TWiS had to take a few weeks off to get some projects done, but it is back once again with some fantastic skins from WinCustomize.  Just a reminder to all WC members, head over to the forums and find out how to get involved in the Community Wallpaper 2011 project.

Now for this weeks picks!

	Trident by theAVMAN There’s lots of Trident stuff on WC this week, and I recommend you check them all out.  This CursorFX theme is really sweet though!
	Christmas Ornament Countdown by Island Dog Christmas is getting near, so keep track of the days with my Ornament countdown.
	Parisienne by BoXXi These are an awesome set of tile backgrounds for ObjectDock.  Very detailed and cool!
	The Fox And The Moon by vlad Another beautiful wallpaper from vlad, made to promote his first illustrated children’s book.  Great work!
	Luminosity by LightStar Lots of great WB skins have been released lately, and LightStar has brought us two this week, Darkness and Luminosity.  Both are great, but I really like the color used in this one.
	Candy Cane Red by don5318 Glad to see some more Christmas skins making their way in to WC.  This Xion skin is a definite download.  Fantastic!

I’m slowly putting together the 2011 business plan for Stardock. Where to budget what.  It’s a difficult challenge this year because the Windows market isn’t just fragmented but the tech market is fragmented (iOS has become a serious venue for development).

Our business model for skinning has slowly broken down over the years. Years ago, we would come up with app ideas and then look out on the net to find someone who has made something similar and work with them on a royalty basis. 

Nowadays, the expectation of quality is such that you can’t really get away with having some college student making this stuff in his spare time for some extra money and our seasoned developers have moved on to other things or are juggling many different programs at once.

For example, I’d love to do a full blown WPF DesktopX successor.  But we’re having a devil of a time getting DesktopX 4 out the door as-is.  A WPF desktop creator might be a big hit or…it might be a huge amount of work that amounts to very little.

As Windows itself has gotten nicer looking by default, the demand for software fix the Windows experience has naturally declined. I use IconPackager, WindowBlinds, ObjectDock, Fences, and DeskScapes.

I think there’s a lot more that could be done with DeskScapes going forward.  IconPackager is a lot tougher because the time versus pay off ratio doesn’t work out.  WindowBlinds still has a lot of good stuff we can do for that.  ObjectDock 2 just came out and there’s a lot that can still be done there.

We already have a couple of new things in store for next year but increasingly, our focus is on things that improve the experience of Windows less via eye candy and more by modernizing the experience.  Anyone who has used an iPad (or Windows 7 mobile) can really see how rickety Windows (and MacOS for that matter) have really become.  Not because they’re overly complicated but rather because their user experience was designed during a different era. 

The whole Windows experience needs a serious overhaul but such an overhaul wouldn’t be cheap and it might amount to nothing if users didn’t like it.

I know I’m more than a little annoyed that Microsoft has taken their eye off the Windows ball. WPF and Silverlight are awesome – on Windows.  Microsoft needs to quit putting mindless suits in charge of things and get some people with common sense running the show.  Windows need not to a legacy platform, it just needs a revisit from a 2010 perspective.

And so that’s what I’m looking at.  The challenge is finding developers who are willing to work on a royalty basis rather than a salary basis.  People to share the risk in creating cool new things.

It’s been a long while since we’ve visited WindowFX. 

When WindowFX 1.0 came out, its claim to fame was its ability to give windows alpha blended shadows and make use of transparency.  Later, it was updated to have even more gratuitous effects.

With WindowFX 4, we’ve taken a totally new direction.  Now, we’re focusing on things that are less cosmetic and more useful.  For instance, WindowFX 4 will allow users of all versions of Windows to drag a window to the side and have it automatically resize it. Windows 7 does that now.  However, WindowFX also lets users drag a window to a screen corner and it’ll resize the window to use a quarter of the screen.

Another nifty feature is the ability to set individual windows to have a custom maximize size if you hold the shift key down when you press the maximize button on the title bar.  Say you’re running at high resolution but you want one window to max at 800x600 and another at 1024x768. No problem, right click on the title bar, set its custom max size and then when you hold down the shift key when pressing on their maximize button, voila. Customize max size.

Another new area we’re working on is a new concept called “Window Flicks”.  The idea here is that users can grab a window and “flick it” in a certain direction and have it behave in a certain way (such as maximize it or send it over to a second monitor or have it vertically maximize). 

Speaking of which, another neat feature is the ability to double click on a window edge to have it maximize out in direction you clicked on.  Very handy if you’re running lots of windows.

These are just a few of the things in the all new WindowFX 4.  Users of Object Desktop will begin having access to the beta next week.

Welcome back to another edition of This Week in Skinning.  We are halfway through October and this month has been great so far.  Skin submissions are rolling in through many of the core galleries like WindowBlinds, and some old faces have popped up as well.  We also had the release of ObjectDock 2 which is a must-have upgrade.  We also have some cool news and updates coming so be sure to stay tuned to WinCustomize.com.

Now for this weeks picks!

	Hardwood FX by RedneckDude All the skins in the Hardwood series are slick, but I really enjoyed this CursorFX theme.
	ACE Weather by Chasbo Widgets are making a comeback, and Chasbo has been creating some fantastic ones.
	AlienPlanet by CarGuy1 I just think this is a very cool idea for an animated wallpaper.  Great job!
	Midori by navigatsio I have long enjoyed navigatsio’s skins for his designs and use of color.  Midori is no disappointment.  Very nice!
	SPatur WB by lypnjtu Another excellent WindowBlinds skin this week.  The details of this skin are great, and this is a definite download for WB users.

Happy Friday folks!  This is a great time of year as both the weather is getting cooler, and the skinning is increasing!  Lets first start off by saying a late congrats to WOM and Hankers for their promotion to Super Wizops, and we should have a new round of WC promotions coming up shortly too. 

Now for this weeks picks!

	Star Stranger by Kostyantyn Star Stranger has been uploading DX Themes since last year, and I wanted to highlight his progress and work here so far.
	Voronoi Cells by thenukid This is a dynamic .dream from a new WC member, and it is full of shapes and colors.
	Autumn sparrows by teddybearcholla This is just a beautifully designed wallpaper, perfect for the Fall season.
	Missing the Moon Ver 2 by DEVJIT I just really like this wallpaper.  The design caught my eye and looks great on the desktop.
	Zombie Outbreak by k10w3 Getting into that Halloween feeling with a skin like this.  Perfect coloring makes this a needed download.

This Fall I’m starting to get back into skinning.  For the past 8 months or so, I’ve been the interim Project Manager on Elemental: War of Magic to get that game ready for release – which I failed spectacularly at. Sometimes, the answer is not to “work harder”. But I digress.

The problem I’m seeing with skinning is business vs. passion.  That is, Windows XP users still represent a near majority of the people using our skinning programs. The problem is, Windows XP is dead as a technology base. I don’t want to even support it any longer.  I want us to make cutting edge technology using WPF and Silverlight and other things that can show what is possible.

A lot of the new Windows technologies have been under used which is a real shame because there’s some great stuff there.

My main worry right now is that WPF is not being well supported by Microsoft and I don’t want us to get into a tech that Microsoft is going to abandon (GDI+, cough cough).

See http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/09/13/microsoft_defends_silverlight/ for my concerns.

Alright, a new month is upon us!  This was an especially super week for skin submissions with a bunch of new submissions in many galleries across WinCustomize.  Since it is October, the Halloween-themed skins are starting to slowly make their appearance, and I hope to see more soon.  We also had quite a few updates this week, so be sure to fire up Impulse and look for updates for DeskScapes and ObjectDock Plus 2!

Now for this weeks picks!

	Stripe Poker by theAVMAN This is a matching skin for the Master WB skin by the same name, and this is a first-class CursorFX theme.  Great work!
	Aqua Box (TM Suite) by Philly0381 Once again, Philly has taken the time to put together a bunch of fantastic skins based on RND’s DX Theme.
	Display Array Sidebar Clock by RedNeckDude People still utilize the Windows Sidebar, and RND created this sleek clock gadget for it.
	Abstract Something by Rohillio I just love the burst of colors in this wallpaper.  Nice work!
	Hardwired by Xiandi Tons of detail and attention in this WindowBlinds skin make this a must-have download on the list.

The latest beta for DeskScapes 3.2 was released earlier this week, and one of the new features is a level slider on some effects in which you can increase or decrease their intensity.  Effects are cool on their own, but being able to adjust them even more is just another layer of coolness added.

Remember you can apply effects to static and animated wallpapers in DeskScapes.  Just note that the level sliders are available only on certain effects like blurs, smears, etc.  When you select an effect, a slider will appear over the thumbnail and you can adjust the level of the effects to your liking!

Here is a quick video showing how.

Get DeskScapes here!

How is everyone doing this fine Friday?  Pretty good I hope, and this was an exciting week as not only did some great skins come into WinCustomize, we also had some fantastic updates for WindowBlinds and ObjectDock Plus 2.  I’m hoping to see more Fall season, and Halloween skins coming in soon, as they are both a great base for themed skins.

Now for this weeks picks!

	Needles by B2R This is a fun and colorful cursor theme for use with CursorFX.  Nice job!
	Bar Tender DX by RedneckDude I can always count on RND to deliver the goods, and the new Bar Tender theme is another gem.
	Stripe Poker Tabbed by WebGizmos A fine set of tabbed dock backgrounds made to match the Stripe Poker WindowBlinds skin.
	Miners Castle 2010 by eddyhaze This is a beautiful image and deserves a placement on your desktop.
	Ace by navigatsio This is a dark WindowBlinds skin, with lots of great details.  Definitely one to check out.  Great work!

I created a new demo video for WindowBlinds 7.1 for another project, but I wanted to post it here so you could share with friends.