Hunting for DX ideas
Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by _Martin_ | Discussion: WinCustomize News
Recently there has been a marked upturn in the number of people I have noticed getting involved in DesktopX and providing feedback. This is possibly because recently there have been same excellent objects made, and widgets are making things even easier.Numerous comments come in saying how useful these things are and how great the ideas are, but some of us are running short of ideas! Now Tiggz seems to have the monopoly on combining great ideas with awesome graphics but I'm sure he like me can't keep coming up with new ideas all the time.
What do people want to see made in DesktopX? If you can't make some of these things why not come up with the ideas, and maybe we'll get a chance to make them come to life?
Looking forward to hearing ideas, now I'm off to open the floodgates!
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Halluci
Reply #2 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 6:17 AM
Reply #2 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 6:17 AM
hmm... i dont know if it's possible, but i would really love an email checker wich works for hotmail accounts...
StumpMan
Reply #3 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 6:52 AM
Reply #3 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 6:52 AM
How about one that shows a picture frame and allows you to add your own photos, and rotates between them at a set interval?
Or, one that tells how many emails are waiting, and with the click of a button, scroll thru the subject line of the email and open the email without going thru the email app?
Or, one that tells how many emails are waiting, and with the click of a button, scroll thru the subject line of the email and open the email without going thru the email app?
syonin
Reply #4 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 7:05 AM
Reply #4 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 7:05 AM
Kids desktop, hunts for installed versions of known educational software and makes large crayon like buttons for the kids to get to it easily. Also can include things like a large number calculator and shape/color/number games that play on the desktop itself.
Official skinz for upcoming game/movie releases. Easier said than done, but push on in this realm. Prince-O-Persia 2, SplinterCell3 and so on are all good candidates.
Sports Fans Desktop, hooks into live stats for the team ed durring install. Includes a scoreboard for any game currently being played.
Weather interactive desktop. Take the docklet a step further and have the rain leak onto windows and puddle up near the taskbar. Sunny days have the shadow drift as the day rolls on. Snow is pretty obvious. Heavy wind could have occasional debris fly by.
Desktop Background Task managment. All windows forms get a new button that turn the task into an IconX object and can be dragged into the 3D background. Blended into the background, hilight on hover, restore&focus on click. Think of a picture of a wooden desk, and your word doc shrinks to an icon that looks like sheets of paper you can place on the desk, and drag out later when you need it again. Nice animation when dropping the object onto the background.
Where windows only see's 2 layers of windows the background windows and the one focused window, have seperate windows able to reside in the same layer of space. So 2 windows not directly related can be set on the same layer and they effect each other. One window can "Push" the other around in the same layer, or have edges magnet-like that makes the windows lock together and moved at the same time. Also, when either window is focused, the entire layer is given focus.
** that's all I got for now, maybe post more suggestions later **
Official skinz for upcoming game/movie releases. Easier said than done, but push on in this realm. Prince-O-Persia 2, SplinterCell3 and so on are all good candidates.
Sports Fans Desktop, hooks into live stats for the team ed durring install. Includes a scoreboard for any game currently being played.
Weather interactive desktop. Take the docklet a step further and have the rain leak onto windows and puddle up near the taskbar. Sunny days have the shadow drift as the day rolls on. Snow is pretty obvious. Heavy wind could have occasional debris fly by.
Desktop Background Task managment. All windows forms get a new button that turn the task into an IconX object and can be dragged into the 3D background. Blended into the background, hilight on hover, restore&focus on click. Think of a picture of a wooden desk, and your word doc shrinks to an icon that looks like sheets of paper you can place on the desk, and drag out later when you need it again. Nice animation when dropping the object onto the background.
Where windows only see's 2 layers of windows the background windows and the one focused window, have seperate windows able to reside in the same layer of space. So 2 windows not directly related can be set on the same layer and they effect each other. One window can "Push" the other around in the same layer, or have edges magnet-like that makes the windows lock together and moved at the same time. Also, when either window is focused, the entire layer is given focus.
** that's all I got for now, maybe post more suggestions later **
Corky_O
Reply #5 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 7:25 AM
Reply #5 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 7:25 AM
Martin,
Off the top of my head I thought of something in the way of an address book that would consist of an image of a book (maybe 256 x 176?) which would act as a toggle for the display frame (small window of some sort) which would contain: Name, Address, Phone, E-mail.
It would need a next and previous search button as well as a reference for alphabetical search to speed up process.
A button or link for New, Edit and Delete entries (a right click context might work nicely to avoid defeating the simplistic object idea), or small colored buttons somewhere.
It would be nice to be able to change the color of the book and window frame, not sure how feasible that would be.
Also, the same idea which would link to Outlook for listings.
Perhaps a seperate professional contacts object which could list by company name?
I thought a smaller version of your appointment calendar would be nice. Maybe 1/2 the current size.
Also, zoomer calendars, clocks, media player objects?
Just some ideas on the fly.
Thanks for all the great work so far, I will attempt some entries of my own when I can find time outside of work.
Off the top of my head I thought of something in the way of an address book that would consist of an image of a book (maybe 256 x 176?) which would act as a toggle for the display frame (small window of some sort) which would contain: Name, Address, Phone, E-mail.
It would need a next and previous search button as well as a reference for alphabetical search to speed up process.
A button or link for New, Edit and Delete entries (a right click context might work nicely to avoid defeating the simplistic object idea), or small colored buttons somewhere.
It would be nice to be able to change the color of the book and window frame, not sure how feasible that would be.
Also, the same idea which would link to Outlook for listings.
Perhaps a seperate professional contacts object which could list by company name?
I thought a smaller version of your appointment calendar would be nice. Maybe 1/2 the current size.
Also, zoomer calendars, clocks, media player objects?
Just some ideas on the fly.
Thanks for all the great work so far, I will attempt some entries of my own when I can find time outside of work.
ethsza
Reply #6 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 8:11 AM
Reply #6 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 8:11 AM
Hi,
first of all, I'd like if internet-aware widgets (weather, mail checker, news reader...) would be able to run behind a proxy, so that they could be run in a corporate environment as well.
I'd be happy with widgets like:
-A clone of MAC OSX's expose. See http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/expose/
-forum/artist watcher. I specify which wincustomize/deviantart forum or artist I want to watch, and a notification would pop up on my desktop even without visiting wincustomize.com or deviantart.com
-A newsgroup notifier. (not for RSS newsfeeds, but for news.stardock.* newsgroups) It would check, if there are new replies to watched posts in newsgroups. I guess some of the most used newsgroup apps should be supported.
will wrote more later
first of all, I'd like if internet-aware widgets (weather, mail checker, news reader...) would be able to run behind a proxy, so that they could be run in a corporate environment as well.
I'd be happy with widgets like:
-A clone of MAC OSX's expose. See http://www.apple.com/macosx/features/expose/
-forum/artist watcher. I specify which wincustomize/deviantart forum or artist I want to watch, and a notification would pop up on my desktop even without visiting wincustomize.com or deviantart.com
-A newsgroup notifier. (not for RSS newsfeeds, but for news.stardock.* newsgroups) It would check, if there are new replies to watched posts in newsgroups. I guess some of the most used newsgroup apps should be supported.
will wrote more later
ZiUL
Reply #7 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 8:51 AM
Reply #7 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 8:51 AM
How about a soud gauge? You now... that things that keeps going up and down following the sound that's playing.. just eyecandy... 
jvenables
Reply #8 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 9:31 AM
Reply #8 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 9:31 AM
I love all the lovely widgets & objects appearing. I think being a newbie in this area with no graphical skills I rely heavily on the skills and willingness of all the developers spending the time creating the objects and widgets.
I love the weather, calendar tools that are created usually by Martin, I would like to see the objects have some sort of colour changing abilities & the ability to have it look part of the desktop rather than an object on top of the wallpaper.
Extra things for me are a small footprint windows media player object & a bluetooth type object to speed up the use of various bluetooth profiles on my Dell Axim & my Nokia bluetooth phone.
Also, I would like to see more system monitoring objects that can also have the colour changed or merged with the wallpaper.
Halluci mentioned an email checker, I think an object on the desktop that advises how many mails you have unread & can support multiple accounts including web based accounts would be beneficial. Hopefully utilising the same ability to change colours or merging with the wallpaper.
Sorry for the long post.
Regards
John
I love the weather, calendar tools that are created usually by Martin, I would like to see the objects have some sort of colour changing abilities & the ability to have it look part of the desktop rather than an object on top of the wallpaper.
Extra things for me are a small footprint windows media player object & a bluetooth type object to speed up the use of various bluetooth profiles on my Dell Axim & my Nokia bluetooth phone.
Also, I would like to see more system monitoring objects that can also have the colour changed or merged with the wallpaper.
Halluci mentioned an email checker, I think an object on the desktop that advises how many mails you have unread & can support multiple accounts including web based accounts would be beneficial. Hopefully utilising the same ability to change colours or merging with the wallpaper.
Sorry for the long post.
Regards
John
PixelPirate
Reply #9 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 9:58 AM
Reply #9 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 9:58 AM
I would also like a photoframe, customizable like the one for Konfabulator, it does it's job just like it should.
4k-Watts
Reply #10 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 10:28 AM
Reply #10 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 10:28 AM
I would love to see a widget based on the "ServerSpy" web site plug-in that would allow me to monitor a game server from my desk top. The ability to have multiple ones (or "instances") would be awsome! 
danioc
Reply #11 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:05 AM
Reply #11 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:05 AM
I would like to work DX but i can't find a User Guide to help me with the scripts thing, and the PDF files (DevelopersGuide.pdf, ScriptingGuide.pdf, UsersGuide.pdf) installed with DX are corrupted. I reported it at Stardock IRC channel to check if someone have this files but everyone that i asked got the files corrupted too.
So anyone have a good DX guide/manual to help me?
thank you
So anyone have a good DX guide/manual to help me?
thank you
Rich
Reply #12 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:08 AM
Reply #12 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:08 AM
I would like to see something that would/could take the place of Trillian and all it's glory. now that would be a DX widget!
Wet Monkey
Reply #13 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:19 AM
Reply #13 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:19 AM
I would be happy with a email checker that can handle multiple POP 3 accounts and a internet based account such as Yahoo. Also, it would be nice to be able to have a help file that was not corrupted, (me too), or some form of documentation so that I could figure this program out, or at least try
deleted
Reply #14 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:39 AM
Reply #14 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:39 AM
Speech Recognition (eg saying "IE" would launch internet explorer, "notepad" would launch notepad, etc.) would be awesome. I got my feet wet a while back trying to figure out how to do this in VB, but to no avail. Perhaps someone who really knows how to code in C or Java cold find a better way to do this. The thread I started on the subject can be found here: https://www.wincustomize.com/msgboard.asp?BID=WCS&id=170419#173127 
StumpMan
Reply #15 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:48 AM
Reply #15 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 11:48 AM
Another idea I had was to use real photos for the IconX part. Such as a photo of a notpad (clicking on it opens notepad), real photo of calculator, etc.
I always thought an icon theme built on that idea would be cool too, but since I basically suck at photography (i'm the guy who takes about a dozen pictures before he realizes the lenscap is still on) I wanted to toss this out to the artists...
I always thought an icon theme built on that idea would be cool too, but since I basically suck at photography (i'm the guy who takes about a dozen pictures before he realizes the lenscap is still on) I wanted to toss this out to the artists...
Tiggz
Reply #16 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:03 PM
Reply #16 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:03 PM
danillo - if you go into the desktopx install directory and find the 'docs' folder, you can make a copy of ScriptingGuide.pdf and rename it to ScriptingGuide.doc. Make a shortcut to this somewhere handy and it should open up in word (that's what I have done and it works ok for me).
GreatSilverWyrm
Reply #17 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:18 PM
Reply #17 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:18 PM
How about a countdown widget? It'd let you enter the release date of a movie or a book or whatever, then show a count-down of it, and notify you when the countdown reaches 0...
JDavidHarper
Reply #18 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:26 PM
Reply #18 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:26 PM
Here's what I most want: An e-mail checker that will tell show me the subject lines of the stuff in my in-box.
Nutshell69
Reply #19 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:35 PM
Reply #19 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:35 PM
Chat Objects that connect to the most used Chat systems
(Yahoo,AIM,MSN,IRC)
Include ability for Video
(Yahoo,AIM,MSN,IRC)
Include ability for Video
Rabalam
Reply #20 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:47 PM
Reply #20 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 12:47 PM
I would love to use the desktopX product I use just about everthing else but the desktopx application. The reason for this is that I use the virtual desktops and it appears that the desktop can not handle virtual desktops. If this is not the case can someone give me the details to how to get Desktopx to work with virtual desktops and dual monitors too. I forgot to mention that I also have dual monitors setup.
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Reply #1 Tuesday, August 10, 2004 5:44 AM
this is stuff i would like to see more of for desktop x: http://konfabulator.com/images/Bottom_Part.jpg