meat

WB Skin Quality these days

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WB Skin Quality these days

stop the madness.

from WinCustomize Forums
This post originally started as a comment on a recently created windowblinds skins but felt it was more suited for the forums proper.
Essentially, there was a page and a half of positive comments about a skin that, 2 years ago, people would have voted it removed if that power were available to them. Usually, a skin like the one I was about to comment on is rated very low - one or two stars regardless of the number of glowing comments and in spite of the guy that posts "HOW COULD THIS SKIN ONLY GET 1 STAR?!?!?!?!" Those folks that actually issue the stars ratings, typically, rate them according to how I would rate a skin which tells me that those guys or gals still have their heads screwed on straight and come from the same camp I do...more or less.
There's something to be said about the page and a half of positive comments, of course. I'm not a particularly picky skin chooser. Anything decent gets a try out. If I like it alot, it stays as my main skin for a long time or until a newer, better skin dethrones it. The fact that I seem to be the only one posting a negative critique (not a skin bash) tells me that either:

A: What people on wincustomize want, in regard to Windowblinds skins, is completely unlike what I grew to expect on here
OR
B: That there are an equal number of others on Wincustomize that share my opinion but simply keep it to themselves.
OR
C: That the above 2 explanations are due to a natural recession in the skinning community as a whole.

As I'm writing this, I'm applying more thought to it than I originally intended. As stated at the beginning, this was supposed to be a quick "Your skin is icky." comment but with way more tact. And as I think about it and consider my great dissatisfaction with the skinning community as a whole the more I understand IT. Aqua-soft.org's visual style/windowblinds section is all but dead. The most active post in the windowblinds section is for a skin that was released last year! The site is bustling with activity in the other departments but not as many as there used to be, say , 3 years ago or so. I think that we are in a lull and that one day, something interesting will come out and be really cool and inspire the hell out of people again. Or maybe a new program that everyone uses, will be skinnable and usher in a whole new era of skinning.

I haven't downloaded a Windowblinds theme from here in over a month because they have all become sooo GOOFY and silly and low quality.
I'm hoping that it's just a phase and that we can look forward to hundreds of high quality, well thought out, usable Windowblinds skins in the future...
...again.


skinning
16,739 views 46 replies
Reply #26 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Maybe if skinstudio was free, now that they are charging for dreams, isnt this possible? I think with more people who cannot afford it, get it for free, we may see a explosion of nice ones! I know tons of users who just cannot afford to buy skinstudio, but make killer visual styles


Free?? do you really think think an amazing program such as SkinStudio should be completely free??...And just so you know, there is a free version for those who "cannot afford it"


Well does that version offer the ability to make a great skin, such as the paid one? I highly doubt that as the is free and paid versions. The free version probably only allows you to make on good enough to learn, or want to buy the app so you can actually make a real skin

I dont mind that they charge, as I dont have the knowledge to make them myself, but just wanted to drop in my 2 cents
Reply #27 from WinCustomize Forums Top
You can make a real skin in the free version...I wish there was a list that compares the features of the free to the bought version, but I can't seem to find one.
Galactic Civilizations IV
Reply #29 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Anyway, I try really hard to leave constructive crits in my comments. Like "You should anti-alias those edges - there's a good tutorial for that here at http://xyz" instead of just beating them up for no reason.


If people don't like having their work called 'icky' thats fine with me, but you can call my work whatever you like...as long as you leave some constructive criticism. Go ahead and shake me up every once in a while. I could use it!
I do agree that most of the skins released now a days aren't very well done. In fact I look back at some of my older works, and think "Man that's bad... What was I thinking!" As for other's, I usually keep my opinions to my self. But, I think this community needs more people like you, who will go out of their way, and risk be hated, to give people constructive criticism.
Keep it up!
Reply #30 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Maybe if skinstudio was free, now that they are charging for dreams, isnt this possible? I think with more people who cannot afford it, get it for free, we may see a explosion of nice ones! I know tons of users who just cannot afford to buy skinstudio, but make killer visual styles

Just a thought Stardock

SkinStudio is free.

There is a Pro version but that is the version that skins Windows Media Player and such which has nothing to do with WindowBlinds.

It costs nothing to make WindowBlinds skins.

Reply #31 from WinCustomize Forums Top
The free skinstudio is quite capable of making a prefectly functional , good looking skin.

As far as WYSIWYG, it would be nice for real time perfectly accurate previews but imo, it is best to apply after every single change anyway thus eliminating the need for WYSIWYG and letting you see the exact result within the skin. If SKS is taking too long to apply, use Wbconfig to apply each time, It significantly cuts apply times.
Reply #32 from WinCustomize Forums Top
As far as WYSIWYG, it would be nice for real time perfectly accurate previews but imo, it is best to apply after every single change anyway thus eliminating the need for WYSIWYG and letting you see the exact result within the skin.


*sigh*
Reply #33 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Whats the sigh for patrick?
Reply #34 from WinCustomize Forums Top
It is always best to apply after each change, how else can you see exactly what the skin is doing? Previews are ok but they can never represent a skin in action.
Reply #35 from WinCustomize Forums Top
What I meant is that I wish the preview was always accurate. For me it's a pain applying a skin every time a change something. I takes a while (at least on my system) and sometimes I have to go into the skin folder and manually delete or edit some code, because sometimes after apply a skin alot of times, SKS make new .uis files (for backup reason?) and the code is pointing to an older uis file, so the most recent changes are showing up. Sometimes I even have to restart my computer.
I try to use the 'test skin' feature as often as I can, but that does have limitations and I end up having to apply the skin anyways.
Am I the only one that has these types of problems?
I'm REALLY looking forward to SKS 6.
Reply #36 from WinCustomize Forums Top
It is always best to apply after each change, how else can you see exactly what the skin is doing? Previews are ok but they can never represent a skin in action.


Couldn't hurt if the previews were complete & WYSIWYG, though, could it? It would save me a lot of dev time - it might be a week before I run into some of the less-frequently-called GUI elements, sometimes longer. Some of the elements you can't even get to on your dev rig after applying the skin - mine logs on to a domain so even when logged on to the local machine I never see the logoff/shutdown dialogs; I have to load the skin on a workgroup machine to see them. It's that kind of stuff that I'd appreciate SKS6 addressing, in addition to the above.
Reply #37 from WinCustomize Forums Top
No it certainly wont hurt i agree with everything u said.. but even if it gets to be more accurate I personally will probably apply everytime anyway.. and Patrick do you apply from WBconfig? It cut my apply times by about 7000% when i stopped using SKS to apply.   
Reply #38 from WinCustomize Forums Top
This is only meant as a helpful suggestion (hint).

There is a way to do it just a little faster than WBconfig.
Go to the Windowblinds folder and make a "shortcut" of WBload. Place it in your quicklauch, if you use quicklaunch, then after you save the skin in SkinStudio just click the icon. Instant re-fresh.
It'll only save you a second or two. That's about it.

I'm eagerly awaiting the new SkinStudio. From the little I've seen, it'll be great for Vista skinning also.
Reply #39 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Good call   
Reply #40 from WinCustomize Forums Top
even if it gets to be more accurate I personally will probably apply everytime anyway.. and Patrick do you apply from WBconfig? It cut my apply times by about 7000% when i stopped using SKS to apply.


I personally have always applied the skin everytime I make a change. And, I do apply via WBConfig > Apply my changes. I want to know what the skin is actually doing. In fact, while I am building a blind, I use it exclusively, so that I have a really good idea how the skin works.
Reply #41 from WinCustomize Forums Top
And now with that snazzy tip from Z71.. it's even faster   

that's gonna save me about 300 hours this year   
Reply #42 from WinCustomize Forums Top

SkinStudio 6, which is in development, has real-time previews that use the WindowBlinds engine for those previews.

Reply #43 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Well, I'm you guy's advice. And thanks for the tip Z. You guys are so helpful.
Brad, thats REALLY nice to know! I can't wait.
Reply #44 from WinCustomize Forums Top
SkinStudio 6, which is in development, has real-time previews that use the WindowBlinds engine for those previews.


Outstanding. Looking forward to it, Brad.
Reply #45 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I'm really sad that the best skinners are no more releasing new stuff at Wincustomize. The new skins released here are very poor in concept. Just my opinion.
Reply #46 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I agree in part (despite the fact that I haven't been here long - although I have known and seen this site more often than I've been a member of it).

I must say that there are the few skins that have come out exceptionally well. Note, I say 'the few'. For example the Knot Vista range, I think that's something great. Vienna for Vista by vStyler is also great, as well as Arzo by JJ Ying.

Maybe at the end of the day, skinners are becoming lazier and lazier as time goes by. They could be running around with the attitude of "I'll make the skin the simple way and it will be just as good.
At the end of the day, it isn't just as good. The skins soimetimes come out sloppy looking, and every now and then with compatiblity issues.

I'm really sad that the best skinners are no more releasing new stuff at Wincustomize.

The best skinners may not be sending out new releases, but Adni18 has just updated his old skin (Windows XP Pro III). Some of the greater skinners aren't even here anymore. I went through the archives on web.archive.com and found that some of the best skinners we know today are still here, and some of them gave left. It's a sad thing, really.

But I think that everything in life changes. Maybe (and very well hopefully) we'll get some new skinners that are really great.

Another thing that just struck me, is that skinners may be running out of ideas - thus they change their older skins to look sparkly and fresh again. Some of us have had enough of Aero and are trying to develop a new style, and then some just dissagree with that, and don't download as much.
On a skinning community, the message seems to go around that Aero is nothing anymore as it has been overdone etc. The non-skinning community, on the other hand, still think that Aero is the best thing since sliced tomatoes (bread is getting really old too ). So their lands up being a clash between what gets wanted and what gets served.

Just my thoughts on the matter.