Xions I have seen....

Friday, September 7, 2007 by Jafo | Discussion: Skinning

For a very long time I stuck with a screen resolution of 1024x768 [the most commonly used res] on a 19" CRT monitor [a good one] simply so 'seeing was easy'.

Then it died, the monitor, not the seeing [well, that did too...as it got bloody hard to see as the screen scan shrank....to a dot].

Its replacement is a ASUS MW221u 22" widescreen LCD .... which naturally won't like 1024x768 too well....its default [native] res is 1680x1050 ....so that's what I now use.

It took a while to get comfortable with the res...but all that new realestate is just soooo handy it's hard to go back to smaller [on other comps].

Now, I tend to mod 'many' of the sections/galleries here...and one that I take notice of is the Xion skins [it's simply great to see a NEW skinnable....so many old ones have faded to grey].

I download the skins...apply them and start Xion...and more often than not I do a double-take thinking "WTF resolution am I on? This skin is HUGE!!!"

Looks like they're about half the res of my screen....and that's without playlists or anything, just the 'main' window/graphic.....maybe 640x480.

Come on, guys....be proud of your skin/work but you really don't need it 'quite' that grandeose/huge/oversized/big/OTT.  Even a WA 2x skin on 'double size' is smaller than that.

OK, teansy-weansy skins can be problematic and impractical and hard to use/find controls....but the same goes for BIG.  They, too will be impractical....you wanna change the vol whil rewriting the US Constitution [or some such important WORK] and it [the work] is obliterated by a megalith of a media player skin that says "xcuse me, I'm important too...though all I do is make noises for you].

People will tend to look at big skins like these and think 'that's nicely drawn...but I won't use it cos it's just too big and obtrusive'.

I currently have 27 installed....but use only one or two [both small], only seeing the others as and when I'm moderating/checking new ones.

Remember, sometimes 'less is more'....

22 Reply 3 Referrals
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bilbo1930
Reply #1 Saturday, September 8, 2007 1:02 AM
Half screen?
not mine..

vStyler
Reply #2 Saturday, September 8, 2007 1:29 AM
Honestly, My favorite Xion skin is Rusty by IR. Not because of its size but because of the effort put into it to make it what it is and to make it do what it does, to me wouldn't look the same at any other size.

Media players are eye candy, I cant see, regardless of size what they interfere with as long as they are not "always on top"

Throw in a playlist and minimize if it seems bothersome.

What may be an uncomfortable dimension to one person is most certainly just perfect for someone else and I'm sure as Xion skinning progresses more choices \ sizes will be readily available.

I am a bit surprised to see a post like this coming from you Jafo so lastly I have to mention..

WC forums standard answer to this one " If what is available is not pleasing to you, crank up PS and make your own"

BoXXi
Reply #3 Saturday, September 8, 2007 1:55 AM
I like big skins....... I have bad eyes too. I want to SEE what I'm doing!!!
I'm probably the biggest offender in the "Large Skin" department, but I don't care, I like 'em all shapes and sizes. (I think I once said that about something else too.....)

I.R. Brainiac
Reply #4 Saturday, September 8, 2007 2:00 AM
Since its just a psd,you can resize the entire file to your liking...thats what I did to my first one...only place you would maybe have to edit would be a text display.(font size)  

aufisch
Reply #5 Saturday, September 8, 2007 2:21 AM
I download the skin, and if it turns out to be huge but well done, I'll admire it for about 5 Minutes, before I switch back to smaller one.

Thanks IR for the tip with resizing the psd-file. There are some really great skins out there, which are just a bit too large to stay on my desktop. Now I can use them anyway....

I.R. Brainiac
Reply #6 Saturday, September 8, 2007 2:36 AM
Never really understood this argument relative to a media player skin...your either using it or not...as long as it fits on the screen,what does it matter?

If I'm listening to music...size dosnt matter(  )...if I'm working,its out of the way(minimised or underneath)  

Fuzzy Logic
Reply #7 Saturday, September 8, 2007 5:16 AM

I'd like mine 1280x1024 please     

If it's under my window, what's it matter what size it is. As long as function is not impaired who cares...


aufisch
Reply #8 Saturday, September 8, 2007 9:13 AM
Never really understood this argument relative to a media player skin...


It's really just a matter of personal taste. If a player has a good design, I want to see it, even if I don't happen to change the playlist. I mean, who will sit in front of their computer, stare at the player and not do anything else while listening to the music?

If it's too big, it will go behind all the open windows very quickly. What a waste not to see a well designed skin more regularly.
If it is small, I can move it to the side of my widescreen monitor and keep it in full sight all the time. Which has also the advantage that it saves me to either remember a keyboard short-cut, or to search for it in the taskbar amongst the trillions of open windows, when I finally want to change that playlist.

eieio
Reply #9 Saturday, September 8, 2007 9:58 AM
I tend to like them a bit smallish so I can tuck them over at the side of my windows (I almost never run any window maximized, with the exceptions of Photoshop and SkinStudio).

And if I do have a window maximized, a thin Xion skin that fits along the top on the titlebar works great ... easy access and doesn't get in the way.

ZubaZ
Reply #10 Saturday, September 8, 2007 11:11 AM
Other than being ablt to show them off . .I never see my mediia players.  All of the ones I use the most pick up the media keys on my keyboard.

To each their own.

Xiandi
Reply #11 Saturday, September 8, 2007 6:56 PM
I like the small players too. The main reason is the larger ones tend to jam up my computer. Whenever I have a larger one on my screen, all the other windows that I have open freeze up. I cant do anything until I minimize the player....yes, I need to upgrade my computer. But until then, small players with little or no eye candy are the way to go for me.

HG_Eliminator
Reply #12 Saturday, September 8, 2007 7:44 PM
I see this not as an argument, but more as a round about way of asking for some smaller players. I too would like to see, if possible, a size changing button.. Or some way of changing to Mini and bar modes.. like the other players have

sleepydawg
Reply #13 Saturday, September 8, 2007 8:23 PM
Or some way of changing to Mini and bar modes.. like the other players have


Xion can do this, and even does with the default skin. You are right HG, skinners should include this option if Xion is to compete with other players.
Let's not forget that the best thing about Xion is that it is lightweight. (And very easy to skin).

messiah1
Reply #14 Saturday, September 8, 2007 9:39 PM
I'm probably the biggest offender in the "Large Skin" department, but I don't care, I like 'em all shapes and sizes. (I think I once said that about something else too.....)


Um...have you seen I.R.'s skins...

cplair
Reply #15 Saturday, September 8, 2007 9:42 PM


This is a shot with the Xion Alexis by zeolyte at 1280 X 1024.

While this is a rather big player for my taste, I wouldn't call this enormous at all and it only takes up this much of my 19" LCD's real estate.

Dabble a bit with your new screen's auto adjust and resolution settings and your video card as well! The difference may just be a small tweak away.

Cp

  


vStyler
Reply #16 Saturday, September 8, 2007 10:03 PM
forgot to add I agree with.. "sometimes 'less is more'"

elvee
Reply #17 Saturday, September 8, 2007 11:47 PM
My personal taste are smaller ones also. I just wish Xion could have Audio/Video Remote Control Profile support for my bluetooth headphones.

ArileenDesign
Reply #18 Sunday, September 9, 2007 2:46 AM
i agree with that too i like them small there a shoot with the last player(the 80% version) i made and i run under 1280x1024



I.R. Brainiac
Reply #19 Sunday, September 9, 2007 6:00 PM
heck,I was thinking of making a party mode skin that takes up the whole screen...not sure how many processors could handle all the animations and flashing lights tho...

A real spastastic epileptic fit inducing skin would be fun.  

I'll call it JAFOS...(just another freakin' obnoxious skin).

OK,I run away now----------------->      

vStyler
Reply #20 Sunday, September 9, 2007 7:01 PM
    

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