[AndreasV]

AveDesk 1.3

(full text and summary, http://avedesk.needlemen.com/info.html )

Description
AveDesk 1.3 is the fourth major release of AveDesk, an application which makes desktop prettier and more usable. This release changes emphasis from pretty icons to mini-applications (also known as widgets and desklets).
Screenshot of AveDesk in action: http://mpj.tomaatnet...sk13Widgets.png

What's new?!
Main new features:
- Better support for mini-applications / widgets / desklet
- Several feature-rich new desklets
- Hardware accelerated flip and closing effects
- New user-interface
- Big architecture changes
- Unique library of skinned, alpha-blended controls
- New scriptable desklet: AveScripter
- MultiMonitor Support

New Engine, New Desklet
Brand new engine, new desklets. AveDesk features a library of windowless UI-controls which make desklet much more interactive.



Effects
Everybody loves eye-candy, especially when it’s functional. AveDesk comes with two hardware accelerated effects for flipping and closing a desklet.
DirectX9 and a graphics card capable of using alpha-blended surfaces needed.


UI Changes

The biggest change is AveDesk control panel. Instead of a simple text-list, each desklet is now listed with a dynamically updated preview image, making finding the right desklet much easier.
A Theme Browser has been added, by popular demand.
An optional shell-extension to enable previews of .aveinst-, .avetheme- and .avedesklet-files is available also.

Command Line Arguments
A much requested feature that has been added is support for command line arguments. The following arguments can be passed to AveDesk:
-opensc will open ShowCase
-closesc will close ShowCase
-cp will open the control panel

Passing any filename as an argument will make AveDesk try to open it as one of its recognized file-types.

Creating Desklets
Making desklets is easier than ever. If you prefer the C style DLLs, AveDesk features a set of powerfull APIs. The AveDeskletSDK will be available in a week.
HOWEVER, since most people don't know rats about compiling to DLLs, pcm will release a totally new scriptable desklet.

Donations

AveDesk is not freeware, but so-called donationware. This means that if you like AveDesk and use it on a regular basis, you have the freedom to donate a small amount of cash to support the development of AveDesk. It also means that you cannot distribute AveDesk in any form without explicit permission of the author (Andreas Verhoeven).


Download
http://avedesk.needlemen.com/
Unzip to desired location, run register.bat and optionally, go into the Data folder and run shellext_reg.bat
read the readme.txt carefully.


Thanks
First of all, thanks to everybody who supported and donated to the avedesk project. Those people made continuation of this project possible.

Secondly, KoL for his awesome graphics!

- Phil "pcm" Caetano for obvious reasons
- Hakan "herd" Erduman
- Aleks "Unbeliever"
- Paul "Septimus"
- Javier "KoL"
- CollumBus "ChristoBal"
- Needlemen Hosting
- NC!
- All dedicated testers, you know who you are!

Enjoy,
Andreas Verhoeven

_________________________________________
AveDesk 1.3 release on digg.com

http://digg.com/software/AveDesk_1....esktop_enhancer

[zondajag]

wow im the first person to post on this.

thankyou soo much ave

this will be sooo awesome!!!!

[ji eun]

ave rocks da house.
congrats my liliputian friend.

[nightcrawler1089]

Nothing I haven't seen before .

Nice job, good work etc...I'll write up a news release soon .
[Edit: It's ji, it's ji!]

-NC

[pumpkin]

Oh... It's time. Rock on!

[drudragon]

I love you,,, damn the animation is just sexy i wanna play with it all night , thank-you Andreas

[dro budden]

wow, i picked a great time to check aqua soft lol

*goes to try it*

[djkinetic]

awesome = )) thanks looked forward to this for a while

[dro budden]

nvm! that was weird

[zondajag]

Wooo hoooo!. This is better than i thought....btw is there a way to use a different font to the ones included in the stickey desklet?

and can i still use avetunes with this?


edit: both questions answered

[SparXCG]

Sweet, I'm one of the first to download it!

Nice job

[pcm]

Now the presure is on me.

The scripting engine is in its final stage and will be delivered VERY soon with a bunch of examples so that you can see what it can do and of course to learn from it. I'm finishing all the small details (binding com events) and will be packing the stuff soon. (2 weeks max, I hope)

I'm also working on have a website so that all scripts / desklets will be available and can be submitted.

And I know you guys are going to love this version of Avedesk. Andreas has done lots of cool changes.

[banks]

Holy CRAP! It's been released. This is.......gssfwfewds.. sorry, im at a loss for words right now..

ME LIKE!!! AWESOME JOB man, GREAT STUFF

[Willy]

man, this is awesome Thanks a lot for your effort ! I'll be trying out the widgets

[judge]

Heh. Nice one Ave

[aquahawk]

What a surprize ,congratulations on the release.

[d-shade]

awesmome release.. feels faster then it was before..
too bad i can't get the effects to work on this computer..
guess im gonna have to play more when i get off work..

[baldi]

What a huge piece of beauty, so many thanks Ave.

[AndreasV]

rissol:

Quote

for all those who, like me, don't have state-of-the-art graphic hardware on their machines, there is now a software DirectX implementation. You can download a demo from transgaming. You need to put the dll file[s] in RkLauncher (and AveDesk!) folders and you will be able to enjoy the AladdinLamp effect [and Flip - not Close at the moment]

Being a software implementation, speed and smoothness will be proportional to the speed of your processor

@All: let me know what your favorite new desklet is!

[fady]

thanks ma man