Hi,

I am building a theme, called LaserDock.
LaserDock is fun and should enhance your windows experience.

However, its still kinda buggy, and because it has lots of code in it, I really need some help to get it usable anytime soon.
Any help would really be appreciated, even simply loading it up and telling me why you didn't like it would be usefull.

If this tickles your fancy pants, and your interested,
take a look at a video showing some of the features over here

P.S. I won't be releasing it until most people can use it reasonably.
So if you've seen the vid and think its awesome, please lend a tiny hand,
otherwise you might never get to use it

fanks.

Variable errors. This not OTS2? Why release something that only a few people will be able to try or use?

Cool ideas and great video to show the ideas off. BUT the video is a bit long and drawn out and doesnt hold attention. it gets a little tedious after awhile.
Trimming it down might help people in wanting to help. if that made any sense ;)

I will definitely load it up and see what i cant do to help out, although i dont think ill be incredibly helpful, any bit is something right? :) props.

xcal: hmmmn, true, it is OTS3... well, I'm sure you have OTS3 in a seperate folder for testing purposes, because you like helping Litestep and the community progress.

I don't really expect much help from people that haven't tested* OTS3 yet.

But thanks for that tip, I should probably say something about OTS3 on that webpage eh ;)

* "testing" really, seeing as it is quite stable and supports OTS2 anyway...


veggiemaster: Yeah, the vid is a bit long, the app I used to record it was kinda crappy... (or maybe its my comp) so I had to drag stuff around slowly to make it "seem" smooth...
I may trim it down and upload a shorter version.
Thanks for the tip.
And yes, any little bit is helpfull :)

especially in such a supportive community like this![/sarc]

"especially in such a supportive community like this!"

Oh please. You release something that just about no one can run and want support?

No, I don't have the proposed ots3 installed, and I have no plans to install it.

I really wish you'd set it up to work on ots2 out of the box, because it does look really cool, and I really did want to try it. It's probably just a matter of assigning the vars, no?

"something that just about no one can run"

speak for yourself.

OTS3
OTS3 Docs

Wanna reason to upgrade? Ok

3 looks like lips.
A kissy face.
Because it loves to kiss.
It loves you.
loves to kiss you right in the face.

Open Theme Standard Kissy kiss.

3

"OTS3, gets you right in the kisser"

You know that's not what I meant. :P

Did you not mean:
"I don't have the new stuff this runs on, I wish you'd made it for the old stuff I have." ???

If that is the jist of your argument, then thats a silly argument.

UPGRADE!

A similar argument would be:
"I don't have the right OS this runs on, I wish they'd made Halo3 for DOS." ???

bahaha!

Why is that funny?
Because the analogy is blown way out of proportion

Which dimension is most blown out?

The Difficulty dimension, BECAUSE UPGRADING FROM OTS2 TO OTS3 IS SO MUCH SIMPLER THAN UPGRADING FROM DOS TO VISTA!

ghod!

:3 :3

*kiss* *kiss*

update:

Removed: Some of the larger icons sizes (ones only in popup now only have 16x16)

Fixed: Snapdocking was broken.

Reinstated: xTextedit for var saving. Lslua is bad for this.

Added: Little message box for first run.

Removed: test.rc file. funny regexp test in there "zebra puffy zebra"

Fixed: Somel saveevar () file arguments werent full paths. (didnt need full paths previously, but this way makes more sense.)
Thanks aMADme for reporting this


Download: http://www.fractaldesignz.orcon.net.nz/Litestep/themes/laserdock/LaserDock-2.0.zip

It has nothing to do with *me* having what's necessary to run your theme. I'm thinking of it from the perspective of how many people you are going to be reaching. I *want* people to be using/trying your theme.

Oh ok :)
Well, maybe you should *give* people more credit.
Not everyone is a total retard, as it *seems* you think.

I have allready recieved a bug report and I'm helping someone else install OTS3.

So you'll be happy to know my efforts werent a complete waste :)
I really hadn't expected much help from anyone.
I guess I should have expected it would be from nobody I have even heard of before!

SLACKERS! :P XD

It has nothing to do with giving people credit. It's not that I think people can't figure it out. I think they simply don't care to bother. I believe most do not want to install what is only a proposed ots3, which hasn't had any *real* acceptance.

I may not be explaining myself very well, but you are jumping to the wrong conclusions, which I suspect you're about to do again...

So, should fractal have not posted the theme because its not reaching everybody or because noone will care? Or should he go back to the good old no-ots days and include everything in the theme zip, even theme independed stuff, which ots3 provides now?
Sorry, this is pretty odd.

I don't understand why you guys keep going to extremes. Fractal with dos, and now you with no-ots days. You're also asking questions like should he not have released it because of the audience size or nobody would care? That's simply asinine.

All I'm saying is it'd be nice if this could reach a larger number of users. Ya, that is pretty odd...heaven forbid I'd want more people to be able to use his theme.

Yea...what is the issue with detecting that someone is running OTS2 and trying to install it and writing an include for all the extra stuff that is missing? I could have sworn we went through this once already as a community...o wait...we did...and we have the OTS_Compatability.inc file.

DeV: yeah I did that for various versions of laserdock too.

xcal: I understand that yes, I could've probably reached more users.


Everyone: Some reasons why its OTS3

1. As I mentioned, i have added multi-ots support before, and it is counter-productive.
I did it for GS to explain how it will work, but not many understood that I actually ADDED the GS into the theme folder for OTS2 support!.
Not many people got it (I don't know what the ratio was)
So I'll remove that 1 layer of confusion and simply say "Its OTS3, Upgrade, Kiss kiss"

2. I want OTS3 to get some publicity.

xcal wrote: "I believe most do not want to install what is only a proposed ots3, which hasn't had any *real* acceptance."

How is it going to be accepted if noone pushes it out there?
Even actual litestepper's like you don't use it! maybe this will be a way for it to get some recognition, and input (I don't know how likely this is, but its definetly more likely than if I released laserdock-2.0 as OTS2).

LOSI is nearly done (right?) so now its time for people to get involved with OTS3. And because everyone will be using OTS3 (not all will use losi) that makes it more important.


3. I don't want to waste my time on adding support for a deprecated model (maybe I see it wrong, but OTS3 with GS kick *** long time) when I could use that time to effectively FIX my theme.



So I hope you all understand ;)

If you don't wanna upgrade to OTS3, why not?
Talk about it.
Because there *will* be an OTS3! All that is up for question is wether YOU will have *any* say in what that is! :P

*kiss* *kiss* (o'3
http://www.fractaldesignz.orcon.net.nz/images/OTS3.64.png

Dude, your lips must be really tired.

Well, the 'supportive community' issue was totally validated by the argument that the comment spawned. In order to progress, we do need to branch out and try new things and in this case, OTS3.

If we keep circling the block on everything thats been tried and done before, we dont progress. Someone eventually has to branch out and test/try new things.

SO, im not trying to flame anyone, all im saying is that I think we should all branch out and give the whole OTS3 thing a shot. AND fractal's theme. :)

For the OTS3 proposal to gain acceptance and be legitimized, it really needs a proper, working installer. Until then, whether anyone likes the proposal or not isn't that important. it'll just be perceived as some crap hacked together.

Perception is everything when enticing users.

As with everything i do, ots3 is just another gift to the community. You can use it or not. But i'm not gonna waste my time porting perfectly working tools to another language to lure a in few who dont really care. I don't want to excite users. I'd just like to have some comments from those few who can see Litestep's limitations and want to help pushing them a bit further.

Well, I wasn't so much criticizing OTS3 in my previous post. Whether people agree with what you've put together or not isn't really important at this point. I've been under the impression that your proposal is mostly finished and your part of the deal is kind of on hold until Tobbe (?) finishes LOSI?

have you tried it yet?

"No, I don't have the proposed ots3 installed, and I have no plans to install it."

Or did you mean LOSI? I'll modify my response, just in case...

"No, I don't have the proposed [LOSI] installed, and I have no plans to install it."

pshhh, why not?
whats your problem?

don't comment on my stuff if its not constructive criticism.
I am tempted to say "anybody's" stuff, but I will only speak for myself.

It is frustrating and also counter-productive.
Bye.

I explained a number of times how I wished more could try your theme, and how that could happen. I asked if it was just a matter of assigning vars (unanswered), implying by the question an easy way to let OTS2 people try it. I gave my opinion on what OTS3 needs to gain a wide acceptance, and asked a question (unanswered). The remaining content of my posts have been responding to you.

While the value of the constructiveness is certainly questionable, just because you don't like it does not mean it isn't there.

"I explained a number of times how I wished more could try your theme, and how that could happen."
Do you know the number of people that have tried?
What about the number that would have tried had I abide by your suggestions?

Would that increase be significant? enough so for it to be worthwhile supporting an old, outdated and deprecated standard?


I don't.

What I do know is you haven't tried it yet.

If you, xcal, being a (in my eyes) knowledgable, influential, important and valuable member of this community can't be bothered, there will be few who are.

This just makes me sad.
and frustrated.

I mean... wtf?

Why do you bitch so much lately?
About everything interesting and progressive that seems to be happening lately.
And you just knock it down, like it could have been done so much better.

I hear you talking about xPC, and how its confusing. Like one theme review you replied something like: "was good after got past xPC setup" !?

How does that help? ANYTHING!?

I just don't understand you or your kind, and I think if you have nothing constructive to say you should be quiet, for the benefit of the community.


If LS is dying, your hands are bloodier than most.
Most just leave.
You stick around and negate hard work and effort like its not worth even speaking about supporting.
Its disrespectfull and a crappy attitude.


Ok, so this is going on for a bit now.
I am angry, yes.
I am frustrated, yes.
I am tired, yes.
But most of all I am sad.

You used to be a decent member of this community. I used to value your opinion so much about my themes.
You made awesome themes yourself.

I dunno, I guess I just want that old xcal back.
Stop reading newbie posts at ls.net and getting all cynical because of it.
Start releasing again, or something... creating.

It is currently the standard. While work on OTS3 continues, until it has an effective means of installation for the masses it will not be accepted. I have to be honest...I haven't even looked at OTS3 since the fight over what a theme should be...but if you can't quickly and easily port over what I have...Im not starting over. Backwards compatability is part of any new standard and from what I am reading here, it was not addressed.

Do you know the number of people that have tried?

- Of course not. Neither do you.

What about the number that would have tried had I abide by your suggestions?

- Well, that's a hypothetical, of course, but it would obviously be more.

What I do know is you haven't tried it yet.

- Oh but I did try it. It wouldn't run.

If you, xcal...can't be bothered, there will be few who are.

- That certainly isn't my fault.

Why do you *** so much lately?
About everything interesting and progressive that seems to be happening lately.
And you just knock it down, like it could have been done so much better.

- You make it sound like "everything" is some huge list of innovations. My first comments on xpaint were actually positive. What I didn't like was how it was introduced, and I wasn't shy about saying so. Hmm... were up to 1? Sure, I haven't been a fan of the OTS3 proposal in the past, but at this point I want to see it put in an installer and released. The fact it's just sitting there not being used widely is more what bothers me these days, but it needs an installer. What's the most recent thing I've said about Andymon's brandnew xDesk. What? That's not part of "everything?"

I hear you talking about xPC, and how its confusing. Like one theme review you replied something like: "was good after got past xPC setup" !?

- Yup, and I stand by that. It's not confusing to me, it's confusing to new users. I can fix the problems I've had. While some new users may try, not all will be bothered. I look at it from an attracting new users point of view. Over time, this will/is becoming a non-issue now that it can be NLMed.

If LS is dying, your hands are bloodier than most.
Most just leave.
You stick around and negate hard work and effort like its not worth even speaking about supporting.
Its disrespectfull and a crappy attitude.

- Ok, now you're just starting to sound like a fool. First, I use Litestep... so why would I leave? Ya, I'm just sticking around negating hard work... right. That's all I do... When I'm not answering newb questions on this forum, through my email, and constant PMs when I was frequenting custo. I don't like how you released your theme. That's 1. Did it "negate" all your hard work? Of course not. I've criticized OTS3 in the past, but I've moved away from that and now want to see it released in a proper installer. I've criticized xpaintclass for being prematurely released. I bet you Andymon would even agree with that. As for my hands being "bloodier than most," that's one of the stupidest things I've ever read. Especially coming from someone who is releasing a theme that isn't even supported by the CURRENT STANDARD.

Start releasing again, or something... creating.

- You make too many assumptions. I even said "I'm actually inspired to theme again" because of Andymon's latest work.

I can understand you being maybe a little defensive about my one and only criticism of your theme, but you're starting to sound just like some whiny little ***. I criticized xpaintclass' release, (previously but no longer) OTS3, and now your theme (which I said I wish more people could use!) because it doesn't support current standards, and now your world is falling apart and the sky is falling and I'm one of the main reasons Litestep is in a slump? Please.