It's been a few years since the Opera web browser's interface got a major overhaul. But now the Opera Desktop Team has posted an updated version of Opera 9.5 beta which features a shiny new theme.
The new theme is a bit closer to what you'll find on Opera's non-desktop browsers, including Opera 9.5 for Windows Mobile and Opera for the Nintendo Wii. Aside from a darker look, there are a few nice features, like an animated stop/refresh button that turns red when a page is loading, and green when it's finished.
There's also a new settings icon in the main toolbar that lets you open the side panel to launch the Opera Widget engine, bookmark sidebar and other tools.
The updated version of Opera 9.5 beta is a development snapshot, so there are some known issues. But there's an option to install this version side by side with an existing version of Opera so you don't lose your settings.
After checking out 10 slick new themes for NetNewsWire yesterday, we started going on a themes kick. Many of our favorite applications, from VLC to Firefox are skinnable. Today, let's take a look at chat and social networking application Digsby.
Digsby already ships with a decent looking set of skins. But if you'd prefer Digsby to look like Windows Live Messenger, or a native OS X application (even though Digsby doesn't currently run on OS X), you can install user-generated skins.
Digsbies.org has a list of skins available, plus a series of conversation themes and emoticon sets. The site is an unofficial Digsby community, don't expect to get tech support updates from the Digsby team at Digsbies. But you can find a wealth of information at the Digsbies wiki, IRC channel, and blog. There's also a Digsby wish list where you can vote for the features you'd most like to see in future releases. The actual developers may or may not ever actually read your comments or pay attention to your vote. But if you have something you really want to get off your chest, Digsbies could be the place to do it.
A few months ago Google launched an iGoogle themes gallery, making it a little easier to find themes for your personalized Google homepage. But just a little. While you can search for themes in the directory, there's no way to browse by category. So if you want to see celebrity, nature, or artsy themes, you have to either search through the whole pile or keep entering search terms until you find what you're looking for.
InThemes is a new unofficial iGoogle themes gallery that puts the official gallery to shame. Themes are divided up into categories and subcategories. And since each theme submitted to inThemes is reviewed before it's added to the gallery, there's a better chance of finding themes that aren't... how to put this delicately... hideous.
If you love Ubuntu Linux, but you're not so fond of its default brown theme, there's hope. You can find an assortment of alternate themes in the System->Preferences->Appearance menu. The themes will change the colors of your program toolbars.
But if you're looking for something slightly more comprehensive, you might wan to check out Blubuntu. It's a theme that gives Ubuntu a nice calm blue color scheme. It also comes with a suggested wallpaper.
You can install Blubuntu by opening a terminal window and typing "sudo apt-get install blubuntu-look." Once installed, you should find Blubuntu listed in your Appearance menu. In order to apply Blubuntu to your login screen, go to System->Administration->Login Window, and select Blubuntu from the "local" tab.
Count this as the newest entry in the mind-boggling "I have a PC but I want to make it look like a Mac" trend.
Apple Live Messenger is a skin for Windows Live Messenger that will magically transform your Messenger windows into an Apple look-alike. The new Messenger interface comes complete with Apple logo, Aqua Blue background, and much more Apple-y goodness.
Proof that we are all Apple fanboys in our core (pun definitely intended), the Apple Live Messenger skin is currently the third most popular skin on the Messenger Plus! Live website, with over 200,000 downloads.
Installing the skin requires Windows Live Messenger and Messenger Plus! Live, both free downloads. In case you're not familiar, Messenger Plus! Live is a popular add-on for Windows Live Messenger that adds a number of features and extras to the software.
Last week Google launched a new directory for iGoogle themes. At the same time, the company launched an API for developers who wanted to create their own custom skins for the Google personal homepage service. But if you're not the sort of person who enjoys spending your spare time sifting through XML code, creating your own theme might seem a bit difficult.
Luckily someone has been kind enough to create an online application that lets you design iGoogle themes with no coding knowledge. All you have to do is visit igThemer and choose from a long list of colors, Google logos, and other graphics.
Or if you're looking for real-time feedback on your designs, another developer has come up with an iGoogle theme editor bookmarklet. All you have to do is visit iGoogle and copy the code from his site into your URL bar. Up will pop a theme editing dialog asking you to choose your colors, images, and graphics. Unlike igThemer, this application doesn't give you pop-up color selection tools, so you'll need to enter color codes by hand.
There are plenty of programs out there that let you skin Windows to make it look like Linux, OS X, another version of Windows, or something else altogether. But if you're just tired of looking at your Windows 2000 or XP bootup screen while waiting for your computer to start, all you need is BootSkin.
This free application lets you replace your Windows splash screen with another image. There's a huge library of available splash screens at WinCustomize, with images ranging from the often-appropriate pirate flag to the ironic Windows ME boot screen.
BootSkin is available as a free download from Stardock, the same company behind the commercial Windows skinning application WindowBlinds and program launcher ObjectDock.
Love VLC Media Player's ability to play virtually all media but hate that it does not caress your media with a beautiful frame carved from Italian marble? Fear no more. Although we're fans of the no-frills design, those of you who are more exacting will be pleased to know that the large library of Winamp skins are all compatible with VLC.
This is how the magic works: Go to 'Settings' select 'Switch interface' then 'Skins 2.' You will then be greeted by a VLC that may be unfamiliar, but don't worry. Right-click somewhere on the frame, 'Select Skin' and open away. After experimenting with a few skins we found that most of them work fine, except that some had visual artifacts that may not appear if you were to use them in Winamp.
VLC does have a nasty tendency of resetting itself back to normal when you restart the application, so in order to prevent that, under 'Preferences' > 'Interfaces' > 'Main Interface' > 'Skins' select 'Advanced Options' and make sure the 'Skin to use' is the one you like.
And if you decide you don't like Winamp skins, you might want to sample the selection at the VLC skins page.
Firefox 3 is going to have a whole bunch of new features, including a new rendering engine and a new way to organize bookmarks. But probably the first thing users will notice is the new skins. And those skins will be designed to integrate smoothly into your operating system.
In fact, as of right now, the proposed Windows Vista skin looks a lot like Internet Explorer's, while the proposed OS X skin is reminiscent of Safari. There will also be two separate sets of Windows icons: one for Vista and another for XP.
Mozilla is also working on a standard theme for Linux, but this is a bit trickier, since there are many different Linux distributions and desktop-styles.
Honestly, it's nice to see the team working on a visual refresh for Firefox 3. But we kind of like the standard Firefox look and feel. We can open Firefox on a Mac, PC, or Linux machine and pretty much know where the menus are without struggling with a new menu system. Of course, most computer users don't find themselves switching back and forth between 3 or more operating systems on a regular basis, so we might just be in the minority here.
Google introduced a set of themes for your personalized homepage (or iGoogle) a few months back. But if you're looking for a few more customization options, check out this new Google gadget.
Once you install the gadget on your homepage, you can choose from a variety of custom skins, create your own, or submit themes for other users to install.
Some of the skins change the graphic behind the search bar at the top of your page and not much else, while others give your entire page a new look. Future version of the gadget will include a built-in skin editor.
While these protective skins from Urban Retro might might not have much to do with software, we thought we could take a few liberties with today's mod since it can be done to the machine that runs your software. Besides, the designs on these notebook skins are darn slick, especially since they feature some pretty unique style from artists and designers the world over. Made in sizes that should fit most Mac and PC notebooks, they also feature what seems to be standard-issue 3M adhesive for the ultimate in "woops I changed my mind" removing the skin should you ever need to pass your notebook on to a new user, or if you simply change your mind about the decoration altogether.
Even though these Gelaskins are only available for pre-order (they ship later this month), a healthy selection of designs and styles is already available to chose from.
[Update: As DLS reader Derek points out, these Gelaskins are actually made by a U.S.-based company, aptly named Gelaskins. If you live in the states, you don't have to wait to get your hands on these, since they've already available in the U.S.]
Object Desktop 2007, described by its maker Stardock as "a suite of desktop enhancement utilities designed to allow users to turbo-charge their Windows experience," is probably best known for WindowBlinds, a program that allows Windows to be "skinned." Object Desktop really is a suite, though, and includes a whole pile of programs like IconPackager for replacing your icons in one fell swoop and WindowFX for adding new visual effects to Windows. CRN has taken the latest version of Object Desktop for a spin and gives it fairly high marks, recommending its interface customization features for kiosk use, but cautioning administrators against changing around interface features that users are accustomed to. Object Desktop 2007 costs $49.95.
It's a categorized, very
complete and researched, magnificent list of
hacks, links, and tools for del.icio.us. So, naturally there's a little something for everyone in there. How about
mashups, skins, and even more lists? Out of the bunch I've picked through so far, my favorite has to be DiggLicious. With the perfect blend of digg's latest, a handy pause button, and
the ability to add to my del.icio.us favorites, it's a real time saver. Once you're done with the del.icio.us stuff,
head down to the bottom of the page and check out the Top 10 Google Services.
Tiny-but-featureful
WIndows BitTorrent client uTorrent got a great new web site a few days
ago, and along with it came a great new skins gallery. I had no idea
uTorrent was even skinnable, but apparently it has been—to a degree, at least—for some time now. uTorrent's
skin support is fairly minimal, only allowing toolbar buttons, status icons, and tray icons to be altered, but what more
can you expect from a 130kb app? The skins come in the form of .BMP files and need only be placed in your
%APPDATA%\uTorrent folder, and if you're artistically inclined making skins is a snap.
Object Desktop 2007
It's a categorized, very
complete and researched, magnificent 
