Should I use the latest version of the modules I need when I create a new theme? I noticed that some of the newer themes use some older modules.

I apologize if this has already been covered.

In theory, you should use the newest available version of a module when you are making a new theme.

Why? The newest version is more likely to have the latest bug fixes and to be compatible with the current LS core. It will also be easier to upgrade if and when an even newer version of the module is released.

In practice, this does not always work.

Why? Sometimes a newer module version breaks or removes a desired feature, or introduces an incompatibility with another older module.

So... in general always try to use the newest version initially. If you encounter a compatibility issue, then consider rolling back to an earlier version. Only experience (and looking at existing working themes) will tell you for sure what will work best in a particular situation.

To add to what Boreas said, some themers do not want to learn how to do things with new modules. Take for instance, a fairly new theme using LsBox and xLabel (hint: browse customize.org for a couple :)).

LsBox is used because it has integrated position-saving; so the themer does not need to learn how to use TextEdit, xTextEdit, or Lua to do that part of the job. The downside is that LsBox is limiting in many ways, and is buggy (on top of being redundant in such a theme).

LsBox? Argh. That's particularly sad when you can save the position of a moveable xlabel with a single line of code (plus a few aliases), as I do with my to-do list:

todoOnMove !ParseEvars !execute [!saveSetting todoX %#todoCurrentX%#][!saveSetting todoY %#todoCurrentY%#]

The aliased bang commands are:

*alias !reloadTEM !NetReloadModule $texteditModule$
*alias !unloadTEM !NetUnloadModule $texteditModule$
*alias !saveSetting !execute [!setEvar %1 %2][!reloadTEM][!xtextSaveEvar @$settingsFile$@ @%1@ @%2@][!unloadTEM]

That onMove line was originally posted by xcal in the "Code' section, BTW. =)

Thank you for your responses. I think I'll stick with the newest version of the modules I plan to use.

My next question is:

Should I use the xModules or their equivalents? I know it depends on what features I want in my theme, but I'm willing to sacrifice bells and whistles for stability and quality.

If there is a list of recommended modules somewhere, can someone point me to it?

I would use the xmodules, as they are under active development. If there are problems, they tend to be found and addressed quickly. That said... the xmodules will probably be undergoing some major configuration changes in the very near future. These changes will greatly simplify theme settings (essentially a single class for configuration of all xmodules, as far as look/color/image/font settings go.) Currently the stuff is in beta, but it should be released soon. So... you might wish to wait a week or two and start with the new (xpaintclass) module versions - or use the beta package available now, with the understanding that some settings may change.

I'd stick mainly with the xmodules. The only thing I'd consider different would be using Popup2 instead of xPopup - less features, but sometimes feels faster. (Also, xDesktop is obsolete, and the creator is endorsing Clickonic for a desktop icon module).

For the current list of all modules released check here.
http://www.nbi-studio.com/page.php?2