If it was done on the client side (as Brad suggested, as an implemented feature in a skin browser) then it wouldn't add any load on the server, and it would be equally cool.
The main point being to avoid downloading a huge theme featuring 10 applications when one only has 3 of those apps.
Now that I think about it, it would even help the web site as it would reduce the bandwidth usage.
And, please do NOT interpret this as a critic, Convergence is the software a lot of people have been asking for ever since the days of skinz.org. It's a huge achievement and I have to congratulate Stardock for the initiative. I am only giving suggestions to make it even more cool.
Once again, way to go Stardock!

Hmm, I was thinking server side but I guess it could be done on the client. We would just have to store all the invididual files separately as well as a skin suite. Download the individual files and once they are downloaded then package them as a whole.

Now a problem I see with that, lets say you download a suite and only have two apps. You then send that file to a friend of yours. But he has 5 apps. He doesn't get to see the whole suite because he received the file from you. So at that time the Suite has been modified. (just thinking out of the box)

nice soo how to download it ??

Definately sounds interesting, I can't wait to give it a try.

Call me disgruntled, but why am I not surprised it's part of OD?

stardock just keeps rolling out the software wonders! this will make it easyier for all you people out there with suites of skins available to distribute them as one simple pack to download and then apply! and to beaker: its part of OD right now cause it's in ALPHA stage of development... it still has lots of work to go (like a bunch of the buttons in the program do absolutely nothing right now)

Personaly I don't thunk I will ever download a skin pack, since I'm sure they will be a huge download and include application skins I have no interest at all for.
But Wheer the software is interesting is in hte ability for the users to create their own suites from skins here and there and to apply it in one click.

This is why I was suggesting a way where you could choose the skins you want and make your own customized skin pack.
T-Man, Brad, this is the way I see it: In the skin browser software (that could in fact be integrated directly into Convergence itself, that would be awsome), as one would browse around, he would just have to press on a "Add to my Skinpack" button (would work the same as a shopping cart for Ecommerce sites) and continue to browse for skins; he could choose skins that are from different authors and never originally intended to be part of a same suite, and that's the cool thing, the user would design his own suite. Once he's done choosing his skins, he would just click on a "Download my Skinpack" and all the skins are then downloaded one after the other, then they are zipped into a single Skinpack, and then applied to the computer! Bam!
Pretty cool, no? I think it would be awsome.
Anyway, this is my vision of how Convergence could eventually evolve.

Stardock's desktop enhancements are all part of Object Desktop.

You can make your own skin packs on your own system. It's just not integrated into WinCustomize. You just download the skins you like, run Convergence, and put the skins together.

Will there be "light" versions of your Stardock software - distributed as freeware, for those of us who aren't able/willing to dish out money for these things? I know shareware vs. freeware has been an issue in the desktop customization community for a while, I'm just looking for a clear answer.

There will probably be a shareware version of it eventually but it would be limited to only support Stardock's software.

"There will probably be a shareware version of it eventually but it would be limited to only support Stardock's software." You are too much, Brad. You'll support your own apps for free, but support for apps you didn't develop will cost money...you're becoming the new M$.

I know I'm going to be in the minority on this one, but I still think it needs to be said.

"There will probably be a shareware version of it eventually but it would be limited to only support Stardock's software." You are too much, Brad. You'll support your own apps for free, but support for apps you didn't develop will cost money...you're becoming the new M$.

I know I'm going to be in the minority on this one, but I still think it needs to be said.

Please excuse the double post...new mouse.

Well hey Beaker, feel free to write your own program. You want people to spend hundreds of hours on software and just give it to you for free? Sheesh. What do you think pays for this site and the development of all this software?