We are excited to announce the release of DeskScapes 3 – Beta 1 to current Object Desktop subscribers.  DeskScapes is an application where users can apply animated backgrounds, also called .dreams, to their desktop.  DeskScapes 3 introduces a variety of new features, the most obvious being the completely new user interface.  If you are trying out the WindowBlinds 7 beta, you will certainly recognize and be familiar with it.  It’s much cleaner, and easier to navigate.

New User Interface

Effects

The last feature I will talk about today is live previews.  Now you will be able to view the .dream in action in the preview windows without having to apply it! 

Object Desktop subscribers can download the DeskScapes 3 Beta via Impulse .  We also have a forum thread open to allow users to report any issues.  For more information about becoming an Object Desktop subscriber, please visit www.objectdesktop.com .

The weekend gets closer and closer, and it’s that time of the week where you can grab some delicious deals from Impulse to satisfy your gaming needs!  You can get more information about Impulse, and your free download at www.impulsedriven.com.

Now for this weeks deals!

	Pre-order	$39.99
	$14.95	$19.95
	$14.99	$19.99
	$9.99	$19.99
	$5.99	$9.99
	Pre-order	$29.99

Stardock Design launched the MyColors Gloss Packs today.  In total, five Gloss Packs were released each containing 3 MyColors themes in a pack.  MyColors is an “all-in-one” solution for customizing your desktop, as no extra software is required to use these themes.  Each MyColors theme includes a custom visual style which changes your Windows taskbars, start button, and more.  They also including matching icon sets and wallpaper to complete the desktop experience.

Earlier this week, subscribers to Object Desktop got one of the Gloss theme packs for free, and now they are available for everyone else to try!  Don’t forget Object Desktop subscribers get a discount on MyColors themes too!

Gloss Pack 1 - Gloss Burgundy, Grey or Mint

Gloss Pack 2 - Gloss Amber, Black or Green

Gloss Pack 3 - Gloss Copper, Purple or Teal

Gloss Pack 4 - Gloss Denim, Pink or Red

Gloss Pack 5 - Gloss Blue, Brown or Lavender

I wanted to get a general feel from the skinners about Windows 7.  I know some of you already have updated some WindowBlinds themes to get them ready for Windows 7, and I wanted to see who else is doing similar work.

1. Do you plan on updating previous WB skins to work with Windows 7?
   
2. Are you creating new WB skins just for Win7?
   
3. Do you plan on making skins compatible with XP, Vista, and Windows 7, or just one of them?

Thanks in advance to any skinners who answer. 

With the launch of Windows 7 growing ever so close, Microsoft is now promoting the Windows Launch events which will take place in cities across the United States.  These launch events are targeted at IT Professionals and Developers, and the best part is you get a free copy of Windows 7 for attending.  Did I mention these events are free as well?

I attended a similar event for the Windows Vista launch a couple of years ago in Orlando.  It was actually an interesting event, I learned quite a few things, and I got to talk and network with tons of IT professionals from all around the state.  If you have the time to attend one of these, I highly recommend it.

You can find the cites and dates available at the following link.

http://www.microsoft.com/business/thenewefficiency/

I’m certainly glad it’s Friday, aren’t you?  Today we end the Summer ‘09 wallpaper contest, and it has been a great success.  We will definitely have another before the year is over.

Now for this weeks picks!

	Troll Thumping cxp by BONEHEADdb This is an update, but it’s still a fantastic CursorFX theme.
	INFINITY Ultimate DX by RedneckDude This is a DX theme based on the popular WindowBlinds skin.
	Arise Logon by boss0190 The image alone is worth using this logon for Windows XP.  Great work.
	Defense Dock Backgrounds by Sc4rfy A very cool set of dock backgrounds for ObjectDock.
	Exos by TomRichter I enjoy darker style WindowBlinds skins, and TomRichter pulls off another beauty.
	Solid State by 2of3 This is another darker theme, with a great monochromatic look and style.  Great job.

As many of you have read before, I am a big fan and user of Netbooks.  Customizing them with new themes, icons, etc. really isn’t any different than any other type of PC, you just have smaller screen real estate to work with.  I have been using WindowBlinds 6 for a while with my Acer Netbook, and it runs great.  However, there was one small issue and that was the WindowBlinds configuration window wouldn’t always fit on the screen making it a bit difficult to navigate.  Several of you expressed the same issue.

No worries though, as the new UI for WindowBlinds 7 fits perfectly on a Netbook screen when maximized.

Here is a screenshot of mine.

As you can see it fills the screen completely and allows for easy navigation around the entire interface.  Windows 7 themes never looked so good on such a small screen.  I will be writing more articles about Netbooks very soon, so keep a look out.  Get more info about WindowBlinds at www.windowblinds.net, and be sure to stop the WindowBlinds theme gallery on WinCustomize and check out some of the many themes you can use on your desktop.

Another weeks speeds by and before you know it, it’s time for the next Impulse Weekend Sale!  Grab some games to add to your current collections, and know that you can always download them from Impulse and not worry about losing the box.

Check out this weekends sale!

	Corel software on sale
	$27.99	$39.99
	50% Off
	$4.95	$9.95
	$9.95	$19.95
	$9.95	$19.95

You can get more information about Impulse, and your free download at www.impulsedriven.com.

We are happy to offer the latest free MyColors theme to Object Desktop subscribers!  This one is an entire pack of free themes from the Gloss series.

Object Desktop subscribers can download them via Impulse in the “My Software” area.  If you don’t have Impulse, get it from www.impulsedriven.com .

Dell made a really cool announcement yesterday.

“If you've got young kids at home like I do, you know the answer to that question is the one and only SpongeBob SquarePants. I'm betting you can probably sing the rest of the theme song as well. Why am I talking about this? Because we're partnering with Nickelodeon, Whyville.net, Walmart and others to introduce a netbook for kids.

It's or first product that focused on kids. Since it's a netbook that weighs less than three pounds, it's easy for kids to bring it from room to room or in the car during a road trip. From a spec standpoint, the Nickelodeon edition is based on our popular Inspiron Mini 10v. Kids (or their parents) will be able to choose from three different Design Studio designs: SpongeBob, iCarly or Green Slime (pictured below—click image to see a larger version). “

 
And of course Stardock partnered with them to create the interface and skins!