AlexRdZaik
For the past few weeks, I’ve been rewriting the VirtualDJ “Pro Default” skin, adjusting the size of panels and elements to make a scalable version possible.
It started as a personal project, but it came about after someone asked me if I could make VirtualDJ look good on both their 13" MacBook and their 50" studio monitor.
I’ve tried to keep all the original elements and the basic layout intact, although in some areas I kept only the elements I considered most important.
The skin still uses the original definitions from the default skin, so everything works correctly. Most of my work has been focused on reorganizing and optimizing the elements so they can be used at different sizes and resolutions.
If anyone is interested in suggesting ideas for what the skin should include, I’m open to hearing them. If something interesting comes out of this project, I may consider publishing it.
Let me know what you think!
Any ideas?
It started as a personal project, but it came about after someone asked me if I could make VirtualDJ look good on both their 13" MacBook and their 50" studio monitor.
I’ve tried to keep all the original elements and the basic layout intact, although in some areas I kept only the elements I considered most important.
The skin still uses the original definitions from the default skin, so everything works correctly. Most of my work has been focused on reorganizing and optimizing the elements so they can be used at different sizes and resolutions.
If anyone is interested in suggesting ideas for what the skin should include, I’m open to hearing them. If something interesting comes out of this project, I may consider publishing it.
Let me know what you think!
Any ideas?
Inviato 5 hours ago
DJ VinylTouch
My number 1 gripe with the default skin is the size of elements and text (it is too small to read, and there are a few things that could be re-arrange,/don't need to be immediately shown, e.g. the Effects section in the deck, which already has representation in the Effect rack in the performance variant (why the duplication?)). I had already started working on adjusting it for my needs but stopped as life got in the way.
If you are going to make this available/really work on this (and maintain updates coming in from the dev team themselves, e.g. the stabilizer additions) and address those problems - I'll be first onboard to try it.
If you are going to make this available/really work on this (and maintain updates coming in from the dev team themselves, e.g. the stabilizer additions) and address those problems - I'll be first onboard to try it.
Inviato 2 hours ago
DJ VinylTouch
One thing I did immediately was lift your broadcast/record settings button from your Vanced GT skin and put it into the mixer rack for the Performance vertical variant.
Another thing I did was fix the behavior with the racks following the decks (the effect rack, for e.g., did not switch properly with deck inversion/selection).
Another thing I did was fix the behavior with the racks following the decks (the effect rack, for e.g., did not switch properly with deck inversion/selection).
Inviato 2 hours ago
AlexRdZaik
The advantage of skins that are based on an existing VirtualDJ design is that they don't really "age badly." They don't require constant updates; usually, a couple of adjustments are enough whenever necessary, since everything is already there in one form or another.
For example, my old Haunting Pro skin barely needs any corrections, although in that case I would prefer to rewrite the code from scratch. Another example would be the Fruit skin, which, after several years, is only now starting to need some corrections.
Custom skins, on the other hand, become more complicated over time because you end up with users saying things like, "I need this like it is in the Pro skin," or "I want information on the jogs like in the default skin," and so on.
If the original design was never intended to include elements from the default skin exactly as they are, it can become chaotic trying to find a way to integrate them and make them fit into a design they were never meant for.
That doesn't happen with skins that are based on the original layout, because users already have the same elements available in the default skin, along with additional features. As a result, they don't feel like they're "missing something."
They simply look for things where they remember them being. In some cases, something might look slightly different, but it remains easy to understand and use.
Keeping this project up to date should be relatively easy. I'm writing and organizing the code in a way that prevents elements from being scattered randomly throughout the XML, while still preserving the original foundation of the elements, colors, icons, and so on.
The default skin itself has barely needed any changes since it was released alongside VirtualDJ 2020, so updates shouldn't be a problem. Even if the official development team were to plan a completely new interface design, it would be relatively easy to update this skin to adopt the new appearance while maintaining its scalable style.
For example, my old Haunting Pro skin barely needs any corrections, although in that case I would prefer to rewrite the code from scratch. Another example would be the Fruit skin, which, after several years, is only now starting to need some corrections.
Custom skins, on the other hand, become more complicated over time because you end up with users saying things like, "I need this like it is in the Pro skin," or "I want information on the jogs like in the default skin," and so on.
If the original design was never intended to include elements from the default skin exactly as they are, it can become chaotic trying to find a way to integrate them and make them fit into a design they were never meant for.
That doesn't happen with skins that are based on the original layout, because users already have the same elements available in the default skin, along with additional features. As a result, they don't feel like they're "missing something."
They simply look for things where they remember them being. In some cases, something might look slightly different, but it remains easy to understand and use.
Keeping this project up to date should be relatively easy. I'm writing and organizing the code in a way that prevents elements from being scattered randomly throughout the XML, while still preserving the original foundation of the elements, colors, icons, and so on.
The default skin itself has barely needed any changes since it was released alongside VirtualDJ 2020, so updates shouldn't be a problem. Even if the official development team were to plan a completely new interface design, it would be relatively easy to update this skin to adopt the new appearance while maintaining its scalable style.
Inviato an hour ago
AlexRdZaik
I'll send you an email with the skin so you can try it out and let me know if you find it more usable and easier to read than the default skin.
Inviato an hour ago
DJ VinylTouch
That sounds good - thanks for all of the efforts 🍺
Inviato 9 minutes ago