Hey all,
a very short time ago - at least compared to most others here - I've have started playing with 'additional interfaces'. The Cube, PointUI, S2U2, HTC Album, additional helpers like FTouchFlo, etc.
These are all nice things, that goes without saying, and props to the devs. We got some really good software devs here, software hackers, tweaks, graphics guys, just good thinkers, etc.
Now what is the problem, you might ask. The problem is, it's all so very disconnected. Yes, you combine them all and make nice things, but setting it up isn't always easy (though some cooks do a great job of it), configuring it all to work nicely together is tiresome, the interfaces are not consistent with eachother, etc. We're all messing and mucking about as one man shows (or few men shows).
Now just think if we all put our efforts together, I think we could make the future ourselves.
Let's take gesturing for instance. Instead of how it works now, a general gesturing library could be made, which first off, provides more gestures, diagonals (instead of just horizontal/vertical), curves (like rotating in HTC Home), circles, etc. And now instead of just using these for general commands like now (keep that for unsupported apps), make this something each app or screen can configure/assign themselves. No more conflicts between different 'touch apps', and also very important, the gestures are the same, unlike the somewhat different gestures that are now used for the different apps.
Another thing is the interfaces. A consistent look (to the already consistant feel from above) would make the whole experience better. A general interface library could be made providing all the code for the transitions/animations, and interface parts like buttons. Everything graphical goes here, so we can all use it. Skinning everything would then also be a breeze.
With these two basic parts we could already go a long way, but the ultimate goal would be taking all the good of all projects, improve on those, and leave out the bad. For example, the cube is nice, but it's awfully limited. There could be a lot more in it. There's nothing special about HTC Album, it's just 'nicely done'.
I hope you can all imagine a bit what I mean with all the above (I try not to go into too much detail). We would all have to work together on this, but if we did, I'm quite sure we could build something that could completely replace the WM shell and would leave the iPhone as well as WM7 (if it ever comes) biting the dust. In the end, everybody who'd work on it may even get payed if we license it to a provider. I truely believe that the whole would be a lot bigger than the parts are now.
I'd expand more on 'my' vision (I'm sure other people have it as well), but it's not much use at this stage yet.
The furure is now, the future is XDA!
yess!! amen!! <3
anyway, why don't we all make open source apps? i mean i think it would be cool to make everyone work on one amazing thing..
It's an exciting notion for sure. I definitely have 100x more faith in the people here to come up with something worthwhile than I do in Microsoft, that's for sure.
That's the problem with the new applications: consistency.
personally I'd love to see pointUI release an API for its interface library. I think they have one of the most responsive and usable touchUIs. I posted this on their forum but didn't get a response.
I think this is a good idea as we have so many different gesturing projects reinventing the wheel. With a unified starting point, it could help new projects get off the ground faster.
Biggest problem: Not everybody is willing to share source codes.
Does anybody knows Xbox Media Center (XBMC) for the Xbox 1? Something like this for PPC would be the breakthrough imho..
Yes i totally agree. Having libraries that other developers can use is a great idea, or sharing code would be good. I made a post few days back about sharing the libraries but i didn't get any reply. I think i didn't make my point as clear as you
I am currently developing some apps (fringer friendly), but i am having lots of touble researching, developing POC, etc to make gestures, transitions and animations etc, which is really time consuming and takes more time from concentrating on the core functionalities of the applications.
So yes developing reusable libraries is definitly a great step that this forum can take.
Might i add, why dont we start a developers group here limited on devs who want to contribute with their code, idea to build these libraries? Where we can discuss the design and architecture of the libraries, export functions etc, needed controls etc.
We might also come up with great framwork that devs can use and sell it (as u mentioned). OpenNetCF did that, they created a large number of controls, .Net wrappers for Win32 APIs, etc, it started out as an opensource project, but then they started selling these their framework.
Hope other developers here become enthusiastic about this idea as we are
TacoLoco said:
Does anybody knows Xbox Media Center (XBMC) for the Xbox 1? Something like this for PPC would be the breakthrough imho..
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I started working on an similar application sometime back but dropped it cause i didn't have much time and development resources (especially cool graphical effects) to do it. Actually it was more of the MS Media Center clone.
Well this is a great place to start... we can group together and start working on an application like that....
mrabie said:
Yes i totally agree. Having libraries that other developers can use is a great idea, or sharing code would be good. I made a post few days back about sharing the libraries but i didn't get any reply. I think i didn't make my point as clear as you
I am currently developing some apps (fringer friendly), but i am having lots of touble researching, developing POC, etc to make gestures, transitions and animations etc, which is really time consuming and takes more time from concentrating on the core functionalities of the applications.
So yes developing reusable libraries is definitly a great step that this forum can take.
Might i add, why dont we start a developers group here limited on devs who want to contribute with their code, idea to build these libraries? Where we can discuss the design and architecture of the libraries, export functions etc, needed controls etc.
We might also come up with great framwork that devs can use and sell it (as u mentioned). OpenNetCF did that, they created a large number of controls, .Net wrappers for Win32 APIs, etc, it started out as an opensource project, but then they started selling these their framework.
Hope other developers here become enthusiastic about this idea as we are
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You are saying pretty much what I mean. Though the gesture thing wouldn't really be like a library, more like a service with an interface.
Anyway, setting up a dev group like this would IMHO be great (and I was thinking this myself) - we do need a larger group though. After all, if we don't want to, we don't have to share the source code, we can keep it in the group, or use a 'read-only' licence, or LGPL or something (though I'm personally not too fond of the GPL license).
I am convinced, that given enough time, I could do all of this myself. I am also convinced, that many other coders here could. But why should we?
WOW
well im no programmer or developer,just a guy with a titan, but I think you guys are talking about the perfect ui. sort of a modular system where the base ui has all the key functions and you could just plugin the core features of your choice without the need of base code for things like scrolling and gesture,etc... this makes me wonder why no ones done this yet. maybe I can learn abuot developing so I can help. incredible ui idea. thanx
I'm a designer and i'm in for this project!
Let's beat the crap out of the iphone and wm7!
Let us use the good parts from that interfaces and make it better, slicker, more beautifull!
gr. bram
Chainfire
i think there are more people getting interested in the idea... hope that more devs, designers gets interested too
Totally agree, maybe we should start getting the developers/designers (thanks bram_smulders!)/cookers and so on in this project...we could list apps, that are developed in and through this community and maybe - with a little moderation - the developers could agree on some standarts...i think that would be first step...
I'd be willing to help as well, I haven't done too much on the PPC. I've messed a little with the minshell and mintask examples in the wince6 sdk; they compile and run but don't function as expected btw.
help needed ?
Hi all, chainfire as said what i was thinking about thoses different and very nice UIs.
I'm not a developper, just a system IT, if i can help to beta-test the products of your project on my trinity..I'll do it w/ best feedback.
Hi,
I'm a french VB.net developper (even on WM, of course) and I can help that way. if u want !
let me know ( cyril [at] rebreyend {dot} com )
Input
I wouldn't mind working towards the goals outlined for a project like this. I'm especially fond of a gesture library of sorts, as well as a fully functional kinetic scrolling lib.
You can always PM if anything gets started .
I think also that instead of starting from scratch and make another PointUI Home we can try to expand an existing project... Maybe PointUI could have wrote a simili-SDK ? (or someone else ?)
I'll try to contact them, and come back here to tell how far i've been trashed
Anyone have an idea of who has already written something open source ?
P.S: Sorry for my english.
So I am in need of some willing individuals that wouldn't mind taking some time to make a stellar guide to top all guides for first time users and veterans alike. After searching for hours for something that I thought was simple and easy, I decided to do something about it. I came up with a great idea, but can't do it alone.
The format will have a wiki feel to it, but allow the user to narrow down what they're looking for a lot quicker without having to scroll through a giant wall of text to find it. Eventually, many main topics will be integrated into my choose your adventure video project currently in the works.
As there will be main sections to this "guide", we will be working as a team to create a unique experience for us here in these forums to make the information flow user friendly, evolve with the time, and be right at our fingertips. I have some great people on board already and we're excited to get started, but here's what we're looking for:
-1 individual knowledgeable with the Mac OS for vibrant/android integration
-1 to 2 individuals very familiar with ADB and commonly used commands as well as rooting in general
-1 to 2 individuals familiar with the extraction, compilation, and signing processes for theming
-1 to 2 individuals for general app help/reviews
-1 to 3 individuals to help with general info and maintenance of the guide
In addition, all individuals should know their way around Microsoft Word (pref '07+)
If you think you fit the bill, the best way to let me know is to shoot me a PM with your qualifications, or you can respond below and I'll do my best to keep an eye out. The initial time investment will probably be in the neighborhood of 1-3 hours depending on how we decide to arrange the layout. After that, it should be minimal to maintain unless you feel like going overboard.
Hello! Thanks for stopping by! I'm making an app with a friend of mine and we both are terrible at making graphics (we both code). The game is a simple dice game yet what sets it apart from other dice games is online play and a level of polish above the rest. Our code is pretty polished, even in its humble beginnings, so we are looking for a graphics designer who is willing to help show to users a polished interface.
We don't care how much experience you have as long as you're willing to learn (we can't teach you though obviously). The only thing we ask for is that you give at least 3 hours a week to the project. I believe that is not a lot to ask for. We are doing this project as a hobby and we hope to add another member (or two) to our team. Once again thank's for your time.
If you would like to know more about the app please post in the thread so other people can benefit from the information and if you have more personal questions feel free to PM me.
I'm actually interested. if it's not too time consuming I will gladly give it a try.
you can take a look at my deviant art profile to see what graphic works i normally do
http://aoisora9x.deviantart.com/
send me an email @ [email protected] if you want to contact me.
i do lots of traditional paper and pen design then move it over to digital paint.
let me know if you need some help and what your ideas and i'll toss up a few test designs you can look over.
i do very little in terms of actual 3d renders and modeling.
deviant art gallery
@sora:
nice gallery btw.
Aoi_sora9x said:
I'm actually interested. if it's not too time consuming I will gladly give it a try.
you can take a look at my deviant art profile to see what graphic works i normally do
http://aoisora9x.deviantart.com/
send me an email @ [email protected] if you want to contact me.
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Nice Deadmau5 head
not hijacking, but it'd be really cool to see resources designers kicking around here make. which could then be used in projects by devs. just putting something out there will encourage others to use it. ie. icons and so on.
MarkusPO said:
not hijacking, but it'd be really cool to see resources designers kicking around here make. which could then be used in projects by devs. just putting something out there will encourage others to use it. ie. icons and so on.
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The only problem with that is that some people don't like other people to use their work. It's the same thing with code (i.e. open source or not). In any case it would be better to submit work you would like to share on Open Clip Art instead of a thread that would be hard to upkeep and search through.
pxldtz said:
i do lots of traditional paper and pen design then move it over to digital paint.
let me know if you need some help and what your ideas and i'll toss up a few test designs you can look over.
i do very little in terms of actual 3d renders and modeling.
deviant art gallery
@sora:
nice gallery btw.
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The time it will take depends on you're proficiency with creating buttons backgrounds and stuff like that. Right now I have three people that want to work on this and I always had in mind to have different themes for this app. I'm going to ask Aoi_sora9x if he won't mind other people making other different themes. I will get back to you as soon as I can.
tytdfn said:
The only problem with that is that some people don't like other people to use their work. It's the same thing with code (i.e. open source or not). In any case it would be better to submit work you would like to share on Open Clip Art instead of a thread that would be hard to upkeep and search through.
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i thoroughly disagree! so if a designer didn't want to share, they're not forced to post whatever they've made on here. and as xda is a large community, you never know who could be reading about your work. maybe a new forum would be best.
I think the main reason is that XDA is a developer forum and not a designer forum?
artists and designers mostly will post on art forums, like how developers will only share stuffs on developer forums. When i wanna share a new icon set, XDA is not the first place i would think of. :/
MarkusPO said:
i thoroughly disagree! so if a designer didn't want to share, they're not forced to post whatever they've made on here. and as xda is a large community, you never know who could be reading about your work. maybe a new forum would be best.
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True. The new forum idea has potential.
I would like to try that, too..
My deviantART profile: http://kanttii.deviantart.com
email: [email protected]
I'm not good with 3D modeling, but I like to create interfaces.