What would you like to see in DesktopX 3.x?

Next-Gen in dev

from WinCustomize Forums
The next generation version of DesktopX is in development.  What sorts of features would you like to see in the 3.x series?
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Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Step-through script editors/wizards, .NET framework 2.0 beta support. Longhorn OS emulation possibilities. . .

Most of all, 3-dimensionality support

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Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Most of all: Give developers a possibility to change all the properties of an object by script, i.e. the URL in an url-object.

I'd love to have: DesktopX.Object("FIL_RSS_Line").URL = "www.superrss.com/rss/0,5291,,00.xml"

The same applies for other properties that can`t be changed by script - or are these just not documented?

Thanks
filube
Sins of a Solar Empire II
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I'd love to see full multi-monitor support for all objects in the API.

I posted a problem with 3 monitor systems in the OS Customization group. It would be nice to be able to use DesktopX objects and widgets on the left most monitor.

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Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Hi. I think some sort of platform for editing DX objects in, that is a bit 'safer' then the current 'desktop editing' style. I have only just started trying to make objects, and occasionally have stuffed a script up, to find my object crashed and non retrievable, along with the script it goes and I have to rewrite.

Another thing is my concept of how a 'desktop interaction' style program should be. Basically I think of my desktop as containing a number of things. The taskbar, the tray, the icons, the mouse pointer, open windows, and minimised windows (shown in the taskbar usually). I would like to see DesktopX's functionality expand to enable interaction with various information from all the basic components of a desktop. I believe a program like DesktopX which can be used to create 'objects' to act within this framework needs to have this information accessible. I know a lot (if not most) of the components mentioned above are already available to DX power. Here's one I think isn't that might be good:

Things like what windows are open (their names), and being able to ask for information about those windows, like their position, and size...can they be resized using DesktopX commands? or moved about? Or closed? Or minimised? This information and being able to alter this information would open many more interaction ability with the desktop. Just one idea is ability to have complete control over app launching and positioning, another, a little DX object character that sits on the top of the active windows titlebar

hope this is a good suggestion.
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
What would be necessary for making desktops for public
places, would be a possibility to lock all icons/objects
down in their places so a certain layout stays that way
during the time different people uses the desktop.

With that feature some really original desktops
would be possible
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Here is my idea for separating the scripting a little from the objects:

When you right click an object and look at it's properties you usually see the button 'edit script'. Instead what about a 'script' dropdown selection box. You click the downarrow and it shows all script files (new file extension?) residing in the desktopx/objects/theme directory[you can select a different directory for scanning too], and you can select one to use for the object. If there isn't any scripts, there's a button next to the drop down list saying 'create new script' which opens the editor (which when finished creating, asks you for the name of the script and saves it in the desktopx/objects/theme folder. If u have a script selected from the drop down, you can select button 'edit this script' and it opens it in the editor appropriately.

That way the scripts are separated substantially enough from the object...and you can change and alter scripts fairly independantly from the object, but still retain all the current abilities, like disabling a script for an object, or editing it directly from the right click menus or the object list (cause those options will just open the script file previously selected in the drop down properties screen).

Would this work? Did I just ramble utter bollocks that makes no sense? only NEO knows.
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I would like the ability to change the shortcut target of an object with script - this would be especially handy for folder objects.
It is possible to make an object act like a shortcut with script already apart from missing out on the handy context menu of a native dx shortcut.

Also, scripted access to the system clipboard would be nice.

And scripted manipulation of font size and style would be great.
Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I would like to see some more basic scripts included. There should be a default weather script, and other basic ones. I would also like to see it simpler to add labels to objects.
Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
i would like to see audio plugins that allow us to make stuff like, volume knobs (we already have sliders), vu meters, visuals,allow video to be extracted from the current media player and shown in a frame... and pretty much any thing else that can expand the building of DX Media based widgets ....
Reply #10 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Am very new to the skinning world so I can't express mhat I'd like in 'tech' talk,but I would like to see more weather functions on the weather widgets that are included in a desktop theme,more capabilities for RSS feeds that you can actually see,i.e.running ticker without having to click on button.More, More ANIMATIONS!
Reply #12 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I'll throw this out in hopes that it still has a chance. Back during the GUIO I designed a skin to incorporate a DX menu into the start panel of a wb skin. I had almost every detail worked out except I needed the start button to not only activate the start panel but also some DX switches I had worked into the start panel so when the start panel opened, the DX switches for weather meters, etc would then show. Gef and Jachra tried to help me to make it all happen but we hit a dead end when it came to the start button activating the start panel and the DX menu/switches at the same time. I think it would be a huge addition to the capabilities of DX to merge with wb in the way I am trying to explain. Hopefully I made sense and if not will try to explain further if necessary.


Another option would be a start button (DX coded) to mask over the normal start button. That might be easier.
Reply #13 from WinCustomize Forums Top
On/Off toggle for netcentric apps for dial-up users. When I'm not on the net, I have two choices, unload DX or click to close the dial-up window that keeps popping open. For example I would like the weather widget I'm using to wait for me to connect to the net, not keep trying to connect on its own....off mode. Once I do connect to the net and while I'm connected it can do its thing....on mode. In fact, the weather widget, imported with DX, asks to connect even before my Norton's Internet Security is fully loaded, when I first boot up my PC. I put up with that annoyance for only so long before I say "screw it" and just keep DX unloaded all the time.
Reply #14 from WinCustomize Forums Top
ohh also id like DX media to control the volume with the mouse wheel....
Reply #15 from WinCustomize Forums Top
The ability to change the font and size of a object/widget label.
Reply #16 from WinCustomize Forums Top
... As well as a background colour (similar to MacOSX labels)
Reply #17 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I've never tried to make anything for DesktopX, so I only speak as an end user. Even though DX was the product that got me to originally buy Object Desktop, I rarely use it anymore due to the amount of system resources it uses. If there's any way to make if less resource intensive I would use it. If you read reviews and comments on DX around the Net, most of them mention it being a resource hog.
Reply #18 from WinCustomize Forums Top
As a user and NOT a DX developer I'd like to see a way to make desktops independent of resolution. Or maybe a "Fit To Screen" Option so I cam at least "see" the layout to move things into a workable configuration. Currently with a Widescreen format monitor it becomes a problem to decide which way to go if I fit a 1280x1024 desktop on my laptop it cuts off the bottom. This can be a problem if there are buttons down there you need. If I use the 1024 desktops they are to small to read the text.
Reply #19 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I would love native vector GFX support, such as SVG. SVG also supports scripting and such and it's infinitely scalable too.


Another idea would be separation of objects and scripts. Basically, you make scripts and objects, then "assign" scripts to objects. That way. if you have 10 or even 100 objects using same script, good examples would be my apptlinearcalendear and Node Master. If the script has a bug and you just added it to 10 object, it's a long day of fixing all object's scripts. If you has just one script and assign it to all objects, you has only one script to fix.

Add resize/skew/rotate arrows when ctrl alt clicking a object? That way, you could visually change stuff. If it's a container, everything inside follows the changes applied to it. I doubt skew will be possible, but resize and rotate would be nice.
Reply #20 from WinCustomize Forums Top
flash enabled,so we can use swf files also.
and it will be nice if they will add features like creat theme with a wizard..so user can add whatever he likes to add, weather calender or other things to their theme.
Reply #21 from WinCustomize Forums Top

flash enabled,so we can use swf files also.

DesktopX can already use Flash files right now. There are Flash widgets available here on WinCustomize.

If there's any way to make if less resource intensive I would use it. If you read reviews and comments on DX around the Net, most of them mention it being a resource hog.

People say WindowBlinds is a resource hog even though that's obviously not true.  In what way were you using DesktopX that made it feel like a resource hog? On its own, even DesktopX 2 uses relatively little memory, CPU, or other resources. 

Reply #22 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Step-through script editors/wizards, .NET framework 2.0 beta support. Longhorn OS emulation possibilities. . .

Most of all, 3-dimensionality support

I don't think you'd like the .NET framework support as much as you might think. We seriously considered this because the long term plan is to have XAML be the underlying mark up language and see most widgets written in C# or VB.net.   But that woudl require every user to download around 25 megs of libraries first (the .net libraries) which we don't think most people would put up with.

The scripting features are already pretty mature. I mean, it includes a built in editor with intellisense.

I'm not sure what Longhorn emulation woudl entail.

As for 3D capabilities, I'm not sure what you mean there either.  Down the line, we do want to support .x (Direct3D's native model format) but that will have to wait until Avalon is available in the OS.

Reply #23 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Most of all: Give developers a possibility to change all the properties of an object by script, i.e. the URL in an url-object.

This is what we're working for.

The goal in DesktopX 3.x is to allow people to do it all via script if they choose. Even object creation:

myObject = DesktopX.CreateObject("ObjectIDHere");
myObject.Class = "URL";
myObject.ShortCut = https://www.stardock.com;

Things of that nature is what we're hoping to do. How much will be in 3.0 we're not sure.  Certainly for the most common types of uses we plan to make that all doable in script (object creation/deletion).

Reply #24 from WinCustomize Forums Top
be separation of objects and scripts. Basically, you make scripts and objects, then "assign" scripts to objects.


How about those? I belive that iit would be great thing to have sometimes. It could incude cross-group assigning. For example, you could assign a script to a previously unscripted object at run time.

That and editing just one script for many objects would be handy sometimes. Applinearcalcendar was a nightmare when I found a major oopie twice. Both times I had to edit 31 objects. Not fun, trust me, expecially since whole group resets each time I click that OK button.

And how about vector support?
Reply #25 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Another idea would be separation of objects and scripts. Basically, you make scripts and objects, then "assign" scripts to objects. That way. if you have 10 or even 100 objects using same script, good examples would be my apptlinearcalendear and Node Master. If the script has a bug and you just added it to 10 object, it's a long day of fixing all object's scripts. If you has just one script and assign it to all objects, you has only one script to fix.


Actually we went the other way around. With DesktopX 3 you only need ONE script to manage the whole widget or application.
How do you do that? You have new callbacks like:

sub Object_OnLButtonUpEx(name, x, y, b)

So you can do a "select case name" for instance, to get what object has been clicked.

We are developing new widgets with this new system, and let me say that, it is so much easier to code one script rather than 10 or 20 of them, have variables centralized and initialized in one place, etc.