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2008 - Preview
Introduction
This year marks the 10th anniversary since software
developer, Stardock, started working on a Windows version of Object Desktop.
Object Desktop is a program -- or more accurately a
set of programs -- that are used by people to take total control over how their
computer looks, feels, and functions. Taglines such as "Make Windows work
the way you want it!" or "Take your OS to the next level" have been used over
the years to describe what Object Desktop does.
Object Desktop is part product, part service.
That is, users buy Object Desktop and then receive a 1-year "subscription" to
ObjectDesktop.NET in which they receive updates and new features to the
components that make up Object Desktop. At the end of that year, users can renew
their access to this service to continue to get new updates (at a heavily
discounted price).
Each year, Stardock sets a date for creating a new
"Master" CD/DVD of the suite and calls it "Object Desktop <year name>".
But for users who purchase it electronically, the year names are irrelevant
since historically, a user who purchases Object Desktop just gets the Stardock
Central download manager and downloads the pieces they want to use.
Object Desktop 2008, however, will be different.
Big Changes
The first big change is that Object Desktop will be
getting a big brother -- Object Desktop Ultimate edition. When
this comes into being, all users with active Object Desktop accounts
will be automatically upgraded to Object Desktop Ultimate for
free.
As a result, there will be two editions of Object
Desktop -- Object Desktop and Object Desktop Ultimate.
The second big changes is that Object Desktop will
be a much more integrated product. Instead of users downloading Stardock Central
and then installing the various programs willy nilly, users will instead
download Object Desktop 2008 which will have the core parts of Object
Desktop and include Stardock Central to allow for updating.
A new Stardock Central
The Stardock Central you know
today is dying. The screenshot below shows what it looks like presently.
Stardock Central today
As a download manager,
Stardock Central does the job. But as a way of launching programs,
Stardock Central isn't up to that task presently.
Stardock Central 2008
The next generation Stardock
Central is designed for today's PC and make the most of the company's graphics
design resources to provide something that is easier to work with. More
functionality will be included even as it gets a simpler look and feel.
New Programs & Concepts
The goal with Object Desktop
2008 is to provide a great deal of value to users of Windows XP but also to
start taking advantage of new features of Windows Vista. Some features will only
work on Windows Vista but most of the new "stuff" in Object Desktop 2008 is for
Windows XP and Windows Vista.
One other major new change is
that Object Desktop 2008 users will be getting a lot of exclusive content in the
form of skins, themes, gadgets, wallpapers, icons, and more. Historically,
Object Desktop provided the user the technology and then directed users to the
web to get more stuff. Starting with Object Desktop 2008, the programs
will start coming with a lot of new content, much of it exclusive so that the
programs are far more polished and usable right away.
Note that many of the
screenshots below works in progress. The final versions (in many cases)
will look a lot different (and much nicer).
WindowBlinds 6
WindowBlinds is
Stardock's most popular program. With over 12 million downloads at Download.com,
it is also the most popular desktop enhancement of all time. WindowBlinds 6 is
in development with a ton of new features. Here is the very first sneak
peek of WindowBlinds 6 in action:
Windows Vista users can add blur effects to
existing
skins and control the transparency level of skins. In addition, as the
screenshot shows, Sidebar skinning is part of it as well as skinning of nearly
every element of Windows Vista
Since existing skins can be made to support
blur and transparency, those thousands of existing WindowBlinds skins gain a
whole new life even as new WindowBlinds 6 skins get made.
For Windows XP users, a new
skinning format called UIS0 is being made that is designed to make it much much
easier to get into skinning. Another new feature -- explorer backgrounds
can now be skinned. Users will also be able to have skins randomly chosen
on boot up. Subtle new effects are being added such as animated toolbar
backgrounds and much more.
We're keeping a lot of our
features close to the vest until we get closer to release. But suffice to say
that WindowBlinds 6 is going to be a major update.
SkinStudio 6
The bad news: There won't be
a SkinStudio 5.5. The good news: SkinStudio 6 is going to be a complete
redesign.
When deciding what to do with
SkinStudio, the feedback was pretty clear: SkinStudio was too hard, too
complicated to use. WindowBlinds had simply become too feature-packed for
the user interface of the existing SkinStudio. So it was decided to start
over with a whole new way of making skins.
With SkinStudio 6, the user
interface has become task oriented. Users can start a new skin and change
as much or as little as they want. It will have options for beginner
skinners which will remove the more advance skinning options to simplify the
skin making process.
TweakVista
Stardock has teamed up with
TweakVista.com to bring you a new
program called TweakVista. This new program has a ton of features for Windows
Vista users looking to get the most out of their PCs.
The UAC behavior can now be configured easily
Free up system resources by eliminating
unnecessary programs from memory.
Each task has a tab for casual users as well
as power users
It comes with options to tame
Microsoft's UAC, get detailed hardware info and benchmark information, hard
drive protection, start-up management, service management, and much more.
It's targeted at both casual end-users as well as power users (each task has an
"overview" tab and an "advanced" tab).
DesktopX 4.0
The next-generation version
of DesktopX is in development. Users of both Windows XP and Windows Vista
can take heart at the new features (Windows 2000 users too for that matter).
The ObjectBar and DesktopX teams have been integrated together so expect to see
DesktopX 4.0 start to have some ObjectBar-like features (menu controls in
particular) along with a lot of new features to make it easier to create custom
desktops as well as gadgets.
DesktopX 3.5 is due out
relatively soon and has the capability of exporting gadgets as Windows Sidebar
gadgets! Stay tuned!
SoundPackager
SoundPackager has been
floating in Stardock's labs for awhile. The screenshot above is not what
the final version will look like. It is the sound equivalent of
IconPackager -- it applies sets of sound effects to a host of common Windows
actions. Stardock has teamed up with famed composer Mason Fischer to
create a series of elegant replacement sounds on Windows.
As users of Windows Vista
have learned (Vista has much nicer sound cues than XP which helps really make
clear how much difference carefully done sounds on the PC can improve things),
sound effects matter. Now, users will be able to much more easily create
their own sets of sounds and share them.
More to come...
Stardock also has updates in
the works for this Spring and Summer for ObjectEdit, IconX, RightClick,
ObjectBar, Keyboard LaunchPad, ControlCenter, IconDeveloper and more! Stay
tuned!
For the past year or so, the
company has been working on this strategy that is starting to mature now. The
results will become increasingly clear in the coming weeks and months.
Make sure you're set up to
get Object Desktop Ultimate 2008!
Remember,
only users with active Object Desktop
accounts (i.e. people who have purchased or renewed within a year of
Object Desktop 2008's release) will be automatically upgraded to Object
Desktop Ultimate.
If you currently
have Object Desktop or have let your access expire, now is a great time to
renew! And if you don't have Object Desktop, now is time to get it.
Betas for these programs will begin showing up in the next few weeks along with
the "Summer of Object Desktop" with tons of new updates.
 |
Object Desktop Renewal
Price: $34.95
Renew your access for an additional year to new Object Desktop
updates and new programs. |
|
Object Desktop Upgrade
Price: $34.95
Upgrade from one of the components above to Object Desktop.
|
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