Skinning functionality wishlist

[nohitter151]

Fellow skinners:

You can post your skinning functionality wishes here (in the current topic), I will try to keep this first post updated with all of the listed wishes.

Please, before posting skinning ideas, wishes, ..., check that they're not already on the wishlist and that they're not posted here.
Of course, improvements to current proposals are also very welcome.

This topic is meant for "skinning functionality" only, so please don't ask for skins or other general wishes that you might have with the program. This will help to keep it clean.

Thanks

_____________________________________

Theme

• -Improved use of borders. See here for screenshot.
  Bug#6539
  
  -Search box needs a facelift. We should be able to make it look Firefox style. Using Firefox style, we can follow a logical workflow: first, we choose "Search mechanism"; then we type; then we do the search.
  bug#6646
  
  -Possibility to skin (or even just to hide) the "dotted" selection that indicates what 'cell' or field is highlighted
  Bug#6559
  
  -Ability to edit the arrow icons that appear when dragging/rearranging columns. (in red here)
  
  -Allow for one continuous background across all MM panels (incl. tree, main, etc.)
  
  -Antialiased borders/corners for main window. The current implementation requires full transparency or none for window borders.
  
  -option to define HorzGrabber and VertGrabber (for toolbars)

Fonts

• -Better usability with fonts other than the default. Fonts can be changed from the default but if the font is larger than the default, it causes dialogs and track info to be cut off.
  
  -Ability to embed .ttf fonts directly into a skin.

Player

• -Ability to use Lock<edge>Distance, Lock<edge>Object on all player elements, including Custom fields and Ratings (where it currently doesn't work)
  
  -A Level Playback Volume button on the player:
  Objects\LevelPlayback_UP & LevelPlayback_DOWN (StateButton).
  
  -A Crossfade button on the player:
  Objects\CrossfadeButton_UP & CrossfadeButton_DOWN (StateButton).
  
  -Ability to have Player calculate its size like does FloatPlayer:
  Actually Player checks the ShowLimitH parameter only when a song begins playing, or when changing skin.
  It doesn't work when resizing MM's window, nor when switching views from Float/Micro players.

Popup Info panel

• -Ability to add more information to popup info panel (all text masks available for players)

Icons

• -Mouseover icon for +/- in the tree

[rovingcowboy]

the white fonts in the extensions panel i believe are to be like that, but that could be for the reason i think it is just showing you selected it, i think this change would be good though, as i am thinking it is the same fonts in the main list view that are now not allowed to change, if so then it might not be possible to change these.

still i'll second the wish as i always want more control on things.

[DreadM]

Greetings

Since i skin the monkey iam unhappy with the border layout from MM,
Iam no script wizard and dont know if this can be done.

this is just an idea how it can looks,
each window got 2 pix border around,
except the windows who have contact with Theme /Form left/right/bottom(contact side got no border)
(window borders got 2 colores)

and window caption got also no extra border!This looks more clear!

Screenshot:

[Eyal]

A Crossfade button on the player:
Objects\CrossfadeButton_UP & CrossfadeButton_DOWN (StateButton).

A Level Playback Volume button on the player:
Objects\LevelPlayback_UP & LevelPlayback_DOWN (StateButton).

Ability to have Player calculate its size like does FloatPlayer:
Actually Player checks the ShowLimitH parameter only when a song begins playing, or when changing skin.
It doesn't work when resizing MM's window, nor when switching views from Float/Micro players.

This is with 3.0, I don't know for 3.1.

Eyal

[gege]

I completely agree with DreadM regarding borders. There have been some complaints about MM appearance being outdated, and IMO the excessive number borders and lines dividing elements/panels just contributes to this. Noir skin (thanks, DreadM!) has proved "less is more". We need less dividers, less borders, less lines.

Just out of comparison, I took two screenshots: one from WMP 12, included in Windows 7 beta, other from Windows Live Photo Gallery 2009 (AKA Wave3) running in WinXP. Their overall look is modern, clean. There's no unnecessary lines. And when they do exist, they're subtle, unobtrusive.

I like specially the fact that divider (between Tree and picture thumbnails) in Photo Gallery, and +/- signs in WMP's Tree are shown only on mouse hover. They're hidden by default. MM 3.1 has added the ability to customize +/- in Tree. Now we need to go even further and be able to show them only on hover, too (Wish #1).

Still regarding borders, I'd like (Wish #2) the ability to get rid of that damn border that show up only for embedded ActiveX object. It breaks any design effort out there (ask DreadM, with Noir skin).

And, last but not least, would any one of you skinners (nohitter, DreadM... hint, hint...) be able to create a skin based on screenshots provided above, USING CURRENT MM SKINNING ENGINE?

[nohitter151]

And, last but not least, would any one of you skinners (nohitter, DreadM... hint, hint...) be able to create a skin based on screenshots provided above, USING CURRENT MM SKINNING ENGINE?

Well, theres a lot of things in those screenshots that aren't possible with MM (tabs, continuous background between tree and main panel, removing menu items ie File, Edit, View, etc) not to mention that it would be very similar to Mortens WMP skin (just different colors).

[Dreadlau]

I'd like (Wish #2) the ability to get rid of that damn border that show up only for embedded ActiveX object.

Yes that's really annoying

continuous background between tree and main panel

Then I make the wish of the possibility to make a continuous background between all the panels and bars in MM.
That would be awesome and would bring skinning of MM to the next level.

[gege]

Well, theres a lot of things in those screenshots that aren't possible with MM (tabs, continuous background between tree and main panel, removing menu items ie File, Edit, View, etc) not to mention that it would be very similar to Mortens WMP skin (just different colors).

Well, nohitter, I was thinking only in overall look, not in mimic every part of the screenshot.
In fact, my wish was to be able to have a skin with this appearance:

[nohitter151]

Well, theres a lot of things in those screenshots that aren't possible with MM (tabs, continuous background between tree and main panel, removing menu items ie File, Edit, View, etc) not to mention that it would be very similar to Mortens WMP skin (just different colors).

Well, nohitter, I was thinking only in overall look, not in mimic every part of the screenshot.
In fact, my wish was to be able to have a skin with this appearance:

That all looks very doable except for the search bar part. It's still quite similar to the WMP11 skin, though.

[Dreadlau]

Nohitter, what would prevent the possibility of making a searchbar like that?

[nohitter151]

Nohitter, what would prevent the possibility of making a searchbar like that?

It would be very difficult to make the search bar with rounded corners like that (if not impossible) and you could not include the search icon next to the drop down button as it is in the picture.

[Dreadlau]

I see.
MMM there's definitely room for improvement there.

Wishlist worthy?

[DreadM]

Greetings

nice screenshot gege ,i work on something similar

It would be very difficult to make the search bar with rounded corners like that (if not impossible) and you could not include the search icon next to the drop down button as it is in the picture.

Round corner search box can be done ,you can use a bitmape object with the correct margin settings.

[nohitter151]

Round corner search box can be done ,you can use a bitmape object with the correct margin settings.

My mistake! Do you know of/have any examples of a skin with this?

[gege]

Regarding Search bar, I really don't care if rounded corners are impossible, that was an example taken from Photo Gallery. In WMP12, search box is completely square, and has a modern look as well.

BUT then, I have a new wish: Search box needs a facelift. We should be able to make it look Firefox style. For example:


Please, notice the following:
a) This time I made it completely square, and it looks clean and modern.
b) Using Firefox style, we can follow a logical workflow, from left to right:
- first, we choose "Search mechanism";
- then we type;
- then we do the search.
c) The magnifier icon is reassigned to start the basic search, which is standard behavior in virtually every modern application and webpage.
d) Advanced search is not lost, is just re-accommodated in menu.

Edit in 2011-02-08: As of current MM4-alpha implementation, Library (Filtered) in screenshot above would need to be replaced by the existing Collections