I've talked to Microsoft a lot on this issue. The main issue is tech support. They don't want to have to support themes.

But if they let a third party do it and there's problems, they'll come to us, not Microsoft.

I've been playing with some of the .msstyles files floating around and even in this early stage problems are showing up. I had one where the items on a dialog weren't painted until I moved another window over it. Another with screen dirt in the toolbars. Nothing functional, just cosmetic problems but it's already begun.

I think I said elsewhere that time is on WindowBlinds's side. As time goes on, it continues to evolve and progress. But msthemes won't.

That said, Stardock has to PROVE it's worth the trouble to install WindowBlinds. it has to PROVE that it's as fast or faster. It has to be better. The free version has to be better and the $20 enhanced version has to be so much better that it's worth it.

That's the challenge we face.

Hi Froggy, Your words actually echo some thing I said over on Devart, I think ! Windowblinds at the end of the day is more established and naturally has progressed and evolved into what it is today. A lot of new Skinners to Style XP don't seem to realise one fact that the MS Styles format has bugs. These were not down to TGT's fault, but Microsoft Bugs which were left in Windows XP.

As for Theme's for TGT's Style XP all I have seen so far is 'Luna' in so many different colour's it seems reminisant of months ago when people complained about it on WindowBlinds Skins. So why should it be any different now with Style XP ? ... Please if you use Style XP make some thing other than a Alexandrie Rip or MS Luna.

Ms. Cat....'if' real skinners actually ever bother to skin for such a limiting format then you may see a slight improvement, and fewer 'rips' but as you know, if the skin format allows only as much 'real' variation as old Henry allowed for the colours of the Model T, then all ya skins will be black....

Jafo, Did I not noce read you say something about WinAmp was so much more creative to skin than WMP7 specifically because it was not freeform skinning, and therefore more challenging.
How is it different now with the more limited msstyle format?
(gotcha?)

... true