One of the prizes in the 2008 GUI Championships is an ATI Radeon 4850 video card sponsored by AMD.  Zoomba took the time to run the card through a series of benchmarks and real-world testing to give everyone an idea of how this card performs.

Whether you are a gamer, or just someone who wants some great graphics performance for editing, video, etc., then check out this review.

Link: A Look at the ATI Radeon HD 4850

With yesterdays big release of Object Desktop 2009 came a few new and updated applications.  One of which is the long awaited BootSkin Pro which enables you to skin your Windows Vista boot screen.  Users of BootSkin Pro will be able to create bootskins which can then be uploaded to the new BootSkin gallery here on WinCustomize.

Check out the new Bootskin gallery here.

BootSkins for Windows XP are still there, it’s just called BootSkin XP now.

Stardock Design and several users have already started uploading Vista bootskins, so head over there and check them out.  Here are a few highlights.

Stardock has released the 2009 edition of its popular desktop experience suite Object Desktop. Object Desktop is a set of utilities that enables users to completely transform the desktop experience of Windows XP or Windows Vista.

Object Desktop includes 6 utilities that focus on enhancing a particular aspect of Windows. These are:

• WindowBlinds. A program that enables users to completely alter the look and feel of the Windows GUI by applying "skins" to it. These skins can make Windows look like an alternative OS like MacOS or Linux or something completely different. Because it takes full advantage of the latest video cards from AMD and nVidia, WindowBlinds can also improve the video performance of Windows Vista and XP. Object Desktop 2009 includes a new version of WindowBlinds that lets users apply textures to their existing skins as well as well as providing explorer backgrounds.
  
  
• IconPackager. The world's only program for changing all the icons on Windows XP or Windows Vista to a completely different set. Thousands of different icon packages are available freely on the net. Object Desktop 2009 includes a new IconPackager that lets Windows Vista users change the color of icons and folders on the fly.
  
  
• DesktopX. DesktopX is a program that allows users to add true objects to their windows desktops. These objects can be any size and shape and be as simple as a glorified icon or scripted to add functionality to become widgets or entire desktops. What's special about DesktopX is the ease in which these objects can be made.
  Object Desktop 2009 adds a new version of DesktopX that allows users to export their widgets as Windows gadgets for use on Windows Vista and Windows 7.
  
  
• DeskScapes. A program that can apply animated wallpapers to Windows. It supports the Stardock developed .DREAM animated wallpaper format that allows for animated wallpapers that are video loops or dynamically generated via DirectX that use virtually no CPU. Object Desktop 2009 includes a new version of DeskScapes that supports Windows XP as well as Windows Vista.
  
  
• BootSkin Pro. BootSkin Pro is a new program introduced with Object Desktop 2009 that allows users to create and apply alternative Windows Vista boot screens. By default, the Windows Vista boot screen is blank with just a progress bar. BootSkin allows for high resolution, high color boot screens instead.
  
  
• Theme Manager. Theme Manager 3 is a new program added to Object Desktop 2009. It allows users to make use of all the other programs together from a single interface. In addition, users can save their customized desktop as a .suite file for later use or to share with others users on the Internet. Theme Manager integrates with WinCustomize.com to allow users to quickly design their own unique desktop experiences.
  
  Theme Manager also includes a brand-new desktop suite created by Stardock called Aero Midnight that replaces the Windows GUI, icons, wallpaper and adds gadgets. For Windows XP users, they get an enhanced Windows Vista look. Windows Vista users get an enhanced Aero look that adds 2 years of usability feedback to the Windows Vista experience.
  
  
• MyColors themes. Stardock also provides MyColors as a way for users to apply new themes created by Stardock's design team. Object Desktop users get 4 free MyColors themes within a year of purchasing Object Desktop. In addition, MyColors has access to hundreds of other themes created in conjunction with the NBA, NHL, NCAA, Ford, GM and countless other partners.

Object Desktop is $49.95 new. Stardock also offers Object Desktop Ultimate ($69.95) which provides everything listed above plus over a dozen other utilities that focus on productivity and UI design such as TweakVista, SkinStudio, Keyboard LaunchPad, ObjectBar and much more.

Users can purchase Object Desktop directly from its website at www.objectdesktop.com. Users who purchase Object Desktop receive everything available at the time of purchases as well as everything added or updated in Object Desktop for the subsequent year. Users who have previously purchased Object Desktop can renew their access to Object Desktop for $34.95.

Website: http://www.objectdesktop.com

With the pending release of Object Desktop 2009, we have taken the time to update several of the Stardock Design .dreams to take advantage of the new features in DeskScapes 2.5.  The latest update is the popular Photo Dream.  The Photo Dream take your favorite images and randomly displays them on your desktop with smooth animations.  

This update adds:

• Dynamic .dream updated to work on XP and Vista
• Supports multiple monitors
• New Static Wallpaper mode

Other .dreams have been updated as well.  Be sure to check out ‘Expanding Shapes’ and ‘Winter Snow’ for similar improvements.  If you previously purchased these .dreams you can download the updated file in your registrations page, or request an e-mail with your current links.  If you are a WinCustomize subscriber, you get a 20% discount off Master skins.

For years we’ve awarded “medals” to winners in the various GUI Champs events.  In past years though they were really just virtual medals, and then some physical prizes.  This year though we wanted to do something special.  The 2008 GUI Champs has a new site, the best prize pool ever, so why not actual medals?

That’s a picture I took of one of the medals this afternoon.  These babies are actual metal, and are 2 3/4” in diameter with a black ribbon to hang around your neck, on your monitor, or wherever it is you show off your prizes and accolades!

All winners in this year’s event will get a GUI Championships medal, with some special bits added on to show exactly what events you won.

So, on top of all the awesome prizes like the Wacom Cintiq, the Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 video cards, and great software from Corel and TechSmith, you’ll get a shiny medal to show off to all of your friends.

If you need to record and share video demos of your skins, .dreams, etc., then there isn’t a better way than to do it with Camtasia Studio.  I took some time today and wrote an article on the basics of Camtasia, and how you can use it to really show off your skins.

We are also proud to have TechSmith as a sponsor for this years GUI Championships currently taking place. 

Link: Using Camtasia Studio to Record Skin Previews

More entries to the 2008 GUI Championships are coming in, and they are just fantastic.  I went through last night and downloaded some more Icon packs, and the quality of these entries are just amazing. 

You need to head over to www.guichamps.co m to see all the great skins being submitted over there.  Here are just a few of the latest.

You've seen some teasers from Brad recently showing off the new look of Impulse and talking about a number of improvements we've been working on to make the overall user experience a better one.  Today we've put out an update to Impulse that will allow you to check out our latest beta version of the client.

For all the details on how to update to the beta version, and some of the new features, head on over to the ImpulseDriven Community site.

Be sure to let us know what you think and if you hit any major snags.

Attention all Dream-Makers, you only have a few more days to tweak and upload your Dreams for consideration in the Most Original and Most Usable Dream events!

Friday, November 21st 11:59pm EST is the cut-off for those two events.  Dreams submitted, or updated, after that point will NOT be elligible for the public voting round.  So if you have any changes to get in, time is running out.

Just to remind everyone, here's what we have up for grabs in these two events:

• 2 Sapphire Radeon HD 4850 Video Cards
• 2 Copies of Corel Painter X
• 2 Copies of TechSmith SnagIt
• ODNT Subscriptions
• DeviantArt Subscriptions
• WinCustomize Subscriptions

The submission deadline is this Friday, with Judge voting happening over the weekend and user voting starting on Tuesday, November 25th and running through November 30th.  So be sure to stop back here on November 25th to see the finalists and cast your vote!

What happened to the weekend?  It went by way too fast, but this week is going to be great as it’s going to be a super busy week for skinning.  In case you haven’t been keeping up, the 2008 GUI Championships is going on right now at www.guichamps.com.  The entries so far have been fantastic, and I know there are a ton more that are in the works.  Send to the link to your friends and family, and let them know they are missing out of some really great skins.

If you spent the weekend away from the PC, here is a re-cap of some skins that were submitted this weekend that caught my eye.