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Programs

3D TOP..........3DTop is a study into the usefulness of a three dimensional GUI (Graphics User Interface). For too long have we denied ourselves the freedom that is only offered by 3D games. A 2D Desktop is all well and good for simple procedures, but after a while it can make you feel cramped and limited by what you can do. As technology advances, so too should the basics of our software, after all, everyone who uses a Windows OS, or even a GUI within Unix, depends on their desktop for the vast majority of functions they will ever use. In short, 3DTop uses the icons that are present on your normal desktop and represents them in 3 dimensions instead. This approach enables you to fly around your desktop, change the shape of the icons and arrange or drag them in 3D also. In addition you can create coloured spotlights, paintings (bitmaps), background and floor textures, clocks, flags (shortcuts) and whatsoever the future may bring. ActivIcons makes it simple to change properties for various icons on your Windows Explorer desktop......(free).....GO THERE!


3DCC..........3D Color Changer gives you much more control over your Windows' look. 3DCC gives you access to User Interface aspects that Microsoft restricted: 3D Frames' colors, Mouse Hot Tracking Color and more. Windows98/2000 specific colors are fully supported (when run under Windows98/2000). There is also a scheme support with load/save features, designed especially for Windows UI maniacs - you can transfer the schemes between computer via the Internet or just on a floppy disk.....(freeware)..... GO THERE!


ACTIVEICONS..........ActivIcons makes it simple to change properties for various icons on your Windows Explorer desktop......(free).....GO THERE!


AVALON ICON TO BITMAP QUICK CONVERTER..........A Windows 95 Explorer context menu extension which provides a quick and simple way to convert icon images to bitmaps. Using this extension it is possible to convert each of the images, located inside icon file, as a bitmap format in one simple step.....(freeware)....GO THERE!


AVALON RESOURCE AND MULTIMEDIA EXPLORER.........View icons located inside Win32 DLLs and executable files and save them as ico files. It is possible to save single icons and all icons located inside module at once to specified directory. Quick preview for animated cursor files ( *.ani ). .program designed as Microsoft Windowsr Shell Explorer extension and works within Explorer frame. When the program is running it creates additional view pane on the right side of the Explorer window. Now you may view icons located inside DLLs or EXE files during you explore your file system. Simple select in Explorer any DLLs or EXE file, and all it icons immediately appear in Avalon Resource & Multimedia Explorer view pane. .....(shareware, $25 after 30 day trial).....GO THERE!


CHROMA..........Chroma is an advanced windows theming and user-interface engine; it allows you to completely customize the "look and feel" of your Microsoft Windows (95/98/NT) environment. Using Chroma, you can replace Windows' drab and rectangular controls with colorful, stylish images, including industrial, sci-fi, designer and miscellaneous other themes featuring pulsing scrollbars, free-form window-frames, glowing buttons and much more.....(shareware, $20 after trial).....GO THERE!


CUSTOM EYES..........A new Windows skinning program: CustomEyes changes most of your Window's graphic components : the menus, the buttons, the borders, and also includes a skin editor. A lot additional elements are planned for CustomEyes. Other components will be skinnable : lists, groups, scroll bars... The menus handling will be improved. CustomEyes will allow to create wholly configurable additional elements, allowing the skin creator to let his imagination run wild. The compatibility and the display optimization are a constant care....(free).....GO THERE!


DAYA .......... Daya is an open-source project for Windows95/98/NT. Its aim is to change the default boring Windows interface with a new, better one. Currently there aren't many such programs out, and none of them is good enough. With Daya you can customize window borders, buttons, checkboxes, everything. You can even have transparent windows. Interfaces are designed by professional artists, just choose one from the included skins or download additional skins. The current beta has only been tested in Win2K, and the developer's advice is, if you're running 95 or 98, wait for the next version.....(free).....GO THERE!


HALF LIFE SKIN INSTALLER.......... The Half-Life Skin Installer was created to make the installation of skins and models a snap. There are over 350 custom skins/models for Half-Life and the number grows each day. To install skins/models is no trivial task since each skin/model has a .mdl and .bmp file that must be placed in an appropriately named directory. What would normally take hours to do can now be accomplished in a few minutes with the Half-Life Skin Installer.....(free).....GO THERE!


HOOK99..........Customize your Start Button. You can change caption; replace Windows flag on button with icon/bitmap of your choice. Additional features: hide, disable start button......(free).....GO THERE!


ICON LOCK..........Are you tired of people adding, deleting, renaming, and rearranging the icons on your Windows desktop? Perhaps you're responsible for the computers in a school, a computer lab, or a store. Or maybe you share a home computer with your kids. IconLock lets you freeze desktop icons in the arrangement you choose without interfering with normal Windows operations. It also lets you quickly save and restore different desktop layouts. (A PC Magazine Tech Utility).....(free).....GO THERE!


ICON PHILE..........Icon Phile is a small program for customizing windows's system icons. Using IconPhile you can change the standard Desktop icons ( MY Computer, Recycle Bin, Network Neighborhood, etc..), drive icons (Hard drive, Floppy drives, external drives), folder icons (Open and Closed Folders, Printers, DialUp, Tasks..) and more .....(free).....GO THERE!


ICON TOY.......... Small utility to search for all icons on the computer......(shareware, $15 after trial).....GO THERE!


ILLUMINATION..........Illumination is a real theme system for Win32 (Win95, Win98 and NT4.0). It allows window borders to be customized to take on any look imaginable, even non-rectangular windows become possible. This release is mostly just a proof of concept showing that it can be done. The next major release will allow most aspects of the Win32 environment to be customized, not just the window borders.....(free).....GO THERE!


INTERNET EXPLORER SKINNER..........This is a program to change the background and animation for Internet Explorer 4 and 5 .....(free)......GO THERE!


MPS MEDIA PLAYER SHELL..........This program allows you to change the look of, and add features to, Windows Media Player.....(free--beta release).....GO THERE!


WINDOW BLINDS.......... WindowBlinds is a new type of utility. It lets you decide how Windows 95, 98, & NT 4 look. Using skinz, you can change the style of titlebars, buttons, toolbars and much more.....(shareware without nags, $19.95).....GO THERE!


WINDOW PICTURES.......... WindowPictures gives windows 95 / 98 ( NOT NT) a complete makeover by transforming all the graphic elements (menus, title bars, buttons, scroll bars, windows, wallpaper, and more) from solid colors to three dimensional textures, and also will change the look of all software in the same manner.....(shareware, $39 after trial).....GO THERE!


WINDOWS MAKE-UP..........Modifies the looks of your Windows. Here's Mr. Lockergnome's description of the program: "When Gretchen goes out on the town, she puts on a little make-up. But, she never puts make-up on her computer. If she did, I'd be worried. Instead of using rouge and lipstick to make your screen more attractive, why not use Windows make-up? Not only will it touch up the Win95 interface, but it will also add enhancements missing from Win95. Stretch dialog boxes, change the taskbar and Start Button, add a graphic here and there... cherry red is my PC's best color".....(free).....GO THERE!




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Sites

COPLAND..........The premier designer of icons, and he gives them away for free.....(free).....GO THERE!


CUSTOMIZE.ORG..........Skinz, and also newz, themes, special efx programs, special efx plug-ins, graphics programs and tutorials and more skinz.....(free).....GO THERE!


DIGITAL BLASPHEMY..........Hot and cool: over 300 hi-res original 3d-rendered computer desktop wallpapers, animated windows startup screens, screen savers, tutorials on making your own 3d art, and links to some of the best computer art sites on the web. The public gallery wallpapers are free to use on your personal computer desktop, or you can pass them along to a friendGO THERE!


DOT STUDIO..........A Japanese site devoted to icons and other types of Windows customizing. fantastic site design, by the way.....(free)..... GO THERE!


END EFFECT..........A very interesting site. A futuristic web design, and they're giving away futuristic wallpapers.....(free)..... GO THERE!


GLABOUNI.COM..........A site which specializes in skinz, skinnable software, and skinning utilities. You've got to check this one out. In French and English.....(free).....GO THERE!


HYPERSKINZ..........A new skinz site, very fine and interesting taste, hi-rez only--currently only a few skinz posted (for WinAmp and Window Blinds) but growing by the week, so keep on the lookout......(free).....GO THERE!


I.E. INFO SITE.....Lots of tips, tricks and a little software for those who wish to configure Internet Explorer and Outlook Express their own way, like me.....(free).....GO THERE!


M's FACTORY..........Themes, Icons, Wallpapers, Skinz--the language of this site is graphics, so you can read it in either Japanese or English.....(free).....GO THERE!


MY SKINZ..........Another huge skinz site.....(free).....GO THERE!


PROPAGANDA..........As JFK, the fearless leader of Propaganda, puts it "Our mission is simple..To provide you with the raw materials you need to defend yourself and your desktop against the plague of stupidity and ugliness which has come to form the cornerstone of Mickeysoft's plan of global desktop domination! For years, our nation had to endure the embarassment of millions of ugly desktops while I slept comfortably in a cryogenic suspension chamber, awaiting the day that I would once again escape from my chilly cocoon and lead the charge for Linux, and against crappy looking desktops across the globe! My fellow Americans, the dawn of a new era has arrived...With art as our ammunition, together we will neutralize The Enemy and forever change the face of Linux!" (Ummm.....they work in Windows too).....(free).....GO THERE!


SCREENSHOTZ..........The geeks all upload their coolest screenshots here. Need some ideas?.....(free).....GO THERE!


SHINTER..........Best web design I ever saw. Also he's got backgrounds for your machine. You must see it....(free).....GO THERE!


SKINZ.ORG..........The place to go to get skinz---radical enhancements to the way your Windows look.....(free).....GO THERE!


THEMEZ.NET..........A site devoted to theming your desktop--themes for all shells...............(free).....GO THERE!


VIRTUAL PLASTIC..........A site with all sorts of "appearance changing" tips and tricks, including icon, startmenu, wallpaper, and logo customization, but mainly devoted to iconography.....(free)..... GO THERE!


WINLOOKS..........The master of this site hates the way windows looks and feels! He wants to run all the win95/98 software on a PC that looks and acts like a Mac, BeOS or any X11 window manager. He wants a fancy LCARS interface or something even wilder. And he shows it can be done.....(free)..... GO THERE!