Shoutbox

Yup. Have a build-in skin-previewer.
The preview window will continue to reload the skin, so after each saved edit it auto-reloads to preview. No need to login, the previewer draws seperate windows you get to choose.

Example. You are so tired of the advertisement at the bottom of the contact list, but you aren't entirely sure how to remove it. You use the previewer, fool around with the skin files, save, and just a few seconds later you see what you did in the previewer.

The previewer should also have error-replacement - Meaning if some element(s) aren't properly coded to be drawn, then the preview window will be a plain color with the text (just an image): "Unable to preview. Please check .....xml/txt/uib/etc and correct the problem" (or similar).

Then I get to another idea. You click on a part of the window in the previewer, and the previewer then tells you what files are related to that part. It will spin out the UI files related, but aswell the image file in question. If you get to preview the default look of messenger aswell that way, it will be alot easier for skinners to know what to edit.

Discuss.

I'd be massively behind this idea

It'd be so much better than having to load a new instance of messenger and sign in with a dummy account each time.

There could be huge limitations behind it......but I'd really like to see something like this, even if very basic at first, introduced into Messenger Plus! Live

Version 5's big new feature perhaps?

Hmm...Do we know how to parse the UIBs properly? This is the first question that should be asked before anything is started; we wouldn't be able to start anyway without a "Yes" for this.

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Originally posted by DennisMartijn
Yup. Have a build-in skin-previewer.
The preview window will continue to reload the skin, so after each saved edit it auto-reloads to preview. No need to login, the previewer draws seperate windows you get to choose.

Example. You are so tired of the advertisement at the bottom of the contact list, but you aren't entirely sure how to remove it. You use the previewer, fool around with the skin files, save, and just a few seconds later you see what you did in the previewer.

The previewer should also have error-replacement - Meaning if some element(s) aren't properly coded to be drawn, then the preview window will be a plain color with the text (just an image): "Unable to preview. Please check .....xml/txt/uib/etc and correct the problem" (or similar).

Then I get to another idea. You click on a part of the window in the previewer, and the previewer then tells you what files are related to that part. It will spin out the UI files related, but aswell the image file in question. If you get to preview the default look of messenger aswell that way, it will be alot easier for skinners to know what to edit.

Discuss.

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Too many variables to deal with and would be a pain to update for every new build of Messenger. Somehow I don't think Patchou would invest the time in something like this with other stuff that could be done.

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Originally posted by Willz
Too many variables to deal with and would be a pain to update for every new build of Messenger. Somehow I don't think Patchou would invest the time in something like this with other stuff that could be done.

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Thought the same =P
But wouldn't it be possible to reload messenger resources without  the need to login?
Only closing the window, for example.
(Like if you are editing the ConvoWindow, so you would activate a "test mode" in your skininfo and Plus! would load that window's resources everytime it is opened...)

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Originally posted by blessedguy

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Originally posted by Willz
Too many variables to deal with and would be a pain to update for every new build of Messenger. Somehow I don't think Patchou would invest the time in something like this with other stuff that could be done.

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Thought the same =P
But wouldn't it be possible to reload messenger resources without  the need to login?
Only closing the window, for example.
(Like if you are editing the ConvoWindow, so you would activate a "test mode" in your skininfo and Plus! would load that window's resources everytime it is opened...)

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I've talked to Patch about quick reloading a skin in the past and he has said that there are issues and that not all resources can be reloaded that way. I'm not sure how it would even work with UIB in the picture now.

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Originally posted by Willz
I've talked to Patch about quick reloading a skin in the past and he has said that there are issues and that not all resources can be reloaded that way. I'm not sure how it would even work with UIB in the picture now.

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nice to know =)
who knows... maybe he discovers some way to do it =D

I don't see why (as mentioned previously) you can't load another instance of messenger (with the new theme), and login using a fake email address (one that you supply, maybe?).
Nothing can go wrong with that, really...

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Originally posted by Nathan
I don't see why (as mentioned previously) you can't load another instance of messenger (with the new theme), and login using a fake email address (one that you supply, maybe?).
Nothing can go wrong with that, really...

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Yeah, that's right. but its still opening Messenger again... and then closing it again... it is OK but a quicker way would be welcome =)

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Originally posted by Nathan
I don't see why (as mentioned previously) you can't load another instance of messenger (with the new theme), and login using a fake email address (one that you supply, maybe?).
Nothing can go wrong with that, really...

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We can already do that ourselves its called a testing account. What people want is a way to do it without having to constantly launch messenger.