The Future of LogonStudio

Is there a future?

Published on December 27, 2004 By CerebroJD In Customization Software

LogonStudio is probably the first program that I install on a computer when someone I know wants to customize their computer.

Why is that?

Its because its an incredible program! Anyone can make a Logon, and even if you cant, so many have been made its easy to find one thats likable. Its a great way to take a big step away from the standard Windows XP look. Even if people dont mind the XP look, the logon annoys me to no end, so its my favourite thing to change. That said, its great to have LogonStudio to change it! However, that program is no longer being developed.

Since its the best program I've ever seen for changing the login screens, I'd be interested to hear what everyones opinions are of the future of the program. I, personally, would like to see Stardock create a replacement program that can import the original Logons from Logonstudio. That way, we can get a more complete skinning engine that has more features and will give us more freedom in the logons. Here are some features I'd like to see:

:: Animation support! It would be great if we could have some animated buttons, or just ambient animations.
:: Sounds. Although a continuos soundtrack might get monotonous, I think that entering the login screen, or clicking a user, should produce sound.
:: Complete customization of the location of the "User" boxes.
:: More of a free-form skinning idea

Although these features would be great to have, with development halted on the project, it seems doubtful they will be added. In a post from a Stardock representative, it was said that "LogonStudio development for XP is at an end." As unfortunate as that is, there may still be a future for logons.

With the upcoming Longhorn operating system, its uncertain whether or not there will be a "Logon"-esque interface for accessing the different users. (This is, of course, assuming that there will be seperate user profiles in Longhorn) If there is, however, it would be great to be able to skin them. Stardock, being as close to Microsoft as it is, would probably be the leader in Logon skinning developement. With the Avalon skinning engine becoming more and more apparent in Microsofts vision of Longhorn, the logon screens will probably be governed by it. With Avalons direct link to the graphics cards, all the visual aspects of the operating system will be ran through the card, NOT through your processor. What does this mean? It means that everything will be faster because very few of the graphics will be processed by the processor.

One of the main annoyances about logons currently is the fact that many are resolution dependant. If Avalon is used to skin the future Longhorn OS's logon screen, these annoyances would be removed. How is THAT possible? Simple: Avalon will support vector graphics. That means that all graphics will be defined using numerical co-ordinates, allowing them to be infinitely scaled. Instant resolution independence! Plus, the whole idea of "resolutions" will probably become moot, since it'll all be vectored anyways. Pixels wont really be an issue except when you're using the "old" rastor, pixel-based images.

So, in summary, while the future of the LogonStudio can be summed up with this phrase, "LogonStudio has no future.", there is still a future to Logon skinning. Assuming that Longhorn has a logon-type screen in the OS, you can bet that there will be applications to skin it. I'd put money on the fact that if third-party programs are needed to do it, Stardock will be leading the way with the best program available to do it.

Article by CerebroJD. He's not affiliated with Stardock in any way besides being a satisfied customer.

Comments

Frogboy

on Dec 27, 2004

I have much the same views but what we're waiting for is to see what Longhorn is going to do with logons and then go from there.

Thomas Thomassen

on Dec 28, 2004

I'll be very interesting to see what's ready in the upcomming beta.

Island Dog

on Dec 28, 2004

It is a great program. It's one of those I kind of forget about.

butch123

on Dec 28, 2004

I also think Log On Studio is a great program. And like others I'm waiting to see what Longhorn will do

NetBadger

on Dec 28, 2004

I love logon studio, and it isn't as resolution dependent as you might think. If you create your logon screens with "stretch" attribute set for all three sections, you can get a 1024x768, 1152x864, 1280x960, & 1600x1200 all in the correct aspect ratio. The 1280x1024 becomes a bit "tall".

minus1

on Dec 28, 2004

Yea I really like logonstudio...maybe many of u know aldready.. but there's another program, that is really good too and far more customizable...
it's at http://www.frontmotion.com/.. called FrontMotion Login XP.. there's so much in terms of customization becuz it's all flash media.. but it's hard to code...

sonaris

on Dec 29, 2004

Yes, future of Logon Studio remains uncertain especially with the rumour mill on the Longhorn. I only hope all of us have the flexibility to choose our logons in Longhorn without affecting the system resources.

Daiwa

on Jan 01, 2005

I really like LogonStudio, but it seems many of us use our rigs on a domain of some sort, rendering it useless. Hopefully, Longhorn will not have the domain-related skinning restrictions that XP has.

Cheers,
Daiwa

joeKnowledge

on Jan 01, 2005

CursorXP should be first... Longon Studio second.
My opinion of course, but good post anyway.

Corky_O

on Jan 01, 2005

I definitely like LogonStudio to change the logon image to something much cleaner with better definition.

Some sort of logon protection seems inevitable, so we might as well have a nice interface of our own choosing if possible.

I would opt for a simple "display an image and locate logon buttons and text" type interface as I don't spend a hole lot of time on that screen, and would prefer low resource use whether it be the CPU or the graphics processor.

My 2 cents.

Koasati

on Jan 02, 2005

#6 by Citizen minus1
Tuesday, December 28, 2004

but there's another program, that is really good too and far more customizable...
it's called FrontMotion Login XP..

That's a pretty cool program! Thanx for the link.
People that want animated logon screens should check this out.

WebGizmos

on Jan 03, 2005

Tried downloading this FrontMotion Login but I keep getting a page not found prompt...hmmmm

_02

on Feb 04, 2005

I would like Logon Studio better if the logons that are downloaded for it had the Welcome,Logging Off,Saving Settings and Shutting Down on them. When they don't they just look like nice wallpaper.
Smile!

PurrBall

on Jul 10, 2005

clwoods, I made an Easter logon that features all of that. Just search for Easteria in the Logons section at WC.

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