http://www.designevolved.net/board/ Thu, 17 May 2012 15:25:03 +0000 MyBB http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=584 Thu, 15 Apr 2010 20:49:01 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=584
Thanks for putting up with this for a whole 2 years almost...]]>
Thanks for putting up with this for a whole 2 years almost...]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=582 Sun, 28 Mar 2010 12:49:49 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=582
Lately, there has been a rediculous influx of spam bots (some of them, for reasons that are completely beyond me, forget to actually link to something). As such, I have decided today that until further notice all registrations will require administrator approval.

As such, any new users can still register the usual way, but their account will not be activated until an administrator approves it.

Sorry for any issues this may cause.]]>
Lately, there has been a rediculous influx of spam bots (some of them, for reasons that are completely beyond me, forget to actually link to something). As such, I have decided today that until further notice all registrations will require administrator approval.

As such, any new users can still register the usual way, but their account will not be activated until an administrator approves it.

Sorry for any issues this may cause.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=536 Mon, 04 Jan 2010 15:38:06 -0800 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=536
I know I have kind of been really really inactive lately, but there have been numerous reasons as to why things have come to a complete halt around here lately.

I suppose the main reason is the future of Messenger Plus! Live.

I have been a skinner now for nearly 5 years now and have been with the Messenger Plus! Live community for about 3 years. In the more recent months there has been a transition occurring to the new era of Messenger Plus! Live.

At first it looked like that things were still going to be the same, but with recent developments I am starting to have doubts about whether or not I should continue to skin.

For those who don't know, Messenger Plus Live has been transition from ownership from Patchou to a company called Yuna Software. From what I gathered I thought it was just Patchou making his own company so that it would make things more professional and it wouldn't come down to a person being the face of a product. But at the end of the day, Patchou would still be the man in charge.

But in recent weeks that seems to be less and less the case as more and more things start pointing to Patchou not being in full control of Plus! anymore and the decision making being done by several people.

At the moment things aren't really crystal clear so I can't really 100% judge the situation. But there have been recent developments (ones that I choose not to disclose) which have started to make me doubt that I will continue to skin in 2010.

To me, whether or not I continue skinning will ultimately depend on how things proceed with Messenger Plus! and the vast community that has been built over the years.

The ball is in your court guys.

Willz]]>
I know I have kind of been really really inactive lately, but there have been numerous reasons as to why things have come to a complete halt around here lately.

I suppose the main reason is the future of Messenger Plus! Live.

I have been a skinner now for nearly 5 years now and have been with the Messenger Plus! Live community for about 3 years. In the more recent months there has been a transition occurring to the new era of Messenger Plus! Live.

At first it looked like that things were still going to be the same, but with recent developments I am starting to have doubts about whether or not I should continue to skin.

For those who don't know, Messenger Plus Live has been transition from ownership from Patchou to a company called Yuna Software. From what I gathered I thought it was just Patchou making his own company so that it would make things more professional and it wouldn't come down to a person being the face of a product. But at the end of the day, Patchou would still be the man in charge.

But in recent weeks that seems to be less and less the case as more and more things start pointing to Patchou not being in full control of Plus! anymore and the decision making being done by several people.

At the moment things aren't really crystal clear so I can't really 100% judge the situation. But there have been recent developments (ones that I choose not to disclose) which have started to make me doubt that I will continue to skin in 2010.

To me, whether or not I continue skinning will ultimately depend on how things proceed with Messenger Plus! and the vast community that has been built over the years.

The ball is in your court guys.

Willz]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=535 Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:20:48 -0800 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=535
As some of you may have noticed, the forums were taken offline for an update and a spambot overhaul. We have had a very strong influx of spam bots in the past weeks, from India, and the situation was getting seriously out of hand.

I have personally moved the threads that I found, and banned the appropriate users.

If you find that I have made any mistakes, alert the staff immediately!!!

As well, if you notice any spam bots or posts, I urge you to use the report button! This helps us locate the posts and threads quite a lot faster.

Thanks,
Louis
DesignEvolved.net Staff]]>
As some of you may have noticed, the forums were taken offline for an update and a spambot overhaul. We have had a very strong influx of spam bots in the past weeks, from India, and the situation was getting seriously out of hand.

I have personally moved the threads that I found, and banned the appropriate users.

If you find that I have made any mistakes, alert the staff immediately!!!

As well, if you notice any spam bots or posts, I urge you to use the report button! This helps us locate the posts and threads quite a lot faster.

Thanks,
Louis
DesignEvolved.net Staff]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=466 Mon, 28 Sep 2009 22:55:17 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=466 3:09PM - GMT+10 Time

As of this time, there have been over 10 million of my skins downloaded from the Messenger Plus database.

Quite a big milestone to reach in just under a year and a half since skins were first introduced to Messenger Plus! Live. I have to say that things have surely come a long way since I first started skinning 3 years ago.

Back then any skin author was lucky to reach the 100,000 mark in collective downloads. 10 Million was such an unimaginable number. But yeah its finally happened and I was actually around to see the ticker clock over to 10 million which was fortunate as well.

I would like to thank everyone who has ever used any of my skins and would especially like to thank those who continually support the work I do and are patient when I go through periods time where I don't make anything (like now).

Now for the special thanks. I think without this group of people here I don't think I would have come as far as I have now:

ipab - We've come a long way since the early days on the Messenger Lab boards where a clueless kid appeared saying "Yep, I'm going to make my own skin and you'll see how awesome it is".

fizical and theunknown - Hey it's you guys that actually got me interested in skinning in the first place. Your skins will always be the best in my mind.

thesteve and theblasphemer - Thanks for constantly saving the skin and customization world from certain doom. Had it not been for you guys I would have left the scene at Messenger 8.0, like so many of the other skinners

stianu89 and blu_eyes - Without competition, there is no innovation. Although we did share ideas and collaborate a few times. Having you guys as competition during the 8.1 era was great. It really pushed my skins to a new level.

The Messenger Plus! community - Yeah you guys are probably one of the most awesome group of people I've ever come to know. Sam gets a special mention simply because he was hosting some of my skins early days.

Menthix - for having the patience to receive all the modifications I make to my skins and running the database and giving me a place to check my stats. ZOMG 10 Million!

Patchou - The big man himself, thanks for being patient with my constant nagging of features. I'm still waiting for better control of tabbed chats .

mk - yeah out of all the people i've randomly met as a result of skinning, you're probably the most unique. Zero-G ftw lol (even though I still think Phunk'n is way better)

the designevolved staff and those involved with the site - Lou, shayne etc.

mynetx, mess.be, msgstuff.com, msntribe.it and any other site thats featured me - for featuring my stuff as news and making me look important

The facebook fans - Wow I actually have fans Who would have ever thought.

and lastly. You. The users.

10 Million has been great. But its not over, not by a long shot. I'm getting close to finally completing my portfolio website which means I should be able to get back into some more serious skinning. Keep an eye open, because 10 Million is only the beginning.

Here is to the next 10 million.

Willz.]]> 3:09PM - GMT+10 Time

As of this time, there have been over 10 million of my skins downloaded from the Messenger Plus database.

Quite a big milestone to reach in just under a year and a half since skins were first introduced to Messenger Plus! Live. I have to say that things have surely come a long way since I first started skinning 3 years ago.

Back then any skin author was lucky to reach the 100,000 mark in collective downloads. 10 Million was such an unimaginable number. But yeah its finally happened and I was actually around to see the ticker clock over to 10 million which was fortunate as well.

I would like to thank everyone who has ever used any of my skins and would especially like to thank those who continually support the work I do and are patient when I go through periods time where I don't make anything (like now).

Now for the special thanks. I think without this group of people here I don't think I would have come as far as I have now:

ipab - We've come a long way since the early days on the Messenger Lab boards where a clueless kid appeared saying "Yep, I'm going to make my own skin and you'll see how awesome it is".

fizical and theunknown - Hey it's you guys that actually got me interested in skinning in the first place. Your skins will always be the best in my mind.

thesteve and theblasphemer - Thanks for constantly saving the skin and customization world from certain doom. Had it not been for you guys I would have left the scene at Messenger 8.0, like so many of the other skinners

stianu89 and blu_eyes - Without competition, there is no innovation. Although we did share ideas and collaborate a few times. Having you guys as competition during the 8.1 era was great. It really pushed my skins to a new level.

The Messenger Plus! community - Yeah you guys are probably one of the most awesome group of people I've ever come to know. Sam gets a special mention simply because he was hosting some of my skins early days.

Menthix - for having the patience to receive all the modifications I make to my skins and running the database and giving me a place to check my stats. ZOMG 10 Million!

Patchou - The big man himself, thanks for being patient with my constant nagging of features. I'm still waiting for better control of tabbed chats .

mk - yeah out of all the people i've randomly met as a result of skinning, you're probably the most unique. Zero-G ftw lol (even though I still think Phunk'n is way better)

the designevolved staff and those involved with the site - Lou, shayne etc.

mynetx, mess.be, msgstuff.com, msntribe.it and any other site thats featured me - for featuring my stuff as news and making me look important

The facebook fans - Wow I actually have fans Who would have ever thought.

and lastly. You. The users.

10 Million has been great. But its not over, not by a long shot. I'm getting close to finally completing my portfolio website which means I should be able to get back into some more serious skinning. Keep an eye open, because 10 Million is only the beginning.

Here is to the next 10 million.

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=459 Sun, 06 Sep 2009 20:09:47 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=459
Sometime last week whilst waiting for some feedback on some client work I began toying with a few new ideas which I had had in mind for a while now, but hadn't ever bother to experiment with because of time constraints.

So I started toying around and found that the stuff I thought wouldn't work actually did (of course with a LOT of trial and error). So I started playing around with a new layout based on this code base. At the time I wasn't entirely sure if what I was playing with would shape itself to be a skin simply because I wasn't sure if everything else would fall into play properly.

In its current stage, its highly unusable but I think I should be able to bring it into a usable skin with a bit of effort. So is this an announcement for a new skin? Yes and no.

The project for now is known as Codename Komodo. I haven't given it a name yet since its not structured. Whether or not it will be released will depend on how well it works, but either way Komodo will form that basis of another skin design I had in mind a while ago.

ETA? There is none, don't bother asking

I can't stress that point enough. Keep in mind I am still pretty busy at the moment with building my flash portfolio and some client work so skinning is at the bottom of my to-do list.

On a side note:

Apparently Messenger 8.1 and 8.5 will be slowly phased out this month and people will be forced to upgrade to Messenger 2009 (or whatever you want to call it).

Two things on this:

1: Now would be a good time to update, regardless of your opinion about 2009 its something you have to live with now. (for those wondering, no I will not be making a skin that looks like 8.5. Seriously people, stop dwelling on the past )

2: The 8.5 skins that have not been updated to 2009 yet will NOT be updated to 2009 (excluding Windows Aero Messenger, don't ask about this one yet either ). Some of the movie skins may later be re-invented when sequels come out (i.e Iron Man 2). But asides from that they are now discontinued.

Yeah I think that about covers it. Anyway back to work for me.

Willz.]]>
Sometime last week whilst waiting for some feedback on some client work I began toying with a few new ideas which I had had in mind for a while now, but hadn't ever bother to experiment with because of time constraints.

So I started toying around and found that the stuff I thought wouldn't work actually did (of course with a LOT of trial and error). So I started playing around with a new layout based on this code base. At the time I wasn't entirely sure if what I was playing with would shape itself to be a skin simply because I wasn't sure if everything else would fall into play properly.

In its current stage, its highly unusable but I think I should be able to bring it into a usable skin with a bit of effort. So is this an announcement for a new skin? Yes and no.

The project for now is known as Codename Komodo. I haven't given it a name yet since its not structured. Whether or not it will be released will depend on how well it works, but either way Komodo will form that basis of another skin design I had in mind a while ago.

ETA? There is none, don't bother asking

I can't stress that point enough. Keep in mind I am still pretty busy at the moment with building my flash portfolio and some client work so skinning is at the bottom of my to-do list.

On a side note:

Apparently Messenger 8.1 and 8.5 will be slowly phased out this month and people will be forced to upgrade to Messenger 2009 (or whatever you want to call it).

Two things on this:

1: Now would be a good time to update, regardless of your opinion about 2009 its something you have to live with now. (for those wondering, no I will not be making a skin that looks like 8.5. Seriously people, stop dwelling on the past )

2: The 8.5 skins that have not been updated to 2009 yet will NOT be updated to 2009 (excluding Windows Aero Messenger, don't ask about this one yet either ). Some of the movie skins may later be re-invented when sequels come out (i.e Iron Man 2). But asides from that they are now discontinued.

Yeah I think that about covers it. Anyway back to work for me.

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=454 Wed, 19 Aug 2009 18:55:53 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=454
And yeah I am not dead . Just been super busy lately so I'm sorry if I have been acting ghost lately. I've also been hearing rumors about a Messenger 10 being in the works (no solid proof yet though). Seems about the right time for a new beta, since Windows 7 is all done with now.

Anyway if any news emerges about a new Messenger I will post about it and how it could possibly affect skins (given the chance I get to muck around with it of course )

For now there is nothing new coming skin wise. I have been fully buried in learning Actionscript 3 and building myself a proper portfolio website. I have been putting it off for quite some time now so its something I have to do first before I move on with anything else.]]>
And yeah I am not dead . Just been super busy lately so I'm sorry if I have been acting ghost lately. I've also been hearing rumors about a Messenger 10 being in the works (no solid proof yet though). Seems about the right time for a new beta, since Windows 7 is all done with now.

Anyway if any news emerges about a new Messenger I will post about it and how it could possibly affect skins (given the chance I get to muck around with it of course )

For now there is nothing new coming skin wise. I have been fully buried in learning Actionscript 3 and building myself a proper portfolio website. I have been putting it off for quite some time now so its something I have to do first before I move on with anything else.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=451 Tue, 14 Jul 2009 23:20:23 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=451
So with that being said I am taking a small break from skinning in order to regroup and work on a few other things other than Messenger skins. I figure its probably the best move to do before I start making anything new or major. It has kind of reached the point where I need to stop looking at skins for a bit to be able to push the envelope further.

Anyway I will post some things from time to time. There is a milestone coming up which I am going to be pretty proud of when it does happen. But more on that later. Just remember that silence doesn't necessarily mean nothing is going on.]]>
So with that being said I am taking a small break from skinning in order to regroup and work on a few other things other than Messenger skins. I figure its probably the best move to do before I start making anything new or major. It has kind of reached the point where I need to stop looking at skins for a bit to be able to push the envelope further.

Anyway I will post some things from time to time. There is a milestone coming up which I am going to be pretty proud of when it does happen. But more on that later. Just remember that silence doesn't necessarily mean nothing is going on.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=444 Thu, 25 Jun 2009 06:57:05 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=444
Well I have come today with a new skin for you boys and girls. It may not be something major like Zero-G, but I think it is something that will keep some people happy nonetheless. G.I. Joe is a movie that is coming up which looks to have a bit of promise so I decided to create a dark skin to suit the world of G.I. Joe.

There isn't really much to say here, it contains the usual series of options you have been used to. Also scenes have been disabled due to the fact that scenes really mess with the design and just look fully out of place.

Now for some screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

And that is about it for now. I am still trying to catch up on a lot of stuff so I am not sure if there will be another skin release anytime soon. At least a major one anyway. We will see what happens. I got a few things I got to work on and the juggling act is making my arms tired ]]>
Well I have come today with a new skin for you boys and girls. It may not be something major like Zero-G, but I think it is something that will keep some people happy nonetheless. G.I. Joe is a movie that is coming up which looks to have a bit of promise so I decided to create a dark skin to suit the world of G.I. Joe.

There isn't really much to say here, it contains the usual series of options you have been used to. Also scenes have been disabled due to the fact that scenes really mess with the design and just look fully out of place.

Now for some screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

And that is about it for now. I am still trying to catch up on a lot of stuff so I am not sure if there will be another skin release anytime soon. At least a major one anyway. We will see what happens. I got a few things I got to work on and the juggling act is making my arms tired ]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=437 Mon, 08 Jun 2009 05:31:18 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=437
Zero-G 3 has gone through a pretty lengthy design process. Initially it began with planning on how we could make the skin adapt to Messenger 9 and keep the style that everyone was used to. Unlike version 2, where em3kay did most of the initial graphics this time because of the strong code base I already had I was able to play a larger role in the graphics department. So you can see where the effort of two graphic designers has come into play. You will also notice a few new visual effects that I have come up with which make the experience all the more sexy.

The skin was built in a pretty good manner, we would make something then expand on it constantly. Several parts of the skin had about 4 or 5 revisions before reaching the final product. The skin is divided in 4 styles (like the previous version), however the theme system has been optimized to use less resources than before.

In addition to the usual settings, there are a few RegTweaks you can play with which are found in the skins install directory. Anyway we are really happy with the result and we hope everyone appreciates the effort that was taken to bring you guys and girls this release.

Now onto screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

In other news, updates to several skins have been released. These updates are for future-proofing the skin in the event of a Messenger Plus! update. These updates aren't crucial, but it is recommend people update to these newer versions eventually.

Well that's all for now, stay tuned for more news on future releases.

Enjoy.

Willz.]]>
Zero-G 3 has gone through a pretty lengthy design process. Initially it began with planning on how we could make the skin adapt to Messenger 9 and keep the style that everyone was used to. Unlike version 2, where em3kay did most of the initial graphics this time because of the strong code base I already had I was able to play a larger role in the graphics department. So you can see where the effort of two graphic designers has come into play. You will also notice a few new visual effects that I have come up with which make the experience all the more sexy.

The skin was built in a pretty good manner, we would make something then expand on it constantly. Several parts of the skin had about 4 or 5 revisions before reaching the final product. The skin is divided in 4 styles (like the previous version), however the theme system has been optimized to use less resources than before.

In addition to the usual settings, there are a few RegTweaks you can play with which are found in the skins install directory. Anyway we are really happy with the result and we hope everyone appreciates the effort that was taken to bring you guys and girls this release.

Now onto screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

In other news, updates to several skins have been released. These updates are for future-proofing the skin in the event of a Messenger Plus! update. These updates aren't crucial, but it is recommend people update to these newer versions eventually.

Well that's all for now, stay tuned for more news on future releases.

Enjoy.

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=432 Thu, 21 May 2009 01:35:14 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=432
So to keep the masses happy I am continuing to bring you guys the awesomeness. May has already seen the release of Phunk'n, a skin that quickly became a favorite amongst the users and the new skin Fuse which was the result of months of coding and planning to bring to life.

So what's next? Well for now the skin releases of May have come to a close. Finishing off 2 major skins wasn't an easy task but I got through it. So I thought I would give you boys and girls a sneak peak at what is heading your way in June (at least one of the things).

Some of you may recognize this:



Yes that's right, its the return of the two-headed monster design team that is Willz and em3kay. We have begun the upgrade of the Zero-G skin and we promise it will be something that will raise the bar even further in terms of graphics.

The all new Zero-G 3 will feature the classic feel of the skin merged with the all new graphics and layout specially optimized for Windows Live Messenger 2009. For now this is all we are going to show. But rest assured this skin will be one of the major releases this year and will impress fans of the skin and newcomers alike.

Heh well that should keep you guys in suspense for a while. Just remember, if things are silent then that's a good thing. It means we are hard at work. Anyway feel free to help make em3kay's ego grow by leaving words of encouragement and whatnot. It helps fuel his designs, he promises.

Willz.]]>
So to keep the masses happy I am continuing to bring you guys the awesomeness. May has already seen the release of Phunk'n, a skin that quickly became a favorite amongst the users and the new skin Fuse which was the result of months of coding and planning to bring to life.

So what's next? Well for now the skin releases of May have come to a close. Finishing off 2 major skins wasn't an easy task but I got through it. So I thought I would give you boys and girls a sneak peak at what is heading your way in June (at least one of the things).

Some of you may recognize this:



Yes that's right, its the return of the two-headed monster design team that is Willz and em3kay. We have begun the upgrade of the Zero-G skin and we promise it will be something that will raise the bar even further in terms of graphics.

The all new Zero-G 3 will feature the classic feel of the skin merged with the all new graphics and layout specially optimized for Windows Live Messenger 2009. For now this is all we are going to show. But rest assured this skin will be one of the major releases this year and will impress fans of the skin and newcomers alike.

Heh well that should keep you guys in suspense for a while. Just remember, if things are silent then that's a good thing. It means we are hard at work. Anyway feel free to help make em3kay's ego grow by leaving words of encouragement and whatnot. It helps fuel his designs, he promises.

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=429 Fri, 15 May 2009 07:43:25 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=429
With every skin I made, I learnt a bit more on how to get around some of these sizing restrictions to condense the space down. So after a lot of coding I was able to construct a skin which significantly brings down the minimum window size you can have when using Messenger.

Fuse features a highly compressed chat window and contact list design. It took a lot of experimentation and a mixture of code from different skins to be able to come to the final product (kinda how it got it's name, it's a fusion of all the layout compression I have done.)

Fuse features the standard options you guys have been used to in my skins recently and also uses some of the extra registry entries you see in Phunk'n as a little bonus. But yeah I recommend people check out this skin because it really does grow on you (like how it colorizes and if you combine it with the right scene it looks really nice).

Now for some screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

Well that's all for now. Stay tuned because there is still more to come this month in terms of skins.

Willz.]]>
With every skin I made, I learnt a bit more on how to get around some of these sizing restrictions to condense the space down. So after a lot of coding I was able to construct a skin which significantly brings down the minimum window size you can have when using Messenger.

Fuse features a highly compressed chat window and contact list design. It took a lot of experimentation and a mixture of code from different skins to be able to come to the final product (kinda how it got it's name, it's a fusion of all the layout compression I have done.)

Fuse features the standard options you guys have been used to in my skins recently and also uses some of the extra registry entries you see in Phunk'n as a little bonus. But yeah I recommend people check out this skin because it really does grow on you (like how it colorizes and if you combine it with the right scene it looks really nice).

Now for some screenshots:





DOWNLOAD

Well that's all for now. Stay tuned because there is still more to come this month in terms of skins.

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=425 Sun, 10 May 2009 06:53:53 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=425
So what's in 2.0.1?

2.0.1 fixes a few minor issues in both skins. The chat history area has been improved in Infusco with a new light background being applied which should fix readability issues, this new background is also applied to the text typing area. For those that have applied the Light background reg entry this change will be seen as soon as you restart Messenger. For others they will have to run the Reg entry to use it.

The ability to use an outer glow for chat history has also been added, this is in the form of a Reg entry so just check the RegTweaks directory in the skins install directory or just download the new Reg Tweak pack when it goes live on this site. This should help readability a bit more in the chat history area. Center aligning toolbars has been fixed and now work.

For those experiencing issues where you maximize your chat window and the typing area maximizes, this is a problem caused by Messenger Discovery and not the skin itself. Matt has created a fix for this issue so just download the latest build of Discovery and it should all be fine again.

Just remember that the majority of these changes are in the bundled reg entries which can be found in the skins install directory.

This should hopefully smooth things out a bit more for people. Anyway that's it for now. Stay tuned for news on a brand new skin coming this month also.

Infusco
Niveus

Willz.]]>
So what's in 2.0.1?

2.0.1 fixes a few minor issues in both skins. The chat history area has been improved in Infusco with a new light background being applied which should fix readability issues, this new background is also applied to the text typing area. For those that have applied the Light background reg entry this change will be seen as soon as you restart Messenger. For others they will have to run the Reg entry to use it.

The ability to use an outer glow for chat history has also been added, this is in the form of a Reg entry so just check the RegTweaks directory in the skins install directory or just download the new Reg Tweak pack when it goes live on this site. This should help readability a bit more in the chat history area. Center aligning toolbars has been fixed and now work.

For those experiencing issues where you maximize your chat window and the typing area maximizes, this is a problem caused by Messenger Discovery and not the skin itself. Matt has created a fix for this issue so just download the latest build of Discovery and it should all be fine again.

Just remember that the majority of these changes are in the bundled reg entries which can be found in the skins install directory.

This should hopefully smooth things out a bit more for people. Anyway that's it for now. Stay tuned for news on a brand new skin coming this month also.

Infusco
Niveus

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=422 Thu, 07 May 2009 05:51:31 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=422
But before I get onto that I'd like to take a second and thank all the people that have supported my work over the years. I didn't really think I'd be around this long, but hey it's you guys that keep me going. I just had a talk with Menthix (the guy who runs the skins database) and he has given me a number which represents how many downloads I have had since the Messenger Plus! database opened. Ready for it?

7,489,442 (Excluding things like Open Live and discontinued skins like Sopair)

Pretty scary though considering skins were lucky to get 100,000 downloads 2 years ago. It's good to see skins are becoming really popular. Keep it up everyone!

I have been really busy these past couple of weeks working on bringing the skin back to Messenger 2009. It was a tough road but I think the skin will speak for itself in terms of quality.

I had to completely recode the entire skin and re-think certain parts of the skin to suit Messenger 2009. While most of the skin retains the layout from the previous version you will notice some differences in version 2.

The most major one is that fade animations had to be scrapped. Sad to say that they have changed in Messenger 2009 and are extremely restricted. I couldn't really find a balance between making it work, look right and not lag the skin up.

So in the end I decided to scrap it altogether. But with that being said I did add a bit more functionality to the skin. Version 2 now allows users to go back to classic Messenger icons in case they don't like the ones supplied with the skin. This was one of the requested features in version 1 so I am proud to say this is available in version 2.

The skin has adopted the layout mode that I first introduced in the LTD skin. Users will be able to switch between this mode and classic mode and also be able to align the chat window how they wish.

Scenes have been completely removed in this skin. This was a pretty hard design decision but I think I made the right choice. It was just too hard to find a balance where the scene actually complemented the design. I found that there was too many variables to deal with and most of the time it just made the skin look weird. But I have given the ability to stretch chat window backgrounds to the full area so hopefully that will remove the need for scenes.

The custom Messenger Plus! UI has also been scrapped due to the fact that Messenger Plus! Live 5 will be entering development soon and I would rather wait to see what is going to happen with the UI before diving in too deep.

The registry entries that I added in the previous version return in version 2. There are a few new ones such as choosing the size of the extra display picture in the chat window and also the one in the contact list. Toolbar alignment options are also in these entries.

Because you can't colorize the alert I have written a series of entries which forces the alert to become a certain color. All you have to do is pick the entry that suits your tastes and away you go.

And yeah that should about cover it. Now for some screenshots:

Infusco:




Niveus:




Well that should keep people busy for a while. Oh yeah and while I was building Phunk'n I was also toying with a brand new skin design. Expect that one soon, its going to push the envelope a bit so yeah expect something cool.

Enjoy the release!

Willz.]]>
But before I get onto that I'd like to take a second and thank all the people that have supported my work over the years. I didn't really think I'd be around this long, but hey it's you guys that keep me going. I just had a talk with Menthix (the guy who runs the skins database) and he has given me a number which represents how many downloads I have had since the Messenger Plus! database opened. Ready for it?

7,489,442 (Excluding things like Open Live and discontinued skins like Sopair)

Pretty scary though considering skins were lucky to get 100,000 downloads 2 years ago. It's good to see skins are becoming really popular. Keep it up everyone!

I have been really busy these past couple of weeks working on bringing the skin back to Messenger 2009. It was a tough road but I think the skin will speak for itself in terms of quality.

I had to completely recode the entire skin and re-think certain parts of the skin to suit Messenger 2009. While most of the skin retains the layout from the previous version you will notice some differences in version 2.

The most major one is that fade animations had to be scrapped. Sad to say that they have changed in Messenger 2009 and are extremely restricted. I couldn't really find a balance between making it work, look right and not lag the skin up.

So in the end I decided to scrap it altogether. But with that being said I did add a bit more functionality to the skin. Version 2 now allows users to go back to classic Messenger icons in case they don't like the ones supplied with the skin. This was one of the requested features in version 1 so I am proud to say this is available in version 2.

The skin has adopted the layout mode that I first introduced in the LTD skin. Users will be able to switch between this mode and classic mode and also be able to align the chat window how they wish.

Scenes have been completely removed in this skin. This was a pretty hard design decision but I think I made the right choice. It was just too hard to find a balance where the scene actually complemented the design. I found that there was too many variables to deal with and most of the time it just made the skin look weird. But I have given the ability to stretch chat window backgrounds to the full area so hopefully that will remove the need for scenes.

The custom Messenger Plus! UI has also been scrapped due to the fact that Messenger Plus! Live 5 will be entering development soon and I would rather wait to see what is going to happen with the UI before diving in too deep.

The registry entries that I added in the previous version return in version 2. There are a few new ones such as choosing the size of the extra display picture in the chat window and also the one in the contact list. Toolbar alignment options are also in these entries.

Because you can't colorize the alert I have written a series of entries which forces the alert to become a certain color. All you have to do is pick the entry that suits your tastes and away you go.

And yeah that should about cover it. Now for some screenshots:

Infusco:




Niveus:




Well that should keep people busy for a while. Oh yeah and while I was building Phunk'n I was also toying with a brand new skin design. Expect that one soon, its going to push the envelope a bit so yeah expect something cool.

Enjoy the release!

Willz.]]> http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=421 Wed, 29 Apr 2009 23:21:46 -0700 http://www.designevolved.net/board/showthread.php?tid=421
So with that being said I can safely say that the skin will release next week sometime. Not exactly sure when, but it will happen for sure. So keep a close eye out on this site or the facebook page because the release is only about a week away!

Stay tuned.

Willz.]]>
So with that being said I can safely say that the skin will release next week sometime. Not exactly sure when, but it will happen for sure. So keep a close eye out on this site or the facebook page because the release is only about a week away!

Stay tuned.

Willz.]]>