @@ LayoutView::update_menu (lay::LayoutView *view, lay::AbstractMenu &menu)
 bool 
 LayoutView::configure (const std::string &name, const std::string &value)
 {
+  if (name == cfg_bitmap_oversampling) {
+
+    int os = 1;
+    tl::from_string (value, os);
+    mp_control_panel->set_oversampling (os);
+
+  } else if (name == cfg_highres_mode) {
+
+    bool hrm = false;
+    tl::from_string (value, hrm);
+    mp_control_panel->set_highres_mode (hrm);
+
+  }
+
   if (LayoutViewBase::configure (name, value)) {
     return true;
   }
diff --git a/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.cc b/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.cc
index 0c8566ad8..4accba4df 100644
--- a/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.cc
+++ b/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.cc
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@
 #endif
 
 #include <memory>
+#include <cmath>
 
 namespace tl
 {
@@ -358,6 +359,141 @@ PixelBuffer::diff (const PixelBuffer &other) const
   return res;
 }
 
+void
+PixelBuffer::blowup (tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os)
+{
+  tl_assert (dest.width () == width () * os);
+  tl_assert (dest.height () == height () * os);
+
+  unsigned int ymax = height ();
+  unsigned int xmax = width ();
+
+  for (unsigned int y = 0; y < ymax; ++y) {
+    for (unsigned int i = 0; i < os; ++i) {
+      const uint32_t *psrc = (const uint32_t *) scan_line (y);
+      uint32_t *pdest = (uint32_t *) dest.scan_line (y * os + i);
+      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
+        for (unsigned int j = 0; j < os; ++j) {
+          *pdest++ = *psrc;
+        }
+        ++psrc;
+      }
+    }
+  }
+}
+
+void
+PixelBuffer::subsample (tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os, double g)
+{
+  //  TODO: this is probably not compatible with the endianess of SPARC ..
+
+  //  LUT's for combining the RGB channels
+
+  //  forward transformation table
+  unsigned short lut1[256];
+  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 256; ++i) {
+    double f = (65536 / (os * os)) - 1;
+    lut1[i] = (unsigned short)std::min (f, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + pow (i / 255.0, g) * f)));
+  }
+
+  //  backward transformation table
+  unsigned char lut2[65536];
+  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 65536; ++i) {
+    double f = os * os * ((65536 / (os * os)) - 1);
+    lut2[i] = (unsigned char)std::min (255.0, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + pow (i / f, 1.0 / g) * 255.0)));
+  }
+
+  //  LUT's for alpha channel
+
+  //  forward transformation table
+  unsigned short luta1[256];
+  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 256; ++i) {
+    double f = (65536 / (os * os)) - 1;
+    luta1[i] = (unsigned short)std::min (f, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + (i / 255.0) * f)));
+  }
+
+  //  backward transformation table
+  unsigned char luta2[65536];
+  for (unsigned int i = 0; i < 65536; ++i) {
+    double f = os * os * ((65536 / (os * os)) - 1);
+    luta2[i] = (unsigned char)std::min (255.0, std::max (0.0, floor (0.5 + (i / f) * 255.0)));
+  }
+
+  unsigned int ymax = dest.height ();
+  unsigned int xmax = dest.width ();
+
+  unsigned short *buffer = new unsigned short[xmax * 4];
+
+  for (unsigned int y = 0; y < ymax; ++y) {
+
+    {
+
+      const unsigned char *psrc = (const unsigned char *) scan_line (y * os);
+      unsigned short *pdest = buffer;
+
+      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
+
+        pdest[0] = lut1[psrc[0]];
+        pdest[1] = lut1[psrc[1]];
+        pdest[2] = lut1[psrc[2]];
+        pdest[3] = luta1[psrc[3]];
+        psrc += 4;
+
+        for (unsigned int j = os; j > 1; j--) {
+          pdest[0] += lut1[psrc[0]];
+          pdest[1] += lut1[psrc[1]];
+          pdest[2] += lut1[psrc[2]];
+          pdest[3] += luta1[psrc[3]];
+          psrc += 4;
+        }
+
+        pdest += 4;
+
+      }
+
+    }
+
+    for (unsigned int i = 1; i < os; ++i) {
+
+      const unsigned char *psrc = (const unsigned char *) scan_line (y * os + i);
+      unsigned short *pdest = buffer;
+
+      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
+
+        for (unsigned int j = os; j > 0; j--) {
+          pdest[0] += lut1[psrc[0]];
+          pdest[1] += lut1[psrc[1]];
+          pdest[2] += lut1[psrc[2]];
+          pdest[3] += luta1[psrc[3]];
+          psrc += 4;
+        }
+
+        pdest += 4;
+
+      }
+
+    }
+
+    {
+
+      unsigned char *pdest = (unsigned char *) dest.scan_line (y);
+      const unsigned short *psrc = buffer;
+
+      for (unsigned int x = 0; x < xmax; ++x) {
+        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
+        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
+        *pdest++ = lut2[*psrc++];
+        *pdest++ = luta2[*psrc++];
+      }
+
+    }
+
+  }
+
+  delete[] buffer;
+}
+
+
 #if defined(HAVE_PNG)
 
 PixelBuffer
diff --git a/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.h b/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.h
index 62b6206f3..0f48d91fb 100644
--- a/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.h
+++ b/src/tl/tl/tlPixelBuffer.h
@@ -257,6 +257,28 @@ public:
    */
   PixelBuffer diff (const PixelBuffer &other) const;
 
+  /**
+   *  @brief Subsamples the image and puts the subsampled image into the destination image
+   *
+   *  @param dest Where the subsampled image goes to
+   *  @param os The subsampling factor
+   *  @param g The gamma value for color interpolation
+   *
+   *  The dimension of the destination image must be set to the corresponding fraction of
+   *  self's dimension.
+   */
+  void subsample (tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os, double g);
+
+  /**
+   *  @brief Scales the image into the given destination image
+   *
+   *  @param dest Where the scaled image goes to
+   *  @param os The scaling factor
+   *
+   *  The destination images dimension must have been set of self's dimension times os.
+   */
+  void blowup (tl::PixelBuffer &dest, unsigned int os);
+
   /**
    *  @brief Gets the texts
    *