What's New in Version 2.0.2511.16:

• Improved Startup Reliability: The previous helper launcher (XBStart.exe) has been removed. Its system-readiness checks are now built directly into xBar, ensuring consistent startup behavior across cold boots, restarts, and post-update reboots. These checks verify that Windows has fully initialized the desktop, shell, input system, and related services before xBar begins—important because Windows often loads components in parallel, even after the desktop appears.
• Network No Longer Required at Launch: xBar now starts normally even when no internet connection is available.
• Shortcuts Widget Fix: Corrected an issue where pasting a file or folder path into a shortcut entry did not enable the Icon button.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. Updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more details.

What's New in Version 2.0.2511.6:

• New Anchored/Unanchored modes: xBar can now operate as either a docked Sidebar (Anchored Mode) or as a Desktop App overlay (Unanchored Mode) that sits above the Windows Desktop Shell without altering the desktop's work area.
• Improved trial handling: when the 30-day trial ends, auto-start is disabled and a message box now provides clear next steps.
• Cleaner uninstall: registry settings are cleared and AppData files are now removed unless a valid license file is present.
• More accurate hardware info: xBar now filters out generic monitor names, using them only as a last resort.
• Customization upgrade: maximum inner padding between widgets increased from 8px to 12px for greater layout control.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. Updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more details.

What's New in Version 2.0.2508.21:

• Improved system stability with safer handling of memory, CPU, and WMI calls.
• Refined shutdown, restart, and logoff behavior to ensure user settings are properly saved.
• New startup helper (XBStart.exe) improves reliability when loading xBar with Windows.
• Updated hardware detection in the PCInfo Widget, including better GPU and monitor reporting.
• Improved handling of drag-and-drop when in Search Mode to prevent conflicts.
• Enhanced Drives&Folders list for faster and safer initialization.
• Updated build with the latest Visual Studio and vcpkg libraries.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. As always, updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar’s Product Page for more details.

What's New in Version 2.0.2505.7:

• Updated GEOIP location services (used by the PCInfo Widget) to use a new endpoint and version 2 of the API.
• Refined WMI queries and cleanup logic to improve reliability when retrieving OS and system details.
• Rebuilt with the latest vcpkg libraries for better support of underlying system APIs.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required.

As always, updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar’s Product Page for more details.

What's New in Version 2.0.2504.27:

• Minor visual adjustments to the "Windows Light Mode" theme.
• xBar will temporarily unhide (pin) itself before exiting when set to Auto-Hide, providing a smoother shutdown experience.
• Updated build with the latest versions of vcpkg libraries, including those used for system information.
• Improved cleanup of system resources tied to the PDH API (Performance Counters) used for CPU Load monitoring.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95.

You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. As always, updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar’s Product Page for more details.

What's New in Version 2.0.2504.23:

• Windows Light Mode Support – On first run, xBar detects your Windows Light or Dark mode setting and selects a matching theme automatically. You can still choose from 22 predefined theme colors at any time. Renamed "Black Theme – Default" to "Windows Dark Mode".
• Faster&Cleaner Startup – Startup, shutdown, and file drag/drop responsiveness have all improved thanks to optimized background threads and cleaner thread signaling.
• Smoother Desktop&Taskbar Interaction – Improved integration with the Windows Desktop and Taskbar, especially when using auto-hide features.
• Simplified Color Options – Removed the legacy “Custom Colors” option for a cleaner experience.
• Visual Polish – Reduced flicker and improved spacing make the UI feel more refined and modern. Popup menus and comboboxes also paint more cleanly.
• Help File Updated – Reflects changes to theme names, color options, and updated internal functionality.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required.

As always, updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar’s Product Page for more details.

What’s New in Version 1.0.2503.20:

• Windows 11 24H2 Compatibility – Fixed rendering issues on the 24H2 upgrade by introducing a specialized overlay window (transparent and layered) that Today now draws to, ensuring proper desktop integration on this version.
• Improved Background Thread Stability – Addressed race conditions in Today’s background worker thread to ensure consistent updates without performance hiccups.
• Smoother App Startup – Refined the startup process to minimize conflicts with other auto-start applications, delivering a more reliable launch experience at system boot.
• Additional Small Tweaks – Various refinements enhance overall convenience, efficiency, and usability.

Try Today for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $7.95. Updates and upgrades are always free for registered users.

Visit Today’s Product Page for more details.

What’s New in Version 2.0.2502.28:

• More Intuitive Drag-and-Drop Behavior – When xBar is set to auto-hide, dragging files or folders from the Desktop or Explorer now triggers its display, allowing users to drop items into the Shortcuts Widget or the Drives&Folders Widget.
• Improved Visibility for Insertion Line – When repositioning shortcuts within the Shortcuts Widget or Drives&Folders Widget, the insertion line is now easier to see for better placement accuracy.
• Smoother Slide-Out&Slide-In Animations – xBar’s animations have been refined with better easing effects, resulting in a more fluid experience when opening and closing the bar.
• Improved Widget Responsiveness – Background updates to widgets (clock, system info, sensors) now happen more smoothly, preventing potential lag or freezes.
• Additional Small Tweaks – Various refinements enhance overall convenience, efficiency, and usability.

A single end-user license (includes two installs) is available for just $9.95. You can try xBar for FREE with a fully functional, nag-screen-free 30-day trial—no registration required. As always, updates and upgrades are free for registered users.

Visit xBar’s Product Page for more details.

Fixes / Changes (PCInfo Widget)

• Added secondary (backup) Ip2Location provider service.

This change allows xBar to use an alternate IP2Location service should the first one fail to respond in a timely manner or the resulting information is invalid.  I've also changed the code, so it displays a message when it can't resolve the IP Address location.  This release includes updates to libraries used by xBar (vcpkg) and the latest release version of Visual Studio 2022 (17.6.0).

A single end-user license (two installs) can be purchased (securely) for $9.95.  You can download the fully-functional, nag-screen-free, 30-day trial version (No registration necessary) for FREE. As always, updates&upgrades are free for Registered Users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

Fixes / Changes

• Distribution is now x64 (64-bit) - Microsoft is moving away from 32-bit Windows installs and 32-bit versions using Shell API calls can receive unusual results, such as retrieving the path to the shortcut's default icon.  Windows can return a value pointing to the 'Program Files (x86)' folder.
• xBar now automatically creates the Pinned Taskbar Shortcuts category, which includes all valid links found on the Windows Taskbar.
• Changed the code which detects the Topmost Window (enumerates all top most windows).
• Fixed Browse for Shortcut's Path when an existing path includes arguments.
• Fixed ChooseFile(*) functionality.  It will, regardless of the file's existence, parse out and include the original filename + file extension.
• Built against the latest version of Visual Studio 2022 and latest vcpkg libraries.

A single end-user license (two installs) can be purchased (securely) for $9.95.  You can download the fully-functional, nag-screen-free, 30 day trial version (No registration necessary) for FREE. As always, updates&upgrades are free for Registered Users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

Fixes / Changes

• Added 'Sort' submenu to the Categories Manager dropdown: Users can now change how Shortcuts are sorted (and displayed) in the Shortcuts Widget.  This is a per-category setting and is sticky.
• Fixed an intermittent bug caused by using MFC's Visual Manager (popup menus): When right-clicking on an edit box, a popup context menu is displayed (Undo, Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete, Select All), which would (randomly) trigger an exception and xBar would restart.  The context menus (edit boxes) have been replaced with my own custom (theme-based) owner-drawn menus.
• Libraries (via vcpkg) used by xBar have been updated, this includes Visual C++ maintenance releases.
• Tested using Microsoft's Application Verifier:  This version will be submitted to the Microsoft Store!
• New Year!  Copyright info updated (2023).

A single end-user license (two installs) can be purchased (securely) for $9.95.  You can download the fully-functional, nag-screen-free, 30-day trial version (No registration necessary) for FREE. As always, updates & upgrades are free for Registered Users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

I'm happy to announce the immediate availability of xBar for Windows - version 2.0.2212.29!

This update includes numerous usability enhancements (popup menus), integrated Search, 21 pre-defined color themes, and more.  I spent a great deal of time fixing issues with rendering (Auto Hide | Show), and how xBar interacts with the Windows Taskbar, this includes when running in multi-monitor mode.

Two new Help topics have been added:

• Quickly Customize and Use xBar - Accessing & Using the Popup Context Menu
• Searching for Shortcuts - Using the powerful search tool with filtering

Below is a list of changes/updates to xBar for Windows

• First Run Setup & Initialization

• xBar (Available via the Slide Down | Up Caption Widget)
• Popup Menu Customization
• Widgets (Show | Hide)
• Auto Hide/Show Speed (Slow | Normal | Fast)
• Color Themes (21)
• Transparency
• Clock Widget
• Popup Menu Customization
• Use Regional Date Format
• Convert to Uppercase
• PC Info Widget
• Popup Menu Customization
• Simplified Windows Version
• WAN IP Location (City | State or Region)
• PC Sensors Widget
• Popup Menu Customization
• Rendering (Flat | Gradient | 3D Pipe)
• Shortcuts Widget
• Popup Menus (Category Manager | Search Options | Shortcut)
• Run as Administrator
• Open Command Prompt (Folders) + Shift Key for As Administrator
• Open PowerShell Window (Folders) + Shift Key for As Administrator
• Category Manager (Add | Edit | Delete)
• Search Box + Filtering
• Drives & Folders Widget
• Popup Menus (Drives | Shell Folders | User Folders)
• Two sizes (Large Icon | Small Icon)
• Open Command Prompt (Drives | User Folders) + Shift Key for As Administrator
• Open PowerShell Window (Drives | User Folders) + Shift Key for As Administrator
• Button Bar Widget
• Popup Menu Customization

A single end-user license (two installs) can be purchased (securely) for $9.95.  You can download the fully-functional, nag-screen-free, 30 day trial version (No registration necessary) for FREE. As always, updates & upgrades are free for Registered Users.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

An updated version of Today for Windows has been posted and is available for download.

Issue(s) addressed / changes / updates:

• Daily Refresh (Downloaded - Bing Wallpaper) when there's no available internet connection
• Latest updated vcpkg libraries
• Latest Visual Studio 2022 Release (C++)

Today wasn't handling a case when there's no internet connection (Comcast's xfinity Services was down yesterday) while executing the Daily Refresh (Bing Downloaded Wallpaper) code.  Today will detect if there's no internet connection, but my logic wasn't handling the fact that there's a possibility that no wallpaper image(s) were downloaded.  By that, I mean, it wasn't updating the preview window (see above screen cap) with the current selected wallpaper image (previous day's downloaded image).  This has now been addressed.

Today has also been updated to use the latest libraries automatically included in the project using vcpkg. There was also an updated version of Visual Studio 2022 released by Microsoft which addressed a few compiler specific issues.

A new version, 2.0.2208.23, has been posted and is available for download.

The following changes/enhancements have been incorporated into this release:

• Autoscaling - xBar & Widgets now scale based on your screen's resolution
• UWP Apps - Added support for Universal Windows Platform (UWP) apps - AKA Microsoft Store Apps
• Multi-Monitor Support - You can now specify the docking location when using more than 1 monitor
• Improved Autohide & Docking regardless of the Windows Taskbar location
• Clock Widget - Date now displays using locale (translated) information

IMPORTANT: Please uninstall existing versions (64-bit) before installing this update (32-bit).

A new version, 1.0.2207.16, has been posted and is available for download.

The following changes/enhancements have been incorporated into this release:

• Changed Daily Refresh Code in order to avoid it firing off before Bing Daily Wallpaper Download is available
• Changed Bing Daily Wallpaper Download, so it can trigger a Daily Refresh (e.g., After Midnight on the next day).
• Added extra checking which verifies a selected Wallpaper Image is different before updating Last Daily Refresh Date/Time.

A new version, 1.0.2207.11, has been posted and is available for download.

The following changes/enhancements have been incorporated into this release:

• Added additional active Internet Connection checking
• Added enhanced wallpaper image validation when downloading Bing Wallpaper
• Updated instructional text (Wallpaper Image Browser) when displaying Favorites and Downloaded lists
• Tested Today for Windows using Microsoft's Application Verifier

I'm thrilled to announce Today's release for Windows 10 / 11.

Today is a Desktop Digital Clock with an integrated Background Manager for Windows.  The Digital Clock is available in 5 auto-scaling sizes (Compact, Small, Medium, Large, and Extra-Large) and supports 9 different screen locations (with optional, user-specified, padding).

Today's Background Manager supports Solid Color, Gradient Fills (8 directions), and Wallpaper Images (Portrait and Landscape). It can be configured to automatically download Bing's Wallpaper Image of the Day and also supports Daily Refresh, so you can start your day off with a new or randomly selected Wallpaper Image.

This version includes the following changes:

• Now using Direct2D 1.2 - Faster and smoother transition animation rendering
• Updated Animation Timings - New rendering engine accounts for the vertical-sync refresh
• Updated High-DPI awareness - Wallpaper images are now scaled using the high-quality bicubic algorithm
• Added Help Topic - Manually Control Wallpaper Swapping

As always, updates&upgrades are free for Registered Users.

Visit Perspective's Product Page for more information.

This version includes the following changes:

• Added Extended HTML ToolTip Help
• Fixed Editing Properties, Is Favorite not reflected when redrawn in Slideshow List
• Rearranged SysTray Popup Menu and added Transition Schemes (None, In Order, Random, and Favorites) menu items
• Updated Transition Animation Timings

Visit Perspective's Product Page for more information.

This release addresses the following issues:

• Button Bar Widget was hidden when Window's Taskbar Auto-hides - xBar now properly responds to a Windows Notification and resizes / moves widgets.
• Editing Shortcut Properties - An annoying bug in MFC's CFileDialog class caused intermittent crashes.  I rewrote the code so it uses GetOpenFileName() directly, bypassing the CFileDialog class and all is well.
• Added extended HTML ToolTip Help when hovering over Widgets, Buttons, Tabs, and other UI elements.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

This update addresses a somewhat wonky bug that would randomly cause Perspective to crash (it would automatically restart, so you would have to be actively watching it to see it happen). 

It was a difficult bug to trace because it was so random.  I could run it for 24 hours straight and nothing would happen, the next day, it would crash within an hour or so.  And because Perspective uses the Windows Restart Manager, it would silently restart and I had no clue that it was crashing!

It turns out that some code (from Microsoft; C++ String Class) wasn't entirely thread-safe.  I wrapped the call with a CriticalSection/SingleLock to prevent what is known as a Race Condition and all is well.

Visit Perspective's Product Page for more information.

This version includes the following 18 New Transitions:

• BarnDoors (Horizontal / Vertical)
• Push (Left, Top, Right, and Bottom)
• Reveal (Horizontal / Vertical)
• Roll (Left, Top, Right, and Bottom)
• Unroll (Left, Top, Right, and Bottom)
• Unscroll (Horizontal / Vertical)

Visit Perspective's Product Page for more information.

I've released an updated version of xBar which fixes (changes) how the First Run Process is handled.  This updated version will display the First Run Initialization Dialog Box (see above) when creating xBar's initial Categories.  This new method is designed to provide more feedback while searching the Start Menu for matching (known) Application shortcuts and pre-populating xBar's Categories.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

• Queueing of Slideshows - Double-click to Queue and Run a Slideshow
• Wallpaper Slideshow Settings - All pertinent settings are now available on the Main Window
• Update Panoramic Support - Dual Monitor and Panoramic Rendering now auto-scales to support different DPI Resolutions (125%, 150%, 175%)
• Auto-Queueing - Simplified, simply select from one Category
• SysTray Menu - Wallpaper Settings, Queueing (Randomized), and important feature available from Popup Menu
• Redesign UI - Removed unused features, and focus on Landscape Wallpaper Images only

Today, I'm thrilled to announce the release of xBar for Windows 10 / Windows 11.

xBar was designed to provide a better alternative to the Windows Start Menu.  The Windows Start Menu sorts Application Shortcuts alphabetically, in contrast, with xBar, Shortcuts are organized into user-defined Categories.  This makes locating and launching Software Applications or opening Documents (such as spreadsheets, PDF Files, Pictures and Videos) and Folders significantly easier. 

Additionally, xBar includes the following Widgets:

• Clock Widget
• PC Info Widget
• PC Sensors Widget
• Shortcuts Widget
• Drives & Folders Widget
• Button Bar Widget

xBar can be positioned on the left or right side of the screen and supports Auto hide (slides off the screen, hover the mouse-cursor to reveal) and it includes 8 predefined theme colors or you can select from a palette of 39 colors.  It is fully customizable, you can pick and choose the Widgets that best suits your needs and configure each Widget's settings accordingly.

Additonally, with xBar you can View System Details and Monitor your PC’s Performance with CPU, Memory, Temperature, and Battery Sensors.

xBar can be purchased (securely) for $6.95 (normally $9.95) for a single end-user license, two installs.  You can download the fully-functional, nag-screen-free, 30 day trial version (No registration necessary) for FREE.

Visit xBar's Product Page for more information.

• Removed Support for HEIC/HEIF Image Formats
• Removed Support for Image Formats not typically used as Wallpaper
• The project was rebuilt using the latest Releases from Microsoft (Visual Studio)
• Updates to SQLite Library and other libraries were also rebuilt and included

As always, updates&upgrades are free for Registered Users.

PENN VALLEY, CA (August 24, 2021) Today, gdiObjects is proud to announce the immediate availability of fotoXplorer for Windows, the complete solution for users wishing to organize, explore and manage their entire photo collection. fotoXplorer combines the most sought-after features - A fast Photo Viewer, categorized Photo Albums, and powerful Photo Tools - into a simple, easy-to-use software application designed for Windows 10. fotoXplorer is also touchscreen-enabled and offers one-click switching between light and dark themes.

Benefits

• Organize an entire photo collection into easily identifiable, categorized Photo Albums.
• Group similar Photo Albums into Collections.
• Explore Photo Albums and Collections using the integrated Photo Viewer, which features multiple, user-selectable thumbnail views and Direct2D hardware-accelerated rendering.
• Manage photos with numerous, easy-to-use, and often pre-configured Photo Management Tools.

Photo Management Tools

• Photo Album Tools (Batch Processing) - Metadata Tools (Create/Update/Delete and Wipe), Fix (Swap) File Created & Last Modified Timestamps, Update Photo File Created & Last Modified Timestamps using Metadata, Renaming / Resize & Convert / Convert to Grayscale / Import / Export
• Photo Tools (via Photo Viewer) - Ratings (1 thru 5 Stars / Clear Rating), Fix (Swap) File Created & Last Modified Timestamps, Metadata Tools (Add / Update / Wipe), Update Photo File Created & Last Modified Timestamps using Metadata, Resize / Convert / Transform (Rotate Left | Right 90°, Flip, Mirror, Grayscale)

"fotoXplorer is designed from the ground up to capitalize on today's multi-core and GPU enhanced hardware offerings," said Steve Wehrmann, developer, and publisher of fotoXplorer for Windows. "Simple tasks such as listing available photos in a folder or batch resize and conversion operations utilize a CPU's multiple cores for unparalleled speed and efficiency."

Pricing and Availability

fotoXplorer is available for just $14.95* (120-day special introductory price, regularly $29.95). Users can download the fully functional, unlockable (nag-screen free) trial version and try it for 30 days. fotoXplorer requires Microsoft Windows 10 (1903) or newer, 43MB of free disk space, and a PC with integrated or discrete graphics capabilities supporting Direct2D hardware-accelerated rendering.

Product Information

https://www.gdiObjects.com/Products/fotoXplorer

Additional Information

Screenshots, icons, and other related media are available for download from https://www.gdiObjects.com/media-kits/media-kit_fotoxplorer.zip

About gdiObjects

gdiObjects, created by Steve Wehrmann in 2012, focuses on developing and publishing software solutions for everyday people by re-imagining what can or should be a more reliable, efficient, and user-friendly approach to software design and implementation.

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This release addresses a problem that existed when a user selects a Business Logo or a Profile Picture and Easy Realty Flyers displays an error message saying, "The selected logo | picture should have the minimum properties:" - My code was using '>' instead of '>=' so even a properly formatted image at the minimum size would fail.

As always, updates and upgrades and free to registered users!

Changes:

• Fixed wallpaper rendering when running at a higher DPI (> 96 DPI).
• Updated code so it properly re-initializes the wallpaper settings when it detects a resolution/work area change.
• Compiled with the latest version of Visual Studio 2019.

As always, updates and upgrades are available for free to registered users!  Simply download the latest version and run the executable PWCInstall.exe.

This release addresses a problem that exists when a user installs the product on both a desktop PC and a laptop (which is allowed by the single end-user license) and uses OneDrive to sync between the computers. OneDrive was syncing the contents of the My Easy Realty Flyers folder between both computers, which also included the license key.  The problem, as you might imagine, is that the license key unlocks the software product on a single unique computer.  So each and every time OneDrive synced, it would copy the license key from the source computer and overwrite the license key on the destination.  This means the destination computer's copy of Easy Realty Flyers is no longer unlocked!

The update moves the license key to the Users\{user}\AppData\local\gdiObjects\EasyRealtyFlyers folder which shouldn't be synced between computers (based on my research).  There's also logic to verify if a valid license key already exists (in the new location) and whether or not the soon to be moved key is valid for the computer!

As always, updates and upgrades and free to registered users!

Updated Release Versions are:

• Unzip Photo Archives - 2.1.2003.19
• Easy Realty Flyers - 2.1.2003.19
• Perspective for Windows - 2.1.2003.20

Additionally, the file sizes have increased because I disabled all built-in optimizations (Visual C++).  I also added some code to Unzip Photo Archives which better handles invalid file timestamps (dates earlier than January 1, 1970).

A few weeks ago Comcast initiated a system upgrade which took down the internet connection, TV and phone service for over 7 hours.  It was at that time I had planned to research social media marketing (Twitter Promoted Tweets) and boom...no internet.

So I decided to try something with fotoXplorer based on things I have read lately.  There seemed to be a push towards building software with dual themes (Light & Dark).  I figured it would be easy enough because I use the registry to store colors (for specific controls) and have a global structure that defines application colors.

After a few minutes of coding, I had a dark themed version of fotoXplorer.  However, this didn't include many controls (owner-drawn and those not covered by the OnCtlColor() message).  The hard part, as it turns out, are scrollbars!  I spent a good week and a half just creating a custom, owner -drawn scrollbar (vertical) and then more time integrating it into the various controls (Tree Control, ListBox, ComboBox, Edit Control, and finally, the ListCtrl).  Each introduced a new problem which required additional time to solve.

Solved it I have!  So now I have created owner-drawn versions of nearly all controls (as mentioned above plus SpinButtonCtrl, Tab Control and many more).  I've been working on upgrading all dialog boxes using the new themed-dialog-box design and wanted to share a few screencaps!

Also, an important feature I added to my custom scrollbar is the Scroll-to-Top Button and Scroll-to-Bottom Button! It's a feature I haven't seen on any other OS, but it comes in handy.  Imagine if FireFox had it.  Web developers wouldn't need to add that floating "back-to-top" div. Anyways, you can see the top-arrow-with-a-line and bottom-arrow-with-a-line on the Main Window screen caps below.

In closing...development is coming along.  I know I'm a good year or so behind in releasing it...but since I code products I use (except for Easy Realty Flyers - I'm not a Realtor), I wanted to create something that is special and really, really fast too (multi-threaded speed | Direct2D Hardware Accelerated Rendering)!

fotoXplorer - Main Window - Light Theme

fotoXplorer - Photo Album Properties - Light Theme

fotoXplorer - Main Window - Dark Theme

fotoXplorer - Photo Album Properties - Dark Theme

This update addresses an interesting bug I have never encountered before!

The bug, of all things, was caused by a photo's filename. Perspective was designed and coded to handle what is known as escaped filenames.  You have probably seen escaped characters when surfing the web (such as %20) which replaces spaces.

I often queue up my Wallpaper Shortcut with over 39,000 images and let my software run 24/7.  However, I noticed for no reason what-so-ever, it started to exit out.  And by that, I mean it merely bailed with no crash indication or anything.

It turns out that one of the queued wallpaper images has a % in the filename.  Not an escape character (which is properly handled), but rather part of a very descriptive filename. 

The offending filename: 100%_Pure_Attention_Terrier_Mix.jpg (See below). 

So to fix this issue, I now "clean" the filename by running it through a function which first handles Escaped Characters and then searches and replaces single '%' with double '%%.'  This solution has addressed the problem and Perspective has been running continuously since July 3rd (swapping at computer's speed - no delay).

Several users wondered why Perspective would randomly pause the slideshow.  I thought this behavior was odd...then I remembered there's a built-in option for detecting if there's a full screen application running. If detected, Perspective would pause (as designed).  Also, a few users mentioned there were problems with the Slide - Right to Left and Stretch - Right to Left transitions when running on monitor #2.

So here's a rundown of the changes:

• Changed default setting for "Pause when fullscreen app detected" (unchecked)
• Changed default setting for "Pause Slideshow when Monitor Sleeps" (unchecked)
• Updated "Slide - Right to Left" & "Stretch - Right to Left" - Both now check lower bounds of X Position (nXPos > 0)
• Updated Help file to reflect default options change.

Changes

• Dual Monitor Support - you can select which monitor to display your desktop wallpaper slideshow.
• Panoramic widescreen wallpaper (spanned across both monitors).
• Animation timings to reflect larger screens.
• Batch Update Cover Art feature has been updated using fotoXplorer's code base.

As always, registered user can download and install the latest releases for free!

Each product has been digitally signed with a new code signing certificate (issued from Comodo).

I have also included several minor fixes and enhancements (including Locale based date/time/numbering).

I'm releasing these updates in anticipation of the upcoming release (finally!) of fotoXplorer for Windows.  All the coding is complete and I finally have the look, feel and features wrapped in a non-intrusive / non-overwhelming UI.

I will be posting some screen caps and explaining my design concept while I continue to work on fotoXplorer's help file.

As always, product updates (such as the above releases) are free for registered users.

Changes

• Added Fill Type to both Portrait&Landscape Photo Options. This new feature allows you to either Scale to Screen or Scale To Photo.  Scale to Screen was the default setting in all previous versions. Scale To Photo will size the wallpaper or photo to fit within the screen's dimensions without cropping. So there will be some visible borders on both sides of a landscape photo or wallpaper. But the entire photo/wallpaper can be viewed on screen. Portrait photos (using Scale to Photo) will not upscale a photo to fit the screen (based on your scaling settings). It will display the portrait photo at its original dimensions. Both settings work with the render anywhere tech too.
• Some minor re-tooling and refactoring of code to eliminate redundancy.
• Made some adjustments to the Exif reading code (Photo Properties Dialog).

As always, registered user can download and install the latest releases for free!

Changes

• Re-coded Blinds & Strips transitions so they no longer interfere with foreground applications. This means Perspective can continuously run and swap desktop wallpaper in the background unnoticed (This includes swapping wallpaper at your computer's speed - less than 1/2 delay between swaps).
• Fixed a problem with the Options Dialog Box not resetting the last transition to none.

As always, registered user can download and install the latest releases for free!

Why the change?

I was reading a couple of different articles regarding Windows Operating System Usage and I discovered that Windows 7 is still quite popular.  And by that I mean popular enough that I needed to support it.

Here's the reference articles in case you are wondering too:

• netmarketshare.com - Operating System Share by Version
• Desktop Windows Version Market Share Worldwide

I've also made a changes to the Overwrite/Skip feature in Unzip Photo Archives.  I was trying to account for daylight savings time and that code would cause UPA to constantly overwrite the extracted image (date-time was off by an hour).

System requirement to run Easy Realty Flyers on Windows 7

• Windows 7 SP1 (KB976932)
• Platform Update (KB2670838)
• Internet Explorer 11

Microsoft has released several roll-up packages for Windows 7 which contain hot-fixes and security patches and what-not.  I setup a computer running plain old Windows 7 Home and proceeded to use windows update (via the control panel) for several hours.  Some of the updates were quite large.  In some way or another I had forgotten how much I used to dread the constant update | install | reboot process.  Windows 10 update seems more efficient to me.  You can download the SP1 and Platform Update by using the KB numbers.  Create a support ticket if you need help.

As always, registered users can download and install the latest version for free!

I should note that I'm working on a fix for Perspective so it can run on Windows 7 and I've already been testing fotoXplorer on Windows 7 and it works perfectly!

Here's a list of changes/additions:

• UnRAR support added - Unzip Photo Archives can now process RAR archives in the same manner as ZIP archives.  It took a bit of work because RAR archives are stored differently (which is to be expected).  ZIP archives are indexed and easy to jump around. On the other hand, with RAR archives it is necessary to walk through the entire archive just to find the item (by name) to extract.  It is slower, but still faster than manually extraction.
• Adjusted Overwrite logic so Unzip Photo Archives not only compares the filename, but the uncompressed file size and the last modified date to determine if it should be skipped.
• Speaking of dates...Unzip Photo Archives now updates both date created and date last modified timestamps on the extracted file (image) with the date modified timestamp stored in the compressed archive.  An interesting note: ZIP and RAR archives do NOT store date created timestamps.  The zip file format has a field for date created, but it is (as far as my tests) always blank.  RAR archives don't even have the field.
• Smart Extraction Updated - I believe I finally nailed down this lookup matrix so it accurately predicts the appropriate extraction method (extract to here / extract to folder).  Not only does it look at the archive itself, but also takes into consideration files at the same level as the archive file.  In my tests (see below), Smart Extraction exceeded my expectations.

As always, registered users can upgrade for free.  Simply download and install the latest version.

Changes in this release:

• Added the ability to specify the scale of exported Flyer PDF's and Flyer Images (see below).  Normal Scaling (100%) is based on 8.5 x 11.0 Letter sized document.  You can now scale up to 500% of letter size.  Many print & copy shops request higher resolution images/PDF's so the printed output is anti-aliased.

• Removed the E-mail Feature.  This was a difficult choice.  With Windows 10 there's no consistent method for creating an e-mail and adding the flyer as an attachment.  We are supposed to use MAPI (Messaging Application Programming Interface), however, Microsoft's Windows 10 default E-mail client doesn't support MAPI and recent tests with Outlook and Thunderbird proved pointless.  Sometime it worked and sometimes it didn't.  Also, both Outlook Express and Windows Live Mail are no longer supported or available for download on Windows 10.  So for now, this feature is removed until I can discover a new method.

As always, registered users can upgrade for free.  Simply download and install the latest version.

This release represents a complete rewrite (including a new user interface) and a new, much sought after feature.

When I say sought after, it is something that I've been trying to code for several years. Always figured it was possible - and after finishing Perspective - BOOM...The solution hit me. This delayed the release a bit, so I could recode the wallpaper swapping engine as Perspective now renders directly to the window behind the desktop's icons (Using Direct2D for smooth animation).

What does this mean? In a nutshell, I can render the wallpaper using any one of the 26 slideshow transitions I've created (with more to come).

Check out Perspective's product page for more information and a video showing 13 of the 26 slideshow transitions!

This version adds new features listed below:

• Pan & Zoom
• Updated PDF Converter
• Revised Color Palette Chooser
• Revised Open Flyer Project Dialog
• Changes to Business Logo

Pan & Zoom

You can now zoom in and out of your real estate flyer design by using the mousewheel or clicking on the buttons located on the newly added status bar (see below).  You can also drag the flyer around the design canvas to verify your details (easier to read when zoomed).

Zoom Status bar

Zoomed in (68%)

Zoomed (100%) and Panned to left side

Updated PDF Converter

I've recoded the Image2PDF engine to handle larger JPEG Image files.  It also embeds listing META data into the resulting exported real estate flyer (see below).

Exported Real Estate Flyer - PDF Format with embedded META Data

Revised Color Palette Chooser

The color palette chooser now contains 84 named colors.  These colors have been specifically chosen because they work best with printed materials.  (see below)

Updated Color Palette Chooser

Revised Open Flyer Project Dialog

The new Open Flyer Dialog now displays a preview of your real estate flyer.  This makes it easier to choose a previously saved flyer project (see below).

Open Flyer Project Dialog - Displays Real Estate Flyer Preview

And finally, when possible you should use a PNG version of your real estate company's business logo.  PNG images support transparency and look better when layered on top of colored backgrounds (such as gradient fills).  Both the Realtor-MLS and EHO logos have been updated to PNG image format.

Among the latest development are:

• Explorer Shell Integration
• Multi-threaded directory scanning (fotoXplorer doesn't keep image info in the database)
• Multi-threaded resize & conversion tools
• Full support for Microsoft's WIC codecs
• Custom canvas colors (Normal View, Fullscreen & slideshow)
• Full screen viewing
• Slideshows
• and most important of all...Direct2D Hardware Accelerated Rendering

It's almost finished and there's a good chance I'll release an early-experience version (simple documentation only)

Below are some screen caps!

I'm still working on the update and it should be available for download soon.

Here are some screen caps

• Fixed 'Check for Updates' function.
• Added 'View/Edit Your Profile' to QuickStart Dialog (On startup)
• Added a note to 'My Information' tab on Options Dialog box.
• Reviewed MAPI code for E-mailing. 

The added note lets you know that while in 'Evaluation mode' Easy Realty Flyers will save your contact information, photo and business logo, but not use it when creating new flyers.  By default it will use the built in Christina Pennland Profile, photo and business logo.  This constraint is intentional as it allows you to try-before-you-buy, without simply giving away a fully-functional software application.

MAPI is integrated into Windows OS via e-mail clients.  Sometimes it doesn't always operate as described by Microsoft.  I'm looking at including a SMTP option where Easy Realty Flyers is responsible for sending e-mails (instead of using your current Windows based e-mail application).

As always, updates are free to registered users.  Simply download the latest build (2.0.15.477) and run the installer (no need to uninstall first).

There are some constraints in that Forums cannot be re-coded to be responsive (they use tables) but everything else seems to scale appropriately.

This update corrects a problem when creating a new flyer project  on Windows 8.1 or Windows 10.  Original testing didn't show this problem so I can only assume it was exposed when Windows (8.1 & 10) was updated.  This problem didn't exist on Windows 7 so...as always, fun with multiple versions of Windows!

Please download and install the latest version (Registered user can update for free!)

Many thanks to Vlad Constantinescu at http://win.softpedia.com for notifying me of this..gulp...bug!

With Easy Realty Flyers, real estate professionals can create, print (or e-mail) their own listing flyers without having to be desktop publishing experts.  Originally developed and published in 2006, Easy Realty Flyers 2015 has been completely redesigned utilizing the latest Windows imaging technologies.  A new rendering engine creates clean, business crisp real estate listing flyers with some new and exciting features (such as gradient filled theme templates).

Easy Realty Flyers Features:

• Simple, easy to use design.  Point-Click-Print.
• Form based.  No need to manually design and layout your listing flyers.
• WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get). Real-time preview window displays and automatically updates to reflect your design choices.
• One-Click E-mailing. Easy Realty Flyers creates the e-mail message and attaches the flyer as a PDF document.
• 11 designer theme templates, each supporting 1, 3 or 4 listing photos (a total of 33 theme templates).
• Choose from 55 vibrant colors and 100+ TrueType/OpenType fonts.

Unpack Photo Archives is designed to search your computer and perform in-place, batch extraction of photo collection archives stored in Zip and RAR format.

Some features include:

• In-place Extraction of Archive Photos from Zip & RAR Archives with 3 Levels of Photo Validation.
• Filters Unwanted Files & Folders (such as __MACOSX, .DS_STORE, TXT and NFO).
• Smart Extraction™ Automatically Determines Best Extraction Method (Extract to here.. or Extract to folder).
• Auto-Delete will remove archives upon successful processing.
• Auto-Rename converts & cleans up folder names.

Unpack Photo Archives can be downloaded now from here.

3-D Wallpaper PRO (Version 1.1.2014.24)

•     Fixed Issues with Shortcut Builder
•     Fixed Auto-Correct Folder Name
•     Compiled & Built using Visual Studio 2013
•     Updated UI to reflect new MFC Version

All product upgrades (new version) and revisions are free for registered users.

Please make sure to exit out of 3-D Wallpaper PRO before installing the update.

NOTE:

  There's no need to uninstall existing versions before installing the update.

3-D Wallpaper PRO (Build 1.1.2014.21)

• Correctly handles ESCAPE key (used to exit, which wasn't OK)
• Changed Drop-down selection style (to drop-list)
• Mapped F1 key to display Help System

getPHOTO() PRO (Build 2.0.2014.17)

• Mapped F1 key to display Help System

What's New?

This website has been completely re-engineered using the latest standards (HTML5 & CSS3) and I switched to PHP because it seems to be faster and more responsive than .net or any other server-side scripting languages.  I've also Bootstrapped it and incorporated some new features (such as the Help Desk and integrated Community Forums).

What's Updated?

Both getPHOTO() PRO and Perspective have updated and now include a drop-down menu with links to gdiObjects.com (Home page, Help Desk and Forums).  A Check for Updates feature is now built in to the software (available by clicking on the About button on each product).

I also spent a month adding featured and improving each product.  The Online Help System have been replaced with the traditional HTML Help File (*.chm) and included in each product's installer.

With 3-D Wallpaper PRO, I made some subtle changes to the Wallpaper Settings page.  I added a Border/Border Size feature when rendering desktop wallpapers.  It now correctly scales and crops full size landscape images.  The Glass Reflection feature can be configured independently for each photo orientation type (landscape | portrait).

A forum topic Your Thoughts has been added and I would appreciate your feedback & ideas on how to improve my software and website.

Over the next few days/weeks I'll be updating the Twitter feed, so please follow gdiObjects for the latest news and updates.