DesktopX 3.5 was released recently, and one of the biggest feature updates is the ability to export your DX creations as a Vista sidebar gadget. Creating a gadget for the Vista sidebar isn’t the easiest thing to do, and it has limitations that DesktopX can easily overcome. DesktopX is a very powerful application which can create a wide variety of mini-applications for your desktop. These can range from simple weather gadgets, on up to very complex applications with multiple functions all that can be wrapped in custom graphics.
The gadgets that can be created with DesktopX can be scripted with many languages including C++, which allows an almost endless amount of possibilities. Now if you aren’t big on scripting, don’t be too intimidated, as you can still create some great gadgets with the included plugins, or by going through the huge amount of documentation/tutorials provided by Stardock. You can also find more tutorials written by experienced community members which can be found at the WinCustomize Wiki.
I have created quite a few DesktopX widgets over the last few years, and although I am not a coder, I was able to create some really cool and useful widgets. I’m going to take you on a walkthrough on how to create a desktop widget, and turn it into a Vista sidebar gadget using DesktopX Pro 3.5. I’m going to break apart the Election Countdown gadget I made, which will make a perfect example for today’s guide.
This is one of the best sidebar gadgets for Vista….ever! This gadget checks the status of your website at your choice of intervals (1-60). You can run multiple instances of this gadget to watch a variety of your sites to make sure they are functioning properly. The background will change to display the status of your site, so it’s easy to spot a problem.
I just went and picked up copy of Battlefield: Bad Company. There is a bad storm coming through so I only got to play a bit of the single player. It seemed pretty good, although I am really wanting to go head on into the multiplayer aspect of it.
The great people over at The Vista Forums have a contest going on where you can win an Xbox 360 Elite, and several other prizes. This is to celebrate them reaching the 30,000 member mark, and entering the contest is easy. All you have to do is write a review of a Microsoft hardware product, or anything listed as Vista capable. More details and rules can be found at the link below.
Long Zheng (istartedsomething.com) has created a Windows Vista UI “taskforce” which will gather and record all known UI quirks in Windows Vista. Obviously, nothing can be guaranteed to be fixed, but Long will send the list to someone at Microsoft and hopefully get some results. He is asking for help in finding these quirks and there is already quite a big list of some interesting glitches in the Vista UI. These are also fixes that could lead themselves into “Windows 7″ as well.
Head over to his site and check out the current list, and if you know of something that should be there, go ahead and submit it. You can also help out by spreading the word about the UI “taskforce” on your blog or social network.
To help count down the days until the release of the upcoming PC game, The Political Machine 2008, I created these gadgets for your desktop. One gadget will run on any XP or Vista desktop, and the other is for the Windows Vista Sidebar.
“Last year’s successful launch of the Apple iPhone made clear to cell phone makers that yes, the experience a “commodity” provides for the customer matters. PC makers have begun to take note and leading the way is Dell who began pre-loading the new Dell Dock on consumer PCs yesterday.
The new dock, represents a significant improvement for Windows Vista users over the default experience by seamlessly integrating programs and data into the desktop experience. It’s a first step to be sure but it’s a pretty bold move for one of the world’s leading PC producers to take.
While at a glance, one might try to argue that the dock looks like the MacOS X dock. But that would be akin to people saying that the dock in MacOS X is like the LaunchPad that came with IBM OS/2. What makes the Dell dock special is its ease of customization, low memory foot print, and raw performance. In addition, as pretty as the Dell Dock is, its focus is on usability rather than flash. Short-cuts get separated from folders, the category view is designed for ease of access, and dozens of small touches make it feel as if it were a natural part of Windows.”
Windows Vista is here, and regardless of whether you upgraded from XP, or just purchased a new PC with it installed, I’m sure you are ready to customize the way Vista looks. Now we can go in all sorts of directions in customizing Vista, but I wanted to cover some of the basics as that is enough for most people.
Let me also take this time to cover a few questions about customizing Vista that you might have.
Q.Will it use many resources or “slow” Vista down?
A. By using the tools I will show you, your system performance should not be affected at all.
Q.Will this somehow “hurt” my computer?
A. Not at all. The methods used here are not system hacks, and the software I will show here is fully tested on Vista.
Q.Is this free?
A. Some applications are free, and some require a purchase after the trial period runs out. The price of the applications are typically small and well worth the investment.
Changing the Vista Logon
The logon screen is basically the first thing you see when you start your computer. Windows Vista has a nice default logon screen, but why not personalize it? To do that, just go and grab yourself a copy of LogonStudio Vista and have at it. LogonStudio Vista (free) lets you easily change a create the Windows Vista logon to any number of downloadable logons already available. If you prefer to use an image of your own, it’s as simple as drag and drop to create your own.
I just caught this post by Brandon LeBlanc at the Windows Experience Blog today about a new application for photographers from Microsoft.
Microsoft today has made available a new tool for photographers using Windows for their digital photos: Microsoft Pro Photo Tools V1. This application lets you quickly edit the metadata on digital photos you’ve shot with your camera - including RAW formats.
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