metalX2 Manual Note:
The
latest version of this documentation can be found at http://grayhaze.com/docs/metalX2.htm.
Thank you for downloading the metalX2 theme for Stardock WindowBlinds. This manual contains important information about the installation and use of the theme, and should be read fully before using the skin for the first time. metalX2 includes some features new to WindowBlinds themes which may confuse novice users. Although these features aim to add productivity to your desktop environment, you may disable them at any time if you have no need for them. metalX2 is based on the original metalX WindowBlinds theme, which was released in January 2002 as one of two entries to the 2002 Stardock GUI Olympics. metalX went on to win a number of medals in the contest, including the overall winner position, and subsequently became one of the most popular and downloaded WindowBlinds skins to date. This new version is more than just a simple update of the original. The entire theme has been redesigned and rebuilt from scratch, with a number of new features added along the way. metalX2 is perhaps better thought of as a remake, coming much closer to the intended result of the original theme, which unfortunately suffered somewhat due to the tight deadline for the contest. The result is a theme which is easier on the eye and more polished than the original, also taking the best elements from other themes released in the meantime. In the creation of this theme, I have received help and encouragment from a number of people who I would like to thank. The initial aim of this update was to create a commercial skin pack, which would be sold for a small amount of money from grayhaze.com. At the request of Brad Wardell, CEO of Stardock, this theme has now been made free to download for all. I'd like to thank him for his encouragment in getting my skinning juices flowing again after an extended break. This theme includes the work of several talented plugin authors, without whom the majority of the more powerful features would not have been possible. Thanks must go to Matthijs Vermeulen for WBAmp, Scott Warner for CClock, Shane Lardinois and Redllar's Software for WBWinMenu, and especially to Neil Banfield for creating AdvCmd to meet my high demands. Of course I'd like to thank Neil Banfield and Adam Najmanowicz for creating WindowBlinds and SkinStudio, without which this theme would never have existed. I'd also like to thank Mark McQuillan and Larry Kuperman for their help in testing the theme before release. Finally, I'd like to thank all of the people who have downloaded my themes in the past and given me such great feedback. Enjoy your new desktop! :) Thanks, Kevin Purcell
This theme has been made available for free download and use. At one point I accepted PayPal donations as a way of supporting continued development, but so few were received (less than 10 donations for over 60,000 downloads!) that I simply gave up. Future themes of this complexity will probably be produced on a pay-only basis as a result.
Note that you must have WindowBlinds installed on your system before you can install this skin. For more information, go to http://www.windowblinds.net. This theme is distributed as a '.wba' WindowBlinds theme file. Installation is very easy and can be accomplished in several ways. either Double-click on the '.wba' file in Windows Explorer. If WindowBlinds is correctly associated with this file format, the theme should install automatically. You can then choose the theme from your 'Display Properties' dialog, which can be accessed either from 'Control Panel', or by right-clicking on your desktop and choosing 'Properties' from the menu. Choose the tab which shows the 'skin selection' page (e.g. 'Appearance' on Windows XP, 'Skins' on Windows 98), and choose the theme from the list of those available. or Open the 'Display Properties' dialog, which can be accessed either from 'Control Panel', or by right-clicking on your desktop and choosing 'Properties' from the menu. Choose the tab which shows the 'skin selection' page (e.g. 'Appearance' on Windows XP, 'Skins' on Windows 98), and click the 'Add' button. Navigate to the location of the '.wba' file on your computer and choose this file to start installation. You can then choose the theme from the list of those available. Section
Contents When you have installed the theme, you will need to create a file to allow the various application shortcuts in the skin to function correctly. This should be done as follows: 1) Open Notepad, which you can find by clicking 'Start', and navigating to the 'Accessories' program group. 2) Either type or copy and paste the following: [Programs] &Editor =
notepad.exe A copy of the file shown above is included for your reference in the theme installation directory ('wbuser.ini'). Note that this file is only an example, and will not have any effect until it is copied or re-saved into the WindowBlinds installation directory. This file sets up links to various applications on your system, which you will be able to run by clicking a button on your window titlebars. &Editor :- Your text editor of choice. If you want to use a text editor other than Notepad, replace the default of 'notepad.exe' with the full path to the relevant application on your computer. For example, to use Microsoft Word XP instead you could use 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\winword.exe'. &Web :- Your web browser. The default of 'iexplore.exe' will start Internet Explorer and go to your home page. You can either change this to the full path of an alternative browser, or to a web address (e.g. http://grayhaze.com) to launch your system default web browser and go to that address. &Mail :- Your E-mail client application. The default of 'msimn.exe' will start Microsoft Outlook Express, but can change this to the full path of another e-mail client application. For example, to use Microsoft Outlook XP instead you could use 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office10\outlook.exe'. &Calculator :- Your calculator of choice. The default of 'calc.exe' will launch the standard Windows calculator application, but you can change this to the full path of another calculator application. &Media :- Your media player application. The default of 'wmplayer.exe' will launch Windows Media Player, but you can change this to the full path of another media player application. Note that this application does not have to be the same one used with the 'WBAmp' buttons on certain sub-designs of the theme. For more information on these buttons, go to the section on setting up the WBAmp plugin to work with your system. &ShowDesk :- This is a special shortcut which points to a file called 'Show Desktop.scf' on your system. This is the file which, when run from your Quick Lanch menu on your taskbar, will minimize all windows to reveal your desktop. If you are using Windows XP, simply replace the 'UserName' in the path with your Windows XP user name. If you are using Windows 98, you should change the whole path to 'C:/Windows/Application Data/Microsoft/Internet Explorer/Quick Launch/Show Desktop.scf'. If you still have any problems with locating the file on your system, take a look at the 'Show Deskop' section of the FAQ. &WBConfig :- The WindowBlinds configuration application. The actual path to the 'wbconfig.exe' file my differ on your system, depending on the version and distribution of WindowBlinds that you are using. Common paths to the file include: 'C:\Program
Files\Stardock\Object Desktop\WindowBlinds\wbconfig.exe' &Volume :- The volume control (mixer) application. The default of 'C:\Windows\System32\sndvol32.exe' will launch the Windows Volume Control application on most systems. You can change this to the full path of another volume control application. 3) Save the file to your WindowBlinds installation directory as 'wbuser.ini'. This file must be in the root installation directory (i.e. the same location as the 'wbconfig.exe' file discussed above), and not the theme installation directory, otherwise it will not be recognised by WindowBlinds and your shortcuts will not function correctly. This is the most difficult part of the installation for the novice user to understand. If you have any problems, just re-read the instructions carefully and make sure you have followed them correctly. If your shortcuts still don't work, check the paths you have entered in the 'wbuser.ini' file. Section
Contents This theme makes use of the WBAmp plugin by Matthijs Vermeulen to provide a full set of controls for WinAmp 2.x, CoolPlayer and Stardock ObjectMedia media players. The full documentation for the plugin is provided in the theme installation directory ('WBAmp.txt'), but the important information on how to set up your media player to function correctly with the plugin is duplicated here for your convenience. From the WBAmp documentation:
Section
Contents
The metalX2 theme contains a total of 20 sub-designs, 10 in each of two different metals, which can be chosen between using a drop down list on the skin listing page of Display Properties. Display Properties can be accessed either from 'Control Panel', or by right-clicking on your desktop and choosing 'Properties' from the menu. The sub-designs are as follows: Windows XP & 2000 Sub-Designs Windows 98 Sub-Designs There are two distinct sets of sub-designs, intended for use on particular versions of Windows. The Windows 98 versions have certain features removed or disabled which are only useable on XP & 2000, such as per-pixel alpha blending of buttons and window controls for transparency and security locking. Make sure you are using the correct sub-design for your Windows version or you may encounter visual and productivity problems. The five sub-designs for each version of Windows each offer a different subset of functionality. The 'ProMedia' designs offer the full set of available functionality, while the others contain progressively fewer controls. Section
Contents Those designs with the word 'Pro' in the title contain a bar below the main window titlebar which contains a clock, and two pop-out menus of extra shortcuts and controls. The menu on the left of the bar gives shortcuts to common folders and applications on your system. These shortcuts are, in order from left to right:
Some of these shortcuts can be modified by altering the application paths in your 'wbuser.ini' file, located in the WindowBlinds installation directory. For more information on this process, see the section on application shortcuts. The menu on the right of the bar offers an extended set of controls for Windows. These controls are, in order from left to right:
Section
Contents Using the Media Sub-Designs Those designs with the word 'Media' in the title contain a bar along the bottom edge of the window with WBAmp controls. These controls will work with WinAmp 2.x, CoolPlayer, or Stardock ObjectMedia. For information on how to get your media player working with the WBAmp controls, see the section on using the WBAmp plugin. The controls are, in order from left to right:
The volume control shortcut can be modified by altering the application path in your 'wbuser.ini' file, located in the WindowBlinds installation directory. For more information on this process, see the section on application shortcuts. Section
Contents You can use the WBWinMenu plugin (third button from the top left on the window titlebar) to add shortcuts to your favourite applications, in much the same way as the Programs list in your Start Menu works. The values for the menu entries are stored in the Windows registry, so they will continue to show up in any theme which uses the plugin. Configuration of the menu items is moderately straightforward. To start adding shortcuts to the menu, choose the 'Insert Item...' option from the menu. A 'Create Menu Item' window will open, allowing you to choose the application and icon you wish to use for the menu item. You are presented with the following options: Position :- When you have more than one item in a menu, you can choose the order in which they are displayed by changing this number. A position number of one will put the item at the top of the menu. Name :- This is the name that will be displayed in the menu for this item. Add As a Sub-Menu :- When this is checked, the specified name is used to create a new sub-menu. You can use this to group your applications by type (e.g. Graphics Apps, Music Apps, etc.). Selecting this will prevent the following options from being changed. Target :- The full path to the application to launch when the menu item is clicked. To locate an application on your system, click 'Browse...' and navigate to the executable you wish to launch. Parms :- Any parameters you wish to pass to the executable. For example, to open a window showing the contents of your 'C:' drive, you could select 'explorer.exe' as the target and 'c:\' as the parameters. Start in :- The directory to set as the default path when launching the application. Set Icon :- Allows you to choose an icon for the menu item. The executable you chose as the target will generally contain a suitable icon, but you could also use one from a different executable or dll file. Add With Seperator :- When this is checked, a seperator line will be inserted before this item in the menu. This is useful for visually grouping items. When you are happy with your selections, click 'OK' and the item will be added to the menu. To add extra items to the menu, right-click on any item and choose 'Insert' from the sub-menu. This will add an extra item after the selected one. You can also choose to Delete the menu item or modify its Properties from this sub-menu. Section
Contents
Before contacting the author to report a bug, or ask a question about
the use of the skin, please check here to see if your question has already
been answered.
Q: My buttons appear visually distorted A: Ensure that you have chosen the correct sub-design for your operating system. Due to a lack of support for per-pixel alpha blending on Windows 98, using the XP sub-designs will produce visual errors when this technique is used to smooth the edges of a button. Section
Contents Q: I can't find the 'Show Desktop.scf' file on my system A: It's possible that you have deleted the file without realising. Don't worry though, as it's relatively easy to recreate the file using nothing more than Notepad. Open Notepad and enter or copy and paste the following: [Shell] Save this file as 'Show Desktop.scf' in the following location: Windows 98: 'C:\Windows\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\Show Desktop.scf' Windows XP: 'C:\Documents and Settings\UserName\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch\Show Desktop.scf' (replace 'UserName' with your Windows user name) The 'Show Desktop' item should now appear in your Quick Launch taskbar menu, and you can enter the path to it in your 'wbuser.ini' configuration file. Section
Contents Q: The clock on the Pro titlebar seems to have stopped! A: If you're using Windows XP, this is a known problem with current builds of WindowBlinds. Due to the way the CClock plugin interfaces with WindowBlinds on Windows XP, the window border is not refreshing at regular intervals. To update the clock display, just move the mouse over any titlebar button. Section
Contents Q: A pop-out menu or tooltip on the Pro titlebar remains visible even after I've moved the mouse pointer away A: Occasionally a menu or tooltip will 'stick' open, even when you've moved the mouse pointer away from it. This is a known issue, and every effort has been made to reduce this problem as much as possible. The 'tooltips' are actually simulated tooltips, and not standard Windows ones. They therefore have the same issues as the pop-out menu buttons. You may also have a menu remain visible after opening a new window. This is due to the timed scripts that control the menus not being able to close the menu before the new window opens. To hide the menu and tooltips again, just move the mouse over any titlebar button. Section
Contents Q: There's a solid black bar where the song title should be A: This is a known problem with some early releases of WindowBlinds 4. Support for the WBAmp plugin was broken in those versions, but has since been fixed in more recent builds. If you are an Object Desktop subscriber you can download the latest version of WindowBlinds from Stardock Central. If not, a more recent public beta may be available from the WindowBlinds site. At the time of writing the next public beta has not yet been released, but may be available by the time you read this. Section
Contents Q: The song title on the Media bar isn't scrolling A: See the section on getting your media player to work with WBAmp to find out how to make the title scroll. Section
Contents Q: I've followed the instructions to get the song title to scroll, but it still isn't moving A: If you're using Windows XP, this is a known problem with current builds of WindowBlinds. Due to the way the WBAmp plugin interfaces with WindowBlinds on Windows XP, the window border is not refreshing at regular intervals. To update the song title display, just move the mouse over any titlebar button. Section
Contents Q: When I Shift-Click or Ctrl-Click a Media button, nothing happens A: This is a known problem with current builds of WindowBlinds under Windows XP. For some reason the buttons just ignore your button press entirely, or think you're pressing a 'Help' titlebar button. If you need better control over the player, just click the 'Show Player' button and use the main player window. Section
Contents
If you have any questions or bug reports, please ensure that your issue hasn't already been resolved by looking at the FAQ section. If you think you have found something new, please send an e-mail to mail@grayhaze.com, stating your system configuration (eg. Windows version, WindowBlinds version etc.) and the full nature of the problem. If you think your problem is with WindowBlinds itself and not specifically this theme, please direct your enquiries to the support team at Stardock. You can find contact details at http://www.windowblinds.net. You may also get helpful advice and generally a quicker response by posting your problem on the message boards at WinCustomize, which is Stardock's official site for new theme downloads. Go to http://www.wincustomize.com and sign up for more information. Section
Contents
July 10th 2003
The 'metalX2' theme and all graphic files contained within are Copyright ©2003-2006 grayhaze.com. The theme is provided as-is and no guarantees are made as to its fitness of purpose. The author cannot be held responsible for any damage resulting from the use of the theme and you, the user, use the theme at your own risk. The theme must not be modified or redistributed in any way without prior written consent from the author. This includes, but is not limited to, the modification or re-use of any part of the theme to create derivative works for any purpose. Permission is granted only to use the theme for personal use on an individual basis, and only when downloaded from a source to whom the author has granted redistribution rights. In certain instances, the author may grant permission to create matching themes for other applications, or to redistribute the theme in certain forms, but it should not be assumed that this permission has been given until written proof can be produced. Any infringement of this copyright can and will be persuable in a court of law. Thank you for using this theme, and for respecting the legal rights of the author.
Copyright ©2003 grayhaze.com |