[Ideas] Windows Application Skinings [Long - Rant Material] - Windows Mobile Development and Hacking General

Hey guys,
I've hadmy HD a while and think it is by far one of the better phones I've used. Though like many reviewers and people have said the interface could do with a face-lift of sorts.
It just occured to be that maybe this would give the HD more appeal and with XDA being the largest resource of designers and coders for Windows I don't see why it can't be done.
Basically here are a few of my ideas, not all of them are applicable and I'm not a programmer as such and nor do I know the major workings of Windows mobile and I know there are alternative applications for these things but some of us just want a new skin not a new program.
Ok let the ideas flow:
SMS/MMS: This one I truly find depressing. I don't feel there is a need for a seperate program but if someone could just skin the display it would make sending messages that extra bit more 'entertaining'. I know people here dislike the iPhone I don't blame them but just have bubbles around threaded messages could really make a difference and improve communication. If I recall a lot of these edits can be doen through XML files. I've seen a cab which increases the size of the message box so it looks like atleast some change is possible. So adding more colour and imgry I think would be of benifit here.
Calendar/Tasks: Both I feel could do with a major new modelling but I use Calendar Touch so I've found my alternative. Though I think just making the display match Outlook on the PC a bit more of just making the buttons and fields bigger if possible would make the applucation more usable.
WMPlayer: I've tried MortPlayer and Pocket Player, the former crashed my HD as it wouldn't unistall so I had to hard-reset and the latter I left was good but just needed to appear more complete (some menus didn't match the styling of the player skin - also very confusing to use at times). Enter good old WMP, I enjoy using the skins already available, but the menus are still small and the fact I have to click the song then 'Play' I think is backwards, where on earth is double click! Is it possible to skin the menu to be bigger and look more user friendly?
These are obviously my thoughts and opinions but what I'm look/hoping for is for someone to code something that modifies these problems. Ofcourse this is open to discussion and people please do discuss.

haha, I had the exact same idea. I thought of some htc style cover for the wm interface and new apps for sms, notes, calendar etc.
going to move my thread to this section, will probably get more attention.

WONDERFUL!
It's good to see people with on a similair though pattern.

Any views, opinions or ideas?

Related

idea of a software. need help developing. where to start?

hi all...
i am not a programmer/developer... just a big pocket pc fan...
i have an idea to develop a small pocketpc utility that i think could be useful to a lot of users...
although, i have no idea where to start when talking to a programmer about developing it... i want to know how much it could cost to write/develop it...
any ideas on wheere i could start? i guess it'd have to be written in Visual Basic (thats all i know of). the only thing i could compare it to is Spb's Pocket Plus... but i think my software would only be half as complicated as that.
http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=6846
any very rough ideas on how much i should be expecting to pay for it? i know it's not easy to give me an estimate, but like i said-- i have no idea what so ever... $100? $1000?? $10,000???
i was thinking of just having it as a pet project and giving it out as freeware/open source.... but it costs a bundle, i might try to shareware it to atleast cover some of the costs...
thanks for your help all.
Describing the functionality of the app would be a start...
DOH :!:
Seems like i missed out an entire paragraph on what i am actually trying to make...
well, ill try to describe it...
i wanted to create a plug-in for the Task List.... as opposed to just a simple list of tasks, i wanted to create a "floating space", where your tasks can be represented visually through icons, which can moved around...
imagine all your indiviual tasks as post-it notes on your desk. now you're able to move your post-its according to category, importance, etc... around your desk.
in this floating space, you would have control over choosing how things are represented-- things such as priority, deadline, can be represented through colours, little animated icons, etc...
perhaps the tasks can be linked to your programs-- ie, call mum -- is linked to a phone, to put it simply.
i dunno, maybe its just something i've imagined i would like but would be a bit "stuck-up-its-own-ass" type of sotfware for other people...
:?
anyways, id least like to look into how to go about designing it properly... im sure there are a lot of things i havent though about and would be a steep learning curve for me (even if im not programming it), but i want to learn and like the idea of this challenge.
i have a graphic design background also, so id like to do the art/icons myself, and work with a programmer to develop this properly. i guess this'd help a teeny weeny bit....
so, any suggestions? comments?
http://forum.xda-developers.com/viewtopic.php?t=21786&highlight=today+plugin
and if you want it to float around on top of other today items then it's much much more complex then anything i've seen from spb
the program would virtualy have to capture all msg sendt from the screen to check if it was something it had to capture before the today item under it did
if it only had to have floating things inside it's own today item space it would be much more simple though

Finger-friendly Homepage!

I'm working on a new concept for a homepage for all touch devices.
I know it's not the greatest idea of all, but I really think it's good enough to have some value.
I wont release all details as I have a decent amount planned, but here goes...
http://neotelos.com/mobile/
Works great in opera beta and firefox, PIE is very underdeveloped and I've had issues...so no support at the moment, but may come in the future.
So far it's only a preview of what is to come, I'd like to know what you guys think so far.
I've even seen alot of touch PCs and Tablets emerging, and hope to aim towards that audience too!
Got it working with keys now
I can't wait to get this done...I'm also making this so I have something nice for even my own homepage.
nice idea...
what do you intend to put in there ?
I confess - I don't see the point in this, you're using an onhover effect wich won't be activated in a mobile - because theres no such thing as on hover on a touchscreen.
Sorry, I may be being ignorant.
interesting, the page is working on opera. in qvga mode, the font is oversize.
Napbree said:
I confess - I don't see the point in this, you're using an onhover effect wich won't be activated in a mobile - because theres no such thing as on hover on a touchscreen.
Sorry, I may be being ignorant.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
im no mobile web developer (although I've done my fair share of sites), but isn't the onhover property applied when the user taps the link? at least I think that's what is does in the iphone
Yes, is true.
The only issues that I haven't found a way to overcome:
1) Override context menu
2) Capture drag action
I plan on making a user-customizable CMS (Content Management System) and hope to just keep adding features over time.
My first goal is to allow users to setup accounts which they can customize links and content to their liking.
Like I said, it's nothing major, just something that might come in handy as there aren't many good web portals designed for mobile.
Edit:
Oh, yeah, it doesn't use hover, it actually grabs when the mouse moves and calculates actions...for a number of reasons I chose this method, may not be the most oiptimal but I find it to be more compatable.
When a user taps the screen, or even ends a drag, when the pressure is lifted mouse movement is activated. Not to mention it works with arrow keys and overrides the scrolling, so it can be used with devices w/o touchscreens.
Neotelos_com said:
Yes, is true.
The only issues that I haven't found a way to overcome:
1) Override context menu
2) Capture drag action
I plan on making a user-customizable CMS (Content Management System) and hope to just keep adding features over time.
My first goal is to allow users to setup accounts which they can customize links and content to their liking.
Like I said, it's nothing major, just something that might come in handy as there aren't many good web portals designed for mobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think having the whole login account would be overkill, unless the user does not delete his or her cookies after each session
Neotelos, this is a very cool idea, but why don't you team up with whoever made Touch-innovation.com and develope it with him? he created it not a long while ago and it would be much more productive if you guys did that together instead of creating a whole new one (just a thought )
nir36: Not too bad of an idea, I've his site before and it's a nice start. Just that this is a web design geared for mobile devices, not resources for them. Maybe I'll shoot him a message and see if he wants to form an affiliation, who knows.
mbarvian: There's a few ideas I have, one would be just to use a simple URL for a basic start page, with configuration password protected. ex: somewebsite.com/somehomepage.php?user=myusername
nir36 said:
Neotelos, this is a very cool idea, but why don't you team up with whoever made Touch-innovation.com and develope it with him? he created it not a long while ago and it would be much more productive if you guys did that together instead of creating a whole new one (just a thought )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried contacting Nathan over there, but even though he remains active, I have yet to receive a response.
I don't see that his site is the busiest and if he can't even respond to messages as a courtesey, i don't think i'll be working with him. thanks for the advice though.

(LAST CHANCE TO VOTE) need some idea's

10/16/08--
It is 12:00 central time (17:00 GMT I think) and I will close voting at 5:00pm Central Time (22:00 GMT) today. So that leaves you just 5 Hours to make your vote. I will try and post the winner up here later tonight, or you can check yourself at www.gudensoft.com.
Thanks!!
10/14/08--
First, thanks for all the great ideas. I would love to develop all of these if I could, but we have to decide on just one of the programs! So, Since I couldn't add a poll to this thread, I added it to HERE.
CLICK HERE TO VOTE!​
I bet I know which will win, but who knows? The poll will end Thursday or Friday (depending on if it is a close race or not).
Thanks
Gudy
10/10/08--
Hey guys,
I want to know what cool program, functionality, or software you would like to see created. I am a .net programmer (among others) and would like some ideas of projects you would like to see. I would like to stay away from a graphic intense program and involved games, so think functionality, usefulness, fun, etc. If I get some good ideas, I will then add a poll, vote on the best one, then build it. I will release it under my donationware license which means it will be free. Right now I am finishing up my Golf Gps program (and will continue to support), but will start this project once we get it deceided. So Shoot me your ideas!
Gudy
cool a programmer who need ideas
I have proposed something here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=434925
though it would maybe not appear as a grateful program for a developper ( a toolkit for other programs), it could be a good way to have a large diffusion through many config panels in different programs
it was just an idea
Wishlist
Hi,
Maybe simple for .NET, but for me impossible to do (without performance/battery penaulty) with basic4ppc or mortscript. And thats all I can handle.
What I would like to have is a program that enables me to execute programs when specific events occur. I'd like to know when AC power gets connected/disconnected, when there is a change in screen orientation, and when a headset gets connected/disconnected and so on. Maybe even when an internet connection through WIFI is available/unavailable.
Also I'd like to know is a specific BT device is connectable/conneted. I'd like to know if a specific WIFI network is connectable/connected. I'd like to know if I'm at a specific location. All event driven, without a performance consuming programing loop or battery drain.
Yeah, all or even some of those options would make my digital mobile life so much easier
Good luck huntig for input, if you ever get bored contact me and make me happy
Cheers,
Cacti
le_cactus said:
Hi,
Maybe simple for .NET, but for me impossible to do (without performance/battery penaulty) with basic4ppc or mortscript. And thats all I can handle.
What I would like to have is a program that enables me to execute programs when specific events occur. I'd like to know when AC power gets connected/disconnected, when there is a change in screen orientation, and when a headset gets connected/disconnected and so on. Maybe even when an internet connection through WIFI is available/unavailable.
Also I'd like to know is a specific BT device is connectable/conneted. I'd like to know if a specific WIFI network is connectable/connected. I'd like to know if I'm at a specific location. All event driven, without a performance consuming programing loop or battery drain.
Yeah, all or even some of those options would make my digital mobile life so much easier
Good luck huntig for input, if you ever get bored contact me and make me happy
Cheers,
Cacti
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doable, handy, not a massive undertaking, I like it! Not sure I would go the .net route on something like this, as really a GUI is not required (except for settings maybe) and the overhead is large with .net. Certainly will add it to the list. Keep them coming!!
t0k0m0k0 said:
cool a programmer who need ideas
I have proposed something here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=434925
though it would maybe not appear as a grateful program for a developper ( a toolkit for other programs), it could be a good way to have a large diffusion through many config panels in different programs
it was just an idea
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This would be pretty difficult unless all of developers used the same programming langauge/technique. The only real feasable way I see this working would be developers using a common set of graphics. That would be more of a graphic undertaking instead of programming. I do like the idea, but pretty hard to impliment.
Thanks
Gudy
I would love to see something like Launchy for launching apps and files etc. as well as quick search of various types online. I'm guessing the on the fly search would require too much processing power, but if it's doable it would be awesome.
http://www.launchy.net/
I'm interested in new ideas too. I also use B4PPC.
Here's a few ideas:
-A tamagotchi, really. I was about to try this out tonight but Paint hates me.
-An app launcher like PetitLaunch on PalmOS. It's something that can pop from any app (hardware button) and when you type in extra letters it filters which apps are shown. I got this started and I can give you the files if you want.
-Pursue the development for Tippy. The source is on Nicbou.com/downloads if you want it.
-A time clock. A friend of mine notes down how long he works to make sure he doesn't get screwed and it takes him several minutes every week. He doesn't have a Pocket PC but maybe someone would be interested in something that tracks the hours you work and calculate the salary. I almost did this too.
And don't forget to share the source! If you need any help with B4PPC I'm here
galt said:
I would love to see something like Launchy for launching apps and files etc. as well as quick search of various types online. I'm guessing the on the fly search would require too much processing power, but if it's doable it would be awesome.
http://www.launchy.net/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds simular to the app launcher listed in the next post, seems like there is a theme going on here, you all need some sort of good app launcher.
Gudy
I'd like the Launchy features for search-on-the-fly off on board apps and file launching, but ever more for different site searches (google, maps, wikipedia, live, youtube, Amazon, etc).
N1c0_ds said:
I'm interested in new ideas too. I also use B4PPC.
Here's a few ideas:
-A tamagotchi, really. I was about to try this out tonight but Paint hates me.
-An app launcher like PetitLaunch on PalmOS. It's something that can pop from any app (hardware button) and when you type in extra letters it filters which apps are shown. I got this started and I can give you the files if you want.
-Pursue the development for Tippy. The source is on Nicbou.com/downloads if you want it.
-A time clock. A friend of mine notes down how long he works to make sure he doesn't get screwed and it takes him several minutes every week. He doesn't have a Pocket PC but maybe someone would be interested in something that tracks the hours you work and calculate the salary. I almost did this too.
And don't forget to share the source! If you need any help with B4PPC I'm here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had to look up tamagotchi, either I am too old, or just out of the loop to know that 10 million of these things were sold! Wow! That could be fun, but would take a pretty fancy AI type system to really be fun.
A form of Tippy is already out there, 1-calc has some of the features built in already.
A time clock could be cool, maybe a stop watch type thing perhaps?
Never used B4PPC, I mainly use C# and Visual Studio. It looks like the old Visual Basic for desktops. And last but not least, depending on the project, I more than likely will release the source.
Thanks!!! Keep'em comin!
Gudy
File Explorer Needs Help
Has anyone wanted to see a preview image in explorer's folder??
I'm not talking about fexplorerext2. although it is a fantastic enhancement; it takes a long time to load the preview immages.
I have a better idea (well, actualy MS thought of it first)
THUMBS.DB
for every folder that has an image file, this dll is created to replace cache of images. this way ou do not have to load it everytime and scale them down for thumbnail view. it is already there specificaly for each folder.
This alows the explorer to show a preview of the first image in the folder (or last created/accessed)
This is whatt I think WinMo is lacking - windows. lol.
I do not care much for the tabbed browsing. it hurts my head. too much scroling and not enough info. Icons work better I think, and waste less space on an already small screen.
well, that's been on my wishlist for a very long time. a dll that ataches to the already existing explorer making it work better.
Thanks for workin g on something new
program that makes led lights flash when phone rings would be nice
Interesting...I will have to think about how to tackle that. It would basically take a new file explorer (like total commander). This might be a bit larger than I want to tackle, but will research it a bit before ruling it out.
GUdy
bedaweed said:
program that makes led lights flash when phone rings would be nice
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This would be very difficult as not every device handles the leds the same. Also, not every device has the same leds (color, # of, etc). I think No2Chem has a int. driver, but think it is only for the titan. Would be cool though...
Gudy
a system-wide launcher dock program like that on the velocity 103 PPC..
here's the URL for the review and video of the app (and the phone)
-------------------------------------------------------------
a new top bar replacemeent/notification system much like the "android Notification Drawer" it can replace the bubble (multiple) notifications icon when you got multiple and simultaneous notifications.. and also make it finger friendly (unlike M2D, no need to go back to homescreen to check email/sms previes and also calendar events, calls, etc.. also unlike big taskbar - from the touch phones, this'll have previews)
video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7qbPa1O8Ys&eur (at the 2 minute mark) , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy-YcGNyJds
mjg7876 said:
Interesting...I will have to think about how to tackle that. It would basically take a new file explorer (like total commander). This might be a bit larger than I want to tackle, but will research it a bit before ruling it out.
GUdy
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fexplorer2 is basically a dll that works with the original file explorer context menu. there is a small exe that overwrites the original explorer to make it think that the explorer"s context menu has already been opened.
in a way it maybe possible to write a new dll and two exe
EXE 1 to replace the file explorer
EXE 2 to make thumbs db
DLL (conte4xt menu that alows to view as thumbnails/list etc ; as well as launching the second exe to make a thumbsdb)
maybe you can get some help from Hou Ming, the guy that made that program before.
it would be cool if you could get some of the old emus like pocket gba and pocket snes with window 6.1 I know i would be happy.
le_cactus said:
... when AC power gets connected/disconnected, when there is a change in screen orientation, and when a headset gets connected/disconnected and ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been looking for a program that would stop the music (S2P, Audio Manager, or WMP etc...) if during playback of the music the headset is removed. Or for instance, when the device is on vibrate and you connect headset, it automatically changes profile to normal or something.
Another one is when I dock my device (or connect AC basically), I'd like clock program (or home screen, or photo slideshow, etc...) to come up automatically.
A feature that I miss from my older phones is the ability to set them to beep every minute during a phone call.
Now these are very general and not specific features. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to contact me!
Thank you,
SiNAra
ytsejam_ said:
a system-wide launcher dock program like that on the velocity 103 PPC..
here's the URL for the review and video of the app (and the phone)
-------------------------------------------------------------
a new top bar replacemeent/notification system much like the "android Notification Drawer" it can replace the bubble (multiple) notifications icon when you got multiple and simultaneous notifications.. and also make it finger friendly (unlike M2D, no need to go back to homescreen to check email/sms previes and also calendar events, calls, etc.. also unlike big taskbar - from the touch phones, this'll have previews)
video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7qbPa1O8Ys&eur (at the 2 minute mark) , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy-YcGNyJds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The launcher on the 103 looks a lot like manilla, I know it is diff, but to me it seems mainly by presentation, not functionality. I do however like the notification top bar like that on android. Not sure how difficult taking over the top bar would be. I will do some digging.
S.V.I said:
Fexplorer2 is basically a dll that works with the original file explorer context menu. there is a small exe that overwrites the original explorer to make it think that the explorer"s context menu has already been opened.
in a way it maybe possible to write a new dll and two exe
EXE 1 to replace the file explorer
EXE 2 to make thumbs db
DLL (conte4xt menu that alows to view as thumbnails/list etc ; as well as launching the second exe to make a thumbsdb)
maybe you can get some help from Hou Ming, the guy that made that program before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you give me a link to this? The only thing I could find (quickly) was sketchy at best. Still seems a bit much, but would like to know more about this Fexplorer2 thing before nuking the idea.
Gudy

[Idea]-to have glass borders,scrollers etc.

My idea :
To actually have all the menus, scrollbar, default program backgrounds,the dropdown menu(the 1 on whcih we click when in File-explorer to jump from My Device to Storage Card),the Contacts Background,the Messaging Background..etc.
All of them transparent like Glass..This is just a Personal thought as in to change the feel n look of the OS.
WM6.5 all ready has titanium with the kind of glass panels m talking about.
Due to which it enhances the Wallpaper used i mean u can use almost any wallpaper.
And about the Visibility issue which will occur in almost everyone's mind after reading this post i think we can make it translucent the same way it becomes when we click on start menu..the icons r very much visible even with a complete white background.
So i think the backgrounds in the programs like file-explorer,windows media player-library,my pictures,SMS,Contacts etc. can be made the same.
I Wish some expert graphic designers and Programmers make my imagination come true and give all us Windows users a completely new interface.
I think for this .pngs & .jpgs of the system will have to be altered or replaced with the new ones and program them accordingly.
I am not at all good at programming and neither Graphics and i dont even know whether my idea can actually be implemented or no?
so many views n no single reply..
I am no coder, but Windows Mobile does not support transparencies like that. Only specific applications that are contained in themselves (aka titanium renders over itself so it has transparency. Mobile shell renders over itself so it has it too, etc.) But i could be wrong.
i don know either even m not sure about my concept..but i think .pngs can be useful...lets c..i have just put forward an idea..
Ive always wanted that feature too, part of the reason why I like Titanium so much, but as Shadowline pointed out, I think it's a limitation of the OS itself, even WM 6.5.
Then again, hope someone can prove us wrong.
yaah hoping for the same!!
Let's flood microsoft with this so they put it in wm7.

Windows Phone 8 Promo video

Windows phone 8 new pretty face
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25DKXGKblOw&feature=player_embedded
here u can find the whole video:
http://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Windows-Phone/Summit
I did a quick post about the new start screen on my website. Would love it if people could check it out.
http://geekshavelanded.com/windows-phone-8/
i LOVE the new Startcreen <3
Tile colour variations and folders
I watched the video and it didn't go into the options of..
Folders on start screen
nor
Changing colours of each tile
Both these features I would think are a must to keep up with the although shabby highly effective widgets and folders on ICS 4.0.
If I wan't to visually separate work and play on my windows phone, I would think that having a colour code would be the best visual differentiator. Also, if I wanted to place small sized toggles on the start screen which turned gps on and off, torch on off, 3G on off then I would want to have a specific colour set for those buttons so I could find them in even my most dizzy states of mind. Plus, think of the cool patterns you could make... Is anyone thinking 'Ziggy' from Quantum Leap?
Also, with 100 00 apps and growing, unnecessary crowding could be overcome by placing similar apps into customizable folders (which share the live tile display). I know its a legacy term but I still use an 'Accessories' folder on my SGS3 to place things like calculator, voice recorder etc. just the same as Windows 95.
I've heard rumors / requests but I haven't seen anything definitive from MSFT yet, so have I missed something?
I think it's a very different concept, those tiles.. But i still find it confusing.... I'm that kind of person who is obsessed with organization, tagging things and putting them into specific categories, I don't think I'd be OK with a lot of random things mixed in my home screen... But maybe it's just a matter of getting used to it, and probably this UI is more friendly for smartphone beginners.
I am as well. I have my tiles categorised by their purpose. Personally I think being able to resize the tiles as I please will make this easier to do...
nice
win98 said:
here u can find the whole video:
http://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Windows-Phone/Summit
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks., was look for this ...

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