Get the most out of your WinCustomize submissions
Published on July 28, 2008 By Island Dog In OS Customization

On one of the episodes of the WinCustomize SkinCast, we touched on how some of us look for skins to feature, and gave some tips on getting featured and getting more downloads.  This is especially useful for new users who have just started skinning, or are considering picking it up.  I wanted to put some of these tips into a guide, and also offer some suggestions and guidelines for when you do upload a skin to WinCustomize.

Uploading Tips

  1. Previews.  Make sure to have a preview of at least 1024x768 for submissions such as wallpapers, .dreams. logons, etc.  Smaller previews can be made for items like CursorFX themes, Icons, etc., but be sure that you do include a preview with the upload, or otherwise it will be rejected.  When doing a preview of your skin, there really isn’t a set way to design them, but keep a few things in mind.
  • Make sure the preview matches what the skin really looks like.
  • Just don’t take a quick screenshot.  The preview itself is the first thing people will see about your skin, so you want it to make a great first impression.  Take some time and design a preview that really shows off the skin.
  1. Files.  If you need to upload a pack or something that contains more than one element, you have to use the .zip format, no .rar.

  2. Clear Description.  Too many skins get uploaded that have little or no description.  A good tip is to give as much relevant information as possible about your submission.  Does your wallpaper have multiple resolutions?  Is the skin compatible with both XP and Vista?  Are there color variations?  Let people know what they are downloading.

  3. Rips.  This is a particularly sensitive area, but I wanted to emphasize that not everyone knows the rules about this, so today we can make this clear.  Ripping (or Rips) is basically taking someone else’s work and distributing it without the authors permission.  If you upload something to WinCustomize it must be your own work, or you must have the written permission from the original author included.  This includes any type of modification to someone’s work as well.  If you are also wanting to create and upload a matching skin based off another persons work, you still need to have their permission included. 

  4. Test the Skin.  Before you upload, you might also want to consider having friends or other members of the community give your skin a test to make sure there are no issues.  The forums on WinCustomize are a great place to ask for assistance and even more tips.

  5. Use Sub-Styles and .Zips.  This is particularly true for WindowBlinds skins, wallpapers, and logons, but can apply to pretty much any skin or theme.  If you have multiple variations of a skin, for example, a WindowBlinds skin that has several different colors.  These need to either be included as sub-styles or multiple files in a .zip.  If it’s  a wallpaper that has several resolutions, those would also need to be included in a single pack.

Tips for Getting Featured

  1. Good Previews.  The preview tips above are very important for this.  If your preview doesn’t show off your skin well, there’s less of a chance of someone actually downloading it to see that it is a perfect skin to feature. 

  2. Promote Yourself.  Every member of WinCustomize can have their own personal page with their own personal domain.  For instance, mine is islanddog.wincustomize.com.  As you see on my page, my Skins Gallery is listed, along with a guestbook where other members can leave comments, there is a photo gallery I can upload images to, and more.  You can include your personal URL in forums signatures, e-mail signatures, and anything else to get people to come visit your gallery.

  3. Recommend a Skin.  If you see a skin you like, or you think yours is good enough to be featured in various articles, drop myself or a site moderator a PM.  We always welcome feedback from the community.

Comments (Page 1)
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on Jul 28, 2008
Nice tips :CONGRATS:


You can include your personal URL in forums signatures


This does mean sites other than Wincustomize user sites, right? I hardly think we need any personal signatures for that, seeing that clicking on a name in the forums allows me to visit the site anyway.
on Jul 28, 2008
Ooops...
:CONGRATS:


I meant

Really, I should stick with clicking emoticons, typing is way hard for me. And why didn't I get the edit button?
on Jul 28, 2008
Nice tips   
on Jul 28, 2008
Now, remember that when ya recomend a skin that you think should be featured, don't get upset if it isn't.  You an, I hope, imagine how many people will be doing the same thing.  
on Jul 28, 2008
Just curious, but why doesn't Stardock/WinC feature a skin from each of the products it owns/disperses? For example, instead of just one featured skin for the day/week, why not a featured skin from each product for the day/week? I hope that makes sense
on Jul 28, 2008
Just don’t take a quick screenshot. The preview itself is the first thing people will see about your skin, so you want it to make a great first impression. Take some time and design a preview that really shows off the skin.


Good point

I like to think of it as composing a screenshot.
on Jul 28, 2008
Just curious, but why doesn't Stardock/WinC feature a skin from each of the products it owns/disperses? For example, instead of just one featured skin for the day/week, why not a featured skin from each product for the day/week?

I hope that makes sense

Stardock has a LOT of products, and I think there are like over 2 or 3 dozen galleries on the site. That would be a *lot*of skins featured.
on Jul 28, 2008
True...I guess that would make anyone want to make just one skin a feature Thanks, Bebi!
on Jul 28, 2008

Ripping (or Rips) is basically taking someone else’s work and distributing it with the authors permission. 

 

I'm not sure that is a proper description of ripping. 

on Jul 28, 2008
another tip:  chocolate, pizza, coffee, booze

I meant for the skinner . . not to send to the moderators.  Yeah.  That's what I meant  
on Jul 29, 2008
not to send to the moderators.


You are just evil
on Jul 29, 2008

True...I guess that would make anyone want to make just one skin a feature Thanks, Bebi!


There are other skin features aside from the daily feature.  This Week in Skinning, Member Spotlight, etc. 

I also don't want to imply that trying to get your stuff featured is absolutely necessary, it's just a question that we are asked quite frequently. 

 

 

on Jul 29, 2008
To me, it seems that more emphasis is placed on the daily/weekly feature that gets a spotlight on the home page. That's not a bad thing; just an observation. If I'm wrong, then it's because I'm still fairly new to the WinCustomize website and all it's glory . You're right, Island Dog: getting featured isn't necessary...but it's a nice lil ego boost .
on Jul 29, 2008
not to send to the moderators.


You are just evil


I fear a BF coming!  
on Jul 29, 2008
Did no one see the wink?  That means I was joking . . right?
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