Why do you skin?

...and who has triggered your skinning debut.

from JoeUser Forums
Hey everybody,it's a bright new day today!!! I woke up this morning feeling an endless happy feeling.It must be Christmas,it brings back all the memories.Well one of the good ones is when i started skinning! And you?When did it happen?When was your first try ever?Who has been your inspiration or thy master? Well how has it evolved now? And most importanly why do you skin?What is your personal concept of the art of skinning?
10,848 views 33 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Ah....so many questions....

Somewhere around '97 I tripped over Litestep....it was horridly basic but not hard to 'skin' to make Win95 or 98 look 'uniquely' different.

Probably from LS.com and LS.net I got to Customize.org ...found eFX and WB [pre 1.0]....then on to Skinz.org....etc...etc....

In general skinners do it 'cos they can....it's both creative and individual expression.

Sometimes even others like it, too...

Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top
...And since the thread creator must include his concept of the subject i'll make a goody old start with a quick journey to thy past.Well it was about 4-5 years ago,when it all flowed a bit more slowly,a bit more romantic,without all the new tech,fast consuming system all around us.I found this lil site and i started visiting regularly.My first impressions were the great art masters and from them i have taken up the ideals for skinning and creating. Personally i am inspired by the works of Nuvem(the greatest wall creator ever ) who has been the raw model and master of the arts for me. I'll try in the future to achieve some works to approach his level,but i'll never get there,for that i'm sure,he's just too good to be reached,a complete artist and a grand master of the arts. As for the WB Skinning the first one who impressed and still does that is Boxxi another leading character around here,still bringing the newest and best to the skinning community,as well as the Pixtudio team who is well how to put it...top of the crop . As for icons and micro-arts as i like to call it Mormegil has been the greatest around . And all this brings us to why? The reason i started skinning and creating was one the one hand my admiration for all these masters,but on the other hand a good friend from the old,to whom i have dedicated my first ever wall called Fall Beauty. She has been an inspiration for a long time and she still is,she is an artist herself but in real life,she does not do designs on computers,she prefers the original way.My personal view of the arts is that (and quote one of her says):"Art should not just represent what is visible or not visible,regardless of the meaning or the hidden signs.Art should be a way of life,the whole concept of it,not just a visual part." Well with that said now it's your turn...the who,the when and most of all the why Have a good day everyone
Curtains - Customize Windows with additional styles
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
For the chicks.
Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I started in '99 I think with Sonique and MPFree. Then I discovered customize.org and skinz.org and got addicted. A lot has changed since then, but I'd say the people that inspired me then are still the people who inspire me now. People like Treetog, Hippy and other familiar names who have been constantly at it for years. They were good back then and are even better now.
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Made my first skin for the GUIO this year.
Inspired by essorant's works.
Encouraged by NightTrain.
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I found Customize.org back in maybe '98 or '99, for Winamp skins. I used to check out other stuff, but never really got into it at the time. The best Winamp skin from those days was BMI-Hypnoamp created by Fli7e. It was also the time when Misery was on top of the world, and if you go back and look at his skins from 5 years ago, they still outshine 80% of the skins made today. Really quite amazing.

Then I found Skinz.org, but never got a chance to stay. I ended up "going outside" for 2 years, and didn't really use a PC, when I finally came back to the customization world, I found Customize.org dead, Skinz.org dead, and the only place I remembered, DeviantART, was alive and kicking, better than before.

It was through them that I found eventually found WinCustomize, and then downloaded a Windowblinds 3.5 trial, and ended up buying ODNT. My road to this very post...
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
It"s part of my probation-should have took the time instead I've taken so much from this site just thought it would be nice to give
Reply #8 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I came across WB when I still was version 2. Played around with the shareware version, but when I reached version 3 I could not hold it for much longer. It was about that time I noticed all these little programs and sites that helped you tweak the appearance of your computer. Trying various programs though the years I tended to return to the same site, stardock.com.
When you speak of memories. It'd funny think about it now, how much hazzle you'd put up with to get them old Win9x boxes looking sweet and pretty before it gave you a BSOD two minutes later... All hail to progress!!

My first skin was NsiGUI (http://www.deviantart.com/view/58307/), then then I've worked on four more, but never fully completed them. They all progress and evolve on each other. Not sure if anyone except me can see that, but it's all clear in my head. NsiGUI was basicly pixelwork and inspired from all them techie film and tv screens you saw. From NsiGUI to darkGUI (http://www.deviantart.com/view/2671773/ & http://www.deviantart.com/view/1580217/). It's still dark and got the same coloring style as NsiGUI, but alot softer with very much rounded shapes and shadows. I then wanted to do something brigher as I can't seem to use dark skins for too long. softGUI (http://www.deviantart.com/view/1580720/) was the result of that. It's similar to darkGUI when it comes to the shapes. However, I thought softGUI was a bit too white and pale so I thought I'd try a combo, ending up with softGUI III (http://www.deviantart.com/view/4372501/) So at this point I had three uncompleted skins due to the fact that the actual assembling of the skin took too long time before I turned my attention somewhere else. (Short attention span?) Then it took almost a year before I went back to skinning again, but again I did not manage to continue on any of my previous works. Some months ago I started on a skin I called CarbinFiber (http://www.deviantart.com/view/13225574/). This leaves me now with four unfinished skins and one that sorely need updating. I'm thinking I might try to get some people to do the assembling of the skin for me, otherwise I'll never finish anything.

I make skins because I'm still looking for that skin that completely makes me go 'ahh' when I apply it. I've never been completely at peace with any skin I've used. And I think I might never be. I suppose it depends on my current intrests and impressions. That will only cause me to keep on making new concepts. But what's the point if I never manage to complete them?

I am constantly looking for new skins. I love to see new ideas. Sometimes I like a skin because it's visually striking, but sometimes it might not be, but I still like it because of the theme or idea behind it. Finding of making a skin for a OS is very hard. Even a very beutiful skin can be absolutly useless. There's a number of times when I had to simply stop using a skins that was absolutly amazing due to the fact that I could not manage to oprate my computer effectivly. It's a shame. So I'm really enjoying it when I come across skins that looks good AND have a great usabillity.
I'm very pleased with the progress skinning has made. I mean, when you have companies like the Skins Factory that makes a living of making quality skins to big corporations like MS, Nivida and etc. I think it makes the skinning community alot more sustainable.

hm.. I've been going on for a while now, not sure if I answerd all the questions. But I reackon I should end it here.
Reply #9 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Its a good remedy for the stress
My 1st skin came on a form of a windowblind. I was drawn into skining (out of mare curiosity at that time) by Treetog, Adni18 and Essorant's work.
I now do it for fun (and sometimes for money)
Reply #10 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I started skinning because of The Skins Factory's many Media Player skins. My first start was finding their stuff on WindowsMedia.com and then I saw a link to here. I did my first skin as a bit of a test...taking apart someone elses and putting it back together with diferent graphics. from there, I started working around with that basic code until I found the windows media player SDK, and thats when I started maing all my own original code. Since then, 100% of my code is made by me, and the quality of the code is going up too. I try to put notes into the code of my skins so that new skinners can get a bit of a head start with me letting them know what area does what. In my Skinnable skin, I tried to fully notify every chunk of code so that anyone learning would be able to do it quite easily. One of the goals of the skin, while making it skinnable by windowblinds, was to have a skin with as many features as I could cram in. That way, I can just copy bits of code out of it and not have to type as much, and new skinners are able to do that too.

Well...that drug on and on.....sorry for the book.
Reply #11 from WinCustomize Forums Top
I skin therefore I am...
Reply #12 from WinCustomize Forums Top
WOM doesn't.
Reply #13 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Wizop Fuzzy Logic: Cogito ergo sum. Skinio ergo sum.
WOM: That is why you are still Wise
Reply #14 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Well, Let's see.....

I'm color blind and suck as digital art, it was the technical side of skinning that interested me at one time I knew all the tricks to writiing a UIS file. It was also the friends that I made in the community when it was very young, most are still around. I did flub up though I accidentally made that skin that I am happy to look at every day back in 2000 and haven't made much new since.....

I started with WB in the pre 1.0 status, then got serious and bought ODNT when WB was at 1.3 and DX was in alpha.....
Reply #15 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Chicks?
Reply #16 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Chicks?

Haha! That's the real reason. All the rest is just a coverup.
Reply #17 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Because it's fun!
Reply #18 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Yeah, Skinning is a real chicks magnet.
Reply #19 from WinCustomize Forums Top
How does it work??? This chick magnet?
Reply #20 from WinCustomize Forums Top
idon'tknowifIactuallyskin,Idon'tthinkitis,butwhateveritisthatIamdoing....

I CAN'T STOP!!!
Reply #21 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Generally people do things for one (or more) of the following reasons:

1) Personal gratification (it brings them joy to do it)

2) Glory (they like the attention and praise they get from doing it)

3) Financial (they are able to earn an income from doing it)

In my case, I do it for all 3 reasons.  I enjoy making things like DesktopX widgets for instance. It doesn't generate any money but I do like it. 

I also like seeing how people from all around the world are using what I've made. I just think it's so cool to find someone I've never met in Japan or Poland or Australia using what I've made.

3) I'm fortunate in that I am able to make a living in this area.  This is sometimes a bitter pill for others as I have made posts that are almost identical to someone else promoting their "free" thing but because some people know I make a living doing the kind of thing others do for free I'll get flamed. That's a bit of a bummer but I am still glad I get to work on things I enjoy for a living.

Reply #22 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Skinning is a real chicks magnet


Liar!
Reply #23 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Liar!


Hey, I am entitle to live my fantasy
Besides, how do you think I got SilverBird
Reply #24 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Bribery? j/k

Trust me...its hard finding lady-geeks in Canada.
Reply #25 from WinCustomize Forums Top
its hard finding lady-geeks in Canada

Try finding one on an island with 700000 population and low tech