Request for comments from skin authors

I'd like the see the usericon and userpane text be independantly positionable on the userpane.
It's a total nightmare trying to get it to line up right, sometimes.

Vertically or horizontally?

I'd like to be able to set margins for the titlebar text background. At the moment it disappears under the right margin of the title bar instead of contracting.

In start panel an All Programs button would be useful to match the rest of the start panel.

The ability to re-position or delete the shutdown/logoff dialog flag.

Here are a few things that come to mind right away.

I would love to see WB apply the user icon with the skin.

Also, I wish WB could change the fonts on the shellstyles bits, start menu, and grouped task menu.

Finally, I wish the panel item background and logoff button background images didn't override the mouse over font colors on the programs list, places list, and bottom bar of the start menu.

I totally agree with all of the above, also I would like to see explorer backgrounds put back in, not just dialog backgrounds.

I'd like the shellstyle panel, on the left of folders, to be more flexible to skin. Right now it's a pain.
Also, same comment about the shut down dialogs. Also be able to specify a font colour.

And, maybe in some distant future, it would be so cool to use vector graphics for the skins, with smooth edges. Actually, if Windowblinds could in some wy totally take over the Windows GUI and convert it all in vector, that would be awsome. Then WindowFX animations could be extremely smooth, as it is in OS X. I know, I'm dreaming, but hey, there's no harm in that.

paxx: more flexible in what way?

Perhaps paxx is referring to the header bars on the shellstyles panes. They can be quite tricky to get just right without the image stretching in undesirable ways. Along those same lines, margins for the shellstyles background would be nice, as would the option to tile rather than stretch.

Another little known fact is that the large folder backgrounds (My Pictures, My Music, etc.) need to be 8 bit indexed bitmaps in order to display. No suggestion there, I just thought I'd offer it up while we were on the topic.

Yes, and also the background. I haven't checked recently so it may have changed, but last time I played with it, it could only be stretched I think. I had a striped design in mind for the background, but couldn't do it.

MikeB314 : You just saved me another hours of headache...
I didn't know about the folder backgrounds...

I'd like a full textual run-down of all the options in a UIS as were often done for button 'actions' states, etc....and colour lists....so manic old-timers can by-pass SkinStudio and stick with notepad...

"#1 by Hippy - 4/22/2003 3:27:59 AM
I'd like the see the usericon and userpane text be independantly positionable on the userpane.
It's a total nightmare trying to get it to line up right, sometimes."

totally agree, vertically, Neil, horizontally we allready have it.

"#4 by Moderator MikeB314 - 4/22/2003 4:44:01 AM
I would love to see WB apply the user icon with the skin"

this would be very cool, since most of us makes user picks for every new skin

request: the ability of changing the logoff/shutdown text collor other then white.

Changing the logoff/shutdown dialog text may not be easy to achieve. We will look into it, but I know its unlikely to be something simple to change.

Maybe this a already a feature but it doesn't seem to work if so. Mouseovers on scrollbar buttons? I believe the image state says every 4th image for the buttons is the mouseover image but it doesn't seem to change in actual use. Could be I'm missing something.

WB4 is awesome. You guys did a great job getting everything skinned.

If it's possible, make the user name text position fixed so on a domain without a user icon it still aligns from the same laft margin.

Make the mouse-over text color seting work for menu backgrounds on the programs list and 'special' menus where there are icons in the list.

Bring back the explorer backgrounds and give more color options for transparent explorer backgrounds (like shades of grey).

Allow animated button mouse-overs for titlebar buttons.

Tile the shell styles background image.

Titlebar text effects like shadows on UIS1.

Activate the mouse-overs on scrollbar thumbs (which it does do in the shell styles area).

Mouse-overs on scrollbar arrows and maybe add one for the corner re-size grabber thingy in the arrows images.

tell us what "glyphs" are...

Document all the standard or recommended sizes for windows elements.

Increase the number of buttons possible with plugins and Shift/Ctrl functions in a skin. (30 is not nearly enough )

oh and another - the "throbber" in explorer windows, can that be added to the UIS format? I know the one in IE gets skinned by WebBlinds but I mean the one in an explorer window. It's not animated - I think it's only one image.

Maybe add an image (or at least a color setting) for the little arrows on menu items with fly-outs. Right now they seem to be a text item and the color is not changeable. Changing the color would be nice but an image with a mouse-over state would be even better.

DavidK: [MenuItem.Extras] - see Blackcomb for an example.

DrawingStyle=4 Text with Blurred shadow, does not work for username on start menu shadow is still crisp, and ofcourse i know many people have asked this and i dont want to be a pain, but lock taskbar when changing skins comes back the gripper, and look in your C\ drive shellnomodify image is not showing, it should be

Plus first state image on Panel Item is not displaying, Take Mike Bryant's spectre for example it use to show first state image.

I think thats only important things i wish for

Ah David your Glyph images see if you take a look at BBX Mercury see scroll bars and spinner buttons they are using Glyphs, actual arrows over top of scrollbars and spinners so they dont get squashed.

Bit hard for me to explain

Not sure if many skinners have used glyphs yet..

what's a glyph?

All the little symbols that you usually draw for the controls over actual images, draw your actual scrollbars then add seperate image for that actual control logo's over the top for glyph section.

Set Glyph Transparency to Alpha Blend, and set both Horizontal and vertical to Centre so button symbols are perfecly in centre incase spinners or controls such as small images get crammed up.

Am I right in thinking that if skinners started to use glyphs on items such as the start button then 'glyph' (icon) won't get cut off if the user decides to force a thin taskbar?

Oh and your arrows wont show in skinstudio as thats normal you'll just see plain background image, its not untill skin is actually running live you'll see glyphs

Yeah it would help as its a seperate image Woodbridge, you could have actual start button image, then add text start for start button glyph im not sure if it would work as TGA but it should if you turned both tranclucecny switches on