commie bastard...

Most of those could be at any blog site without any noticeable effect to the skinners.

Having been through this "end of WC" issue every year for the past six years, I have concluded that idle spectulation is a waste of time and it will be what it will be.  Then one can either stay or leave as it suits their needs.

I totally agree kenwas.

So...like this is a "Purge" to "purify" the site? WC folks won't be flocking there (JU) anytime soon. Where do you want them to go?

I'm sure you noticed that the games and questions, quasi-political topics, etc. along with "Month's Desktops", "WIP's" and I.D.'s articles seem to keep the people on the site and keep it (for want of a better term) alive at all hours?

How many of the visitors don't have SD software? Can marketing get together with the devs and produce a site that'll "temporarily" (only while the person is on the site) 'skin' the visitor's system so he/she can see what it'll look like and not have to install/uninstall trial versions?

Do you think SD marketing alone will keep people on the site, Zu? The software is great, but you need WP's and skins to show what things can look like with the software.

Another area that needs "livening up" is the WinWikipedia. Not enough people try skinning because honestly, it appears so daunting.

Maybe a "Video Professor" type approach would produce more customers and skinners....Yeah, I'm trying to repopularize skinning.

If galleries like "Wallpapers" are simply "gone", the attractions of the site decrease and so will it's "Showcase" potential for StarDock. One hand washes the other....of course, "theme Manager" could solve that.

Quoting DrJBHL #107:

"Maybe a "Video Professor" type approach would produce more customers and skinners....Yeah, I'm trying to repopularize skinning."

Great idea! Don't know if it's do-able, but it might work for people like me who need to see something done before it maks sense.

Precisely, and that's why Stardock will maintain the wallpaper and 3rd-party skin galleries for subscribers, but have them turned off by default to other users/visitors... otherwise, Stardock cuts off its nose to spite its face, and quite frankly I don't see Brad doing that to his livelihood, and ultimately his customers.

Furthermore, with regard to the WC forums, the comments relating to non-skinning threads, there has been little activity of late and those joke/game/fun threads have pretty much been keeping the forums alive... and as they are placed in the 'general discussion' area they do not necessarily detract from skinning specific threads, which are generally (or should be) placed in the 'customisation and/or Stardock Support sections.

The point I'm trying to make here is that the patrons of WC have interests other than skinning and come from many diverse and varied backgrounds that it would be self-defeating to eliminate the fun and political discussion threads in favour of skinning based threads and nothing else.  We need the diversity and varied topics to keep breathing life into what would otherwise be dull, boring and almost dead forums.... otherwise people will frequent other sites more and return here only when the need for a fresh desktop drives them to.

please  try preserve WB, misc icons and xion if possible. those are the areas i frequent fom time to time. 

WinCustomize has been dying from the inside for several years. A site originally intended for skinning has become a place where people just want to download. What has been needed for some time is a new direction.

Perhaps a clean out will be a good thing.

Whatever happens, I will continue to support the site and skinners as I aways have.

Rest asure that the WB category will stick around

Hear hear!!

i havent even celebrated a one year anniversary with WC yet. hmm.

i too will support WC too. since ive already invested in WB 

Guys . . . I don't mean to say that the off-topic posts were bad or the cause of anything, or that they were going away.  I have no idea what the plans are.

My point was that there are other resources (like JU) avbailalbe for that type of community stuff if it wasn't part of WC.

I LIKE the community of WC.  You all are my friends and I hope the sub drive makes . . but if it doesn't and things change it doesn't mean the death of the site or the friendships or the skins.  It jsut means a change.

Actually, marketing people will have the view point of making sales so they will certainly care a good deal about what the Community of subscribers and ODNT software customers want. The customers will have precedence (as will showcasing SD and affiliate products...viz advertising dollars to maintain the site) over visitors who pay for nothing and just download.

This is only fair. I don't want anyone deprived, but when push comes to shove with respect to budgeting who should have more say? Remember: SD listens, but it isn't a democracy, it's a business.

Well...I didn't want to be the first to say it, but...if keeping SD and WC 'alive' means changing things around some....

because I love the place and the people. Even Zubaz.

And, it wouldn't hurt to say "thank you" for doing this (obviously) thankless task.

You want to push for your point of view? If you're Subscribed, great. If not, then Subscribe ASAP.

Folks: Just don't say, "Why didn't you tell us this was in the works."

Will the Master Skin Program be altered in any way?

I've renewed again - I have no idea how far ahead I'm set for - doesn't matter.  As long as Stardock has products and a forum, I'll continue lurking.  Outside of the skins, I don't remember the last non SD downloads I've made.

Brad doesn't always (rarely? ) puts things diplomatically but I have every faith that what's important to subscribers will be covered.

I really don't understand why people keep bringing up "this is the end of the community".  That hasn't been said at all.  The forums aren't going anywhere, we basically talking about a new direction for the site.

WindowBlinds is a Stardock product so if anything, it would get greater attention than say, Xion.  That's exactly what Brad is saying.  You would not see any content for products outside of Stardock.

I personally don't think the entire issue is about people being afraid of change, rather that people are afraid of good things coming to an end, as I suppose all good things must do at some stage.  That's what I believe is the greatest concern.

While I agree that speculating, predicting the worst and fear-mongering at such an early juncture is unnecessary, I do think that it's important to consider and discuss the impact a totally Stardock marketed approach would have on a site whose initial purpose was to cater for the wider skinning community.

I don't begrudge Brad's desire to take WC in a different, easier-to-manage and hopefully more profitable direction and in this day and age it's probably a good business move, but I dare say the title of this thread is probably far more portentous to the Wincustomize skinning community as a whole than was intended, so I don't think people's concerns are unfounded.

The difference for this website as I see it, in very basic terms would be a strictly "what's best for Stardock" approach, as opposed to the "what's best for skinning and its community" attitude I've witnessed in WC since its inception.

I guess the skinning scene has indeed changed and become more mainstream, and Stardock itself and its approach has indeed changed.  It's just sad to think that the Wincustomize we know and love today has its days numbered.
As far as the WC community itself is concerned, I suppose it can weather the changes, but whether it does so well and unscathed remains to be seen.