I had to laugh at the messages in the top authors page. Fields that didn't tally or report correctly, refer to a "glitch in the Matrix today"

Thanks to all who have helped me top the 100000 downloads level.
"Hard way" you ask? 100,000 downloads of Litestep themes.
I have a few windowblinds skins, etc as well but I'm not counting those in the total.

Thanks as well to authors (Treetog, Essorant, Smar, and R. Peter Clark) who have allowed me to port their work to Litestep.

And thanks especially to Frogboy and company for creating a spot here at Wincustomize for Litestep themes. It's been a tremendous asset for the Litestep community!

I've Worked in LiteStep for a long time.
DesktopX looks very interesting, but I've not yet tried it.

Are there users out there who have dabbled in both and can offer comparisoms of features, capabilities, etc?

There's a new release out from Seg@. That's Seg@ the Litestep module coder ;) It's the Litestep Control Panel.

Patterned after the LSCP from the indiestep builds of a couple of years ago, the LSCP2 works with the newest builds of Litestep. It includes a theme installer\switcher. As well there are screens with various Litestep information such as loaded modules, available bang commands with the ability to add parameters, log files, and much more.

I have installed this utility followings Seg@'s instructions (in the readme) and it works very well. This control panel is a work in progress, but well worth a download already.

You may want to consider giving it a try, if you haven't already. You can find a link to it in a few spots. I got it from the front page at Blizzle.com. Have fun!

I would imagine there is one common dilema software developers face regardless of the type of software they're creating. How can I pack as many features as possible into my software, without making it bloated? Litestep is no different and there is a current piece of Litestep software that has some people divided on the features vr bloat issue.

Xlabel is a Litestep module that displays information usually in (on) a graphic. It is based on the original Label.dll by Maduin. Xlabel has taken the original label features and expanded on them greatly. In addition to having the ability to display dynamic information in a label, Xlabel allows the user to replace several existing modules, via new features it offers.

Among those features are hover and pressed image states; which basically allow you to replace shortcut2.dll. You can create a desktop with icons (draggable yet!) so icondesk.dll may not be needed. As well there are animation plugins and HTML formatting plugins.

The configuration possibilities are nearly endless. I have already replaced shortcuts with labels with very good results. I think icons will be next, but I'm already playing with some dynamic text configurations for displaying winamp, foobar, and quintessential song titles etc.

As mentioned above, the reaction to Xlabel has been mixed. Some long-timers and module coders aren't thrilled with the module. They look at it as becoming bloated, or wonder when the feature enhancement will end. Others look at it as filling theming needs that currently exist.

All I can tell you is I have used it extensively for a few weeks, and have become more energized about theming than I have been for a while. There's nothing like new toys to get you excited.

Symax was updated and re-released today. The theme should be approved and available tonight on Wincustomize.com and Litestep.net.

This is an update to make the theme OTS2 compatible. As well it was a chance to use the faily new modules xlabel in place of the old standard shortcut2. There are several benefits to doing this. Labels are dynamic, have much more fleibily in terms of creating resolution independent themes, and can different actions triggered by mouse-over and mouse-click events. It seems to be working pretty well with xlabel. I have had a couple of people beta testing it with positive feedback. Drop me a line if you having odd results.

I have also added xprop and lsxcommand to Symax.

Another feature of this updated theme is that it supports multiple audio players. It will automatically load the appropriate modules to run. Symax supports Winamp2,3,5, Foobar, and Quintesential players.

I'm looking forward to your feedback.

I watched with much anticipation earlier this evening as Sarah of "The Screen Savers" spotlighted LiteStep.

She correctly described it as a shell replacement and did a decent job of highlighting a few features. While her terminoligy (sp) may have been slightly off in places, I'm sure the viewers got the general idea.

I wondered before hand, if issues of the past (ie: stability, theme installation, etc) would be dragged up again. A couple of years ago TSS reviewed LiteStep and while they thought it was neat, they also pointed out it's shortcomings. I was quite pleased to see that Sarah's review was all positive. Real positive in fact!

The show's web page posted links to Litestep.net and Litestep.com. Needless to say getting through this evening to those sites was not practical.

I hope that the positive energy this spotlight has created, carries through to the mailing list and theme sites. It's been quiet lately, so a little boost would be just what the doctor ordered.

The litestep world has continually been challenged with the difficulties encountered by users downloading and installing themes. The greatest problem was the lack of a theme standard.

A couple of years ago a standard called OTS was created by Omar and a team of experienced themers. This standard went a long way towards cleaning up third party themes and making installation easier for users. That said, installation was still a largely manual process and all themes contained the third party modules required by the given theme. That resulted in larger theme sizes and sometimes complex installation.

The fall of 2003 saw the debut of a revised standard called OTS2. This theme standard lept Litestep forward tremendously in terms of the previously stated challenges. As well, a current version of Litestep was bundled into the "Litestep installer". This installer has a very automated installation routine. Included with the installer is a theme installation utility, an evars utility, and an uninstaller (*gasp*).

In all a very professional feeling package that garnered very good results and feedback. Even with that there are still a number of users who struggle with Litestep. They have perhaps unusual setups on their computer, or just haven't the basic computer knowledge to deal with desktop customization. Not even the most tightly packaged installer or theme format will remedy their issues. But those few folks notwithstanding, the OTS2 compatible "Litestep Installer" is easily the best release of Litestep to date.

So given that, why the subject title: "the jury is still out"?

The OTS2 standard requires themes to use modules contained in a defauilt module directory (resident within the Litestep directory). If a user doesn't have a needed module in that directory, Litestep will retrieve the needed module from specified site(s) on the internet. It will download and install the modules and voila the theme will fire up. It's acually pretty neat and usually works quite well.

But, it is dependent on one major aspect. That is, that the needed module(s) will be present on the internet. The jury is still out IMO, because the newest modules aren't currently posted on the internet in the manner they need to be.

Many (most) Litestep themes make use of the newest modules. Litestep (the exe) is basically a loading mechanism for modules. Each module has different functions such as providing a system tray, a taskbar, shortcuts, desktop icons, etc. Module development is ongoing, and new or updated modules are continually being released. As you can imagine, themers want to use the newest and neatest "toys". They want their theme to showcase the features that Litestep provides. So requiring them to use older or outdated modules isn't practical.

Because litestep module sites are run by volunteers, we can't just expect site operaters to be always right up to date. We of corse hope they are, but people get busy with "real life". This reality (lack of updated module sites) leaves the OTS2 format vunerable.

If this "updated module site problem" can be solved \ resolved; then OTS2 hands down is a great solution. Certainly a platform for future versions of Litestep to continue with. But if not, the the OTS2 format will have to be revisited, and the problem of a lack of standard theme format will continue to plague Litestep, as it has for the past 5 years.

As always, time will tell.

Shell-Shocked, a shell releated online magazine, has released it's premier issue today. The magazine has strong Litestep presence, but several other shells are represented as well. Issue #1 features articles, editorials, tutorials, theme reviews, humor and interviews.
There's something for all alternative shell enthusiasts, so check it out!

I may have the distinction of having a one of a kind file up here at wincusto.
It may be the only skin\theme\wall etc with NO graphics (bmp,jpg,png) in it whatsoever. The Litestep theme "Sparrow" creates its' look by defining colors in the step.rc.

Are there any others out there?

p.s. the preview shot in the file doesn't count!
It's not used to create the theme.