Can you share any screenshots or videos of your Winstep desktop setup?

This my current setup. I am using a modified WebGizmos's "Nocturne" theme. I have four Grid Stacks on the taskbar - Places, Applications, Games, and MS Apps. The icons are from the "Buuf" icon theme from mattahan's DeviantArt gallery - some also modified. The wallpaper is a modified version of the "Dunes 2" wallpaper from dpcdpc11's DeviantArt gallery. The Date/Weather and Time are modified XWidgets from Jimking's DeviantArt gallery. The dock skin is a modified version of "Gris Grisote" from acg3fly's DeviantArt gallery.

https://www.deviantart.com/dpcdpc11/art ... -656488303

https://www.deviantart.com/jimking/art/ ... -816648809

https://www.deviantart.com/jimking/art/ ... -540733048

https://www.deviantart.com/mattahan/art/Buuf-37966044

https://www.deviantart.com/acg3fly/art/ ... -734678446

https://www.wincustomize.com/explore/winstep/655/

@Nezbit - I find it rather odd if not downright suspect that he didn't start it off by posting his own. Anyway, this kind of thing has been tried a few times before. Hardly anybody was arsed to participate. So what else is new?

BTW, those Deviant links don't work here. Might be because I'm not a signed up card-carrying member (never liked that site, too cliquish), or that I connect through the TOR netwwork, or something else this end, of course.

I just rechecked the links and they all work for me. I was not signed in to DeviantArt when I checked them. It is now harder to search DeviantArt without signing in, but I have never had a problem with a link to a specific page. Must be the TOR network or something else. You do need a free basic account to download though.

I too found it odd that the post didn't start with a screenshot. Maybe the OP, Mark_Wahlberg (the Mark Wahlberg???), was just looking for ideas as I was when I posted my screenshots. I hope others take the time to post theirs. I think everyone would benefit from things that others have discovered.

I like to change my desktop about once a month. Last month I had sort of a reverse Ubuntu setup with the taskbar on the bottom and a dock locked to the right edge. The dock had four Grid Stacks. One each for Folders, Applications, Games, and MS Apps. Also a clock, recycler, and several commonly used applications. It made it very easy to access everything I use.

I like DeviantArt because it is sort of a catch-all for everything in customization. Almost everything is still free - including a basic account - but that too is slowly changing. Customization seems to becoming a dying art and a thing of the past. I even noticed that the Linux world seems to be cautioning against too much customization. Some people that put in the time and effort to create themes, widgets, etc. now want more than just a thank you for their hard work. I can't really say that I blame them. So far the prices that they are asking are very fair considering the amount of time that they must have invested. The people that have created all the free themes for Winstep Xtreme deserve a thank you from all of us that use them.

@Nezbit - Yeah, thought it might be something this end re: the links. I guess that means I'll never be bothered by having to check anything on the DA website again.

I'm afraid I very much doubt we'll see many - if indeed any! - responding with their screenshots. That is, going on past form.

Anyway, there's much giving rise to thought in your post.

Myself, I try never to change my Winstep setup, which is very easy nowadays as I don't have more than a handful or so apps that I still need to use in Windows, 85-90% of my work I do in Linux. For the last few years I have most things on the taskbar (with the aid of a hidden shelf, of course), inc. a couple of menus. Very simple. Just for completeness I have the CPU, RAM, NET, and UPS desktop mods in a joint up arrangement. So all in all pretty minimalist. I can't post screenshots though as there's copyright protected artwork involved that I have only limited permissions for. I do like to change the theme now and then though, of which I have about a score or so - can't stand any of the standard themes, almost everything is far too fussy and distracting for my taste.

Customisation/skinning or theming isn't so much dying as about as dead as a dodo already - the corpse just exhibits the odd death throes spasms now and then, here and there, I think. That's one of the things I like about Linux, not many customisation/theming choices there, especially in Ubuntu, my main OS. Still too many IMO - I'd really prefer if there only was a limited choice of fully integrated themes - window decorations, desktop backgrounds, tool bars, etc. - for the user, where nothing else could be changed and also, perhaps contrary to the Linux and FOSS ethos, where these themes are hard-coded and not open source, and fully protected. There is simply far too much choice in everything in modern society, and it is extremely unhealthy.

So do you use Ubuntu as well then? It certainly has much to commend it, although in some ways I think 22.04 LTS is a bit of a retrograde step. I also certainly can't seem to find some of the extensions that I used to have under 18.04 and earlier in some cases. (Sometimes I also use Fedora, and Debian, inc. TAILS which essentially is almost pure Debian. TAILS actually is what I've been using all day today so far as I've been tied to web use mostly - some Wire sessions also - and a bit of WP.)

Speaking of Ubuntu, I totally agree with Mark Shuttleworth that Linux desperately needs a unified Desktop Environment and share his disappointment that the Ubuntu 'Unity' one did not become this. (The current Ubuntu DE is a modified Gnome 3.xx somewhat mimicking Unity.) This also of course runs opposite to ideas of skinning and customisation.

Again, I also have to share Linus Torvalds' disappointment and frustration that there are far too many different distros and versions plus 'flavours' of Linux. Far, far too many, far too much choice again. Not good at all.

It is these two factors indeed that so far have stunted the development of Linux, stunted true innovation and invention, as well as preventing Linux from gaining a much bigger share of the desktop market than it has. Linux *could* have overtaken Windows by now, the potential has always been there. But alas!

Anyway, I really don't see any great future for customisation, and especially not theming/skinning, in Windows. As it is, there really are only two - very different - apps falling broadly under that umbrella now, Winstep and Rainmeter. They are doing alright still, but everything else has pretty much fallen by the wayside, mostly quite a long time ago now. (And Linux needs it like a great big hole in the kernel IMO! )

As for people creating themes and customisations generally wanting to make a bob or two from it, in terms of the Windows world and commercial apps especially, I can perfectly empathise with that. More than that, I don't really approve e.g. of users being able to completely mess around with someone's themes or skins and modify almost everything. It's wrong on principal, it's violating someone else's creation. Especially if it should have any real artistic and design merit (rare though, IMO). To put it simply, a theme ought to be set in stone. After all, if you bought the Mona Lisa - or any work of art - you would *not* want to f**k around with it, by giving her a moustache for instance! If people don't like a theme the way it comes by default, they should create their own or choose something else, the way I see it. So say if I were to create and release a theme for Xtreme, I would want it to be immutable, the only choice given to the user being which components to use. Even wallpaper could not be changed. So now you know one of the reasons I don't create and release themes.

Your thoughts on the future of Linux are interesting. Something certainly needs to happen to push Linux forward. A unified Desktop Environment might just be the answer. I think Windows 11, and what I have heard about Windows 12, might be just enough to push people elsewhere. I think the gaming community is also getting tired of what is happening with Windows. It was interesting to read today that Linux has overtaken Macs on Steam. It was thanks to the Steam Deck, but at least it is a start.

https://www.pcworld.com/article/2020796 ... ayers.html

The question is will the Linux community ever agree on anything? We’ve been hearing “This is the year of Linux” for how long? And if there ever is a unified DE, will it become another Windows or MacOS? Is the freedom to do what you want the thing that makes Linux what it is?

I first tried Ubuntu in 2004 shortly after its first official release. I loved the idea of Linux but it was beyond my limited computer knowledge at the time. I experimented with it off and on over the years, and even made it my main OS a couple of times, dual booting with Windows. Changes in the kernel, lack of drivers, and updates making my system unusable eventually caused me to go back to Windows as my only OS. Maybe next year when I build a new computer, I will use this one for Linux. For now I really have come to like Windows 10.

As for modifying someone else’s themes, icons, wallpaper, etc, I sure am guilty of that. I have all the talent of a four year old when it comes to artistic creation, but I have become fairly skilled in the use of paint.net to modify the work of others for my personal use. I do always acknowledge and link to the original author if I post something on a website. It is their creation and they deserve the credit. Years of exploring DeviantArt has shown me that most authors don’t seem to mind someone modifying their work as long as they are recognized as the original author and no one else profits from it. Sometimes I think that I enjoy changing my desktop more than I enjoy using the computer itself. I guess I need to get a life.

A Unified DE would only be one first step - it would of course pre-suppose a (new) single Window Manager and complete new graphics sub-system etc. Also, to go further with this, Linux would need a single set of dependencies so that developers of third party apps wouldn't have to code separate versions for different distros. Furthermore, a new, single package distribution format would be essential, perhaps 7zip for instance. A central app register that made it simple for any user to keep track of and to uninstall any app would be handy as well. (I don't mean the mess we currently have with utilities like the Ubuntu 'Software' one, let alone the likes of 'Synaptic Package Manager'.)

All of this looks unlikely to be even possible to be achieved by a single distro of course - it would require the 'big 4, or 5' major distros to wholly co-operate, say Ubuntu, Fedora, Debian, OpenSuse - and to keep things pretty much under wraps for a time. The smaller distros IMO should be left to muddle on or preferably fall by the wayside. Nor could this be achieved with just volunteer coders - it would take a reasonably substantial core of salaried coders, project managers, and an over all head of project (with vision and drive).

Whether it would be possible - or perhaps even desirable - for Linux to continue wholly along the 'Free and Open Source' route with such an ambitious project is another question I think. My own feelings in this respect are somewhat ambivalent. On the one hand I certainly wholly support the concept of Open Source (and independent auditing of source!), but on the other hand whether it would really be feasible to allow such a project to be completely free - and I don't mean free of cost to the user here, I mean in the sense of freedom to change, use, distribute, whatever - would be highly debatable.


Yes, and that doesn't seem to be the only place where Linux is overtaking or equalling Rotten Fruit Mac user base. Last time I checked it looked like all distros combined were pretty much head to head with Mac and set to overtake it. The only things that have been keeping the Rotten Fruit alive are on the one hand style and gadget 'freaks' and on the other, users of (mainly) Mac-exclusive music related apps.


Alas, yes, agreement might be a problem in any future 'Unity Linux' project. But if all the almost myriad minor distros are simply ignored and left to rot as it were, it should be possible in the interest of moving forward.

As for the question of whether a unified Linux would ever become another Windows or macOS, let's start by looking at the past and present. Almost from the early days of Window Managers/DEs - one or two excepted like Windowmaker and Afterstep - Linux distros have been striving to be as Windows-like - or Mac-like in a few cases - as possible without actually becoming Windows or Mac, and in the more recent past they've all pretty much achieved it. Nowadays, most (Windows-like) DEs are a doddle to use by any half-intelligent Windows user (and conversely, the same applies to Mac). So, in a way, your question answers itself - we're already there, more or less. Alas. That is why a 'Unity Linux' needs to be completely inventive and innovative, new, a breeze of fresh air, even a bit revolutionary, to distinguish itself, yet at the same time to be at least as user-friendly as the present and easy to transition to this new system.

A Unified Linux would need to establish strong branding and identity (both in terms of the unity and the individual core distros) with an emphasis on user-friendliness as well as differentiation. No more 'Windows-like' or 'Mac-like', no more Mr. Nice Guy. Instead, something new, different, and exciting!


Ooh, yes, I remember Ubuntu first coming onto the scene - tried it out for a time back then but didn't meet enough of my needs just yet then. However, I thought it was exciting and a bit of a breeze of fresh air. I originally first tried Linux back around 95 or 96, with Slackware. Nightmare - took me a week to set up a WM/DE, and the whole thing was unstable as hell. Fortunately, I had Solaris and OS/2 Warp on the same machine - my first self-built x86 PC - as well as still Openstep 4. (And I still had a few Amigas and NeXT boxes back then.) Anyway, Slackware had to go fairly soon (and made way for BeOS IIRC - load of mainly derivative shite really, basically, but some interesting bits) but I always kept an eye on the Linux scene. I then came back to Ubuntu permanently with 16.04 LTS dual-booting with XP - that old laptop didn't support later Windows versions - and within maybe six months joined by Fedora. Anyway, Ubuntu's now my main OS on all machines. Never really given me any problems in re: upsetting Windblows, touch wood.


LOL! I can't say I 'enjoy' using a computer per se, it's just a tool, or rather, a toolbox, to me, but I'd certainly say that generally I find Ubuntu a joy to use, and Fedora isn't bad either, albeit somewhat more 'serious' in tone somehow.

As for modifying other people's themes, I don't have a problem with that per se as long as the original creators don't mind - curious that they don't, I always thought - and as long as it doesn't involve genuine art and outstanding original design, which it very rarely gets near. (If it did, the creator wouldn't want it messed about with and wouldn't put it 'out there'. ) Mind you, there's at least one exception out there who is capable of some good design, user Picco14 (hope I got the name right!). So at least I've ended with something positive.

Nexter

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Your knowledge on the subject is impressive. It will be interesting to see what happens in the Linux world.

Hmm.... Probably not a lot, alas. It would take people like Mark Shuttleworth, Linus Torvalds, and a few others to pull their fingers out, get together, and put their money where their mouth is so to speak. Some would have to drop their preciousness about the 'purity' of Linux and accept the need for things like proprietary drivers etc. How likely would all that make anything seriously happening? I'm afraid my glass is half empty on this one.

Winstep Xtreme 23.7 Is Awesome!
Main Monitor: (Right click and select open image in new tab for better view)

Secondary Monitor: (Right click and select open image in new tab for better view)

Go's perfect with my Neon Theme!
Winstep makes me do a double take every time I look at my desktop:

Thank you Jorge for such a Awesome product! Cheers

My latest desktop inspired by the Ubuntu desktop. It has a dock on the right side with four grid stacks at the top, (folders, applications, games, and Microsoft apps).

I used a program called Sizer to force all windows to open to a specified size.

https://www.brianapps.net/sizer4/

The clock on the nightstand works.

The clock and the taskbar weather are XWidgets.

Nice! Looks better than Ubuntu!

Thanks Williamsson. I was inspired by your conversation and screenshots with Nexter on the Windows vs Linux post. After two months of looking at my Halloween inspired desktop, I needed something relaxing. I also wanted something with a uniform look.

I liked your use of the neon icons, and considered them for the dock, but they were a little too bright. Maybe I will put them in just before Christmas. I decided to go with the Quadrates icon set from msergt at DeviantArt. They went well with the Office V2 Winstep theme.

https://www.deviantart.com/msergt/art/Q ... -279378204

The Grid Stack icons are a combination of a square black icon (300x300) with a white outline that i made using paint.net, and official icons and icons I downloaded pasted on top.

I've always liked the Unbuntu desktop and I was never happy with the Windows 10 start menu. That's the reason I purchased Winstep Xtreme. I think Microsoft needs to contact Jorge and work out a licensing deal.

The neon look came about sort of from another crappy piece of software. Yes MicroSlop is not the only company to produce crap. Asus and there Armoury Crate software could give MicroSlop a run for there money. I got so sick of it and removed it. I let the RGB on my computer run the default Rainbow Puke. So I figured lets roll with it on the desktop LOL. I am tired of it already but have not had much time to redo my desktop. I did find Open RGB to control my RGB lighting so I will be changing it up soon.... I hope LOL. Cheers!

Well guys, you two - @Nezbit and @Williamsson - are the only ones who can be arsed, after over four months since the OP nobody else can it seems. Funnily enough the topic gets a good share of views though.

Personally, I think desktop screen grabs risk giving Google et al too much in the way of personal data that might make you identifiable. So, I'll never participate.

Anyway, as long as you're all happy....