Chapter 8. Creating Windows XP Skins with TGTSoft StyleBuilder

In this chapter

• Downloading and installing StyleBuilder

• Exploring the StyleBuilder window

• Creating simple skins

• Creating complex skins

• Applying StyleBuilder visual styles

In this chapter we take a look at TGTSoft's StyleBuilder, a skinning utility that allows you to create your own Windows visual styles.

In Windows the visual style controls not only the color scheme of key GUI elements such as the taskbar, taskbar menu, and window elements such as the title bar and control buttons, but it also dictates the graphic files that are used to represent each of these GUI elements. Moving beyond themes and into skins requires a skinning utility and StyleBuilder provides an easy-to-use interface that allows quick access to the various interface elements that you will want to customize.

Let's begin with a quick look at how you can acquire StyleBuilder. We can then explore its various tools and discuss how you modify interface elements using StyleBuilder to create your own skins.