LATEST: 5-28-07
1. SVDhelper_Basic.exe - only wallpaper updates (laggy)
2. SVDhelper_FastWallpaper.exe - faster wallpaper updates by restarting IconX
3. SVDhelper_DesktopFolders.exe - separate desktop folderes for each VD


SVDhelper - Let's Stardock Virtual Desktop update the wallpaper when running with IconX.

Intro:
Stardock's VD doesn't really change the system wallpaper - it just paints over the desktop with a different image.  The problem is that the new images won't be seen if you're running IconX.  IconX reads the real system wallpaper and uses that image to paint directly over VD's images.  Quick Fix: make VD's wallpaper be the real system wallpaper.  IconX will read see this new system wallpaper and use it to paint the desktop.

Instructions:
Start up this app.  Click hide to make the window disappear.  To show the window again, just double-click the exe file (this will unhide the currently running app rather than create a new copy).  Currently only compatible with bitmaps.

Source code is included. It's doubtful that I will make any updates. So, do what you will with it. If you add in the jpeg support, let me know - I want that too. Enjoy.

Background Info:
Stardock Virtual Desktop (as of v2.0) will broadcast registered message events whenever it changes the wallpaper ("SDVDesktops, WallChange").  The actual wallpaper information is stored in the registry: "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Stardock\BandVWM".  The two subkeys that interest us are LastWallpaper and LastWallpaperMode.  The corresponding entries for Windows are in "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop".  The subkeys here are "Wallpaper" and "WallpaperStyle".  All this app does: Some reading/writing of registries and sending out a notification to Windows to udpate itself.  In fact, it's really just a modified "Hello, World" app that the VisualStudio project wizard cooked up for me.

Bugs, etc.:
BMP support only. If you configure JPG in Virtual Desktop, they won't work. VD will usually return your wallpaper to its original state when it exits.  This app negates that functionallity.  Wallpaper is lagged 2-4 seconds behind when you change desktops.  I think it has to do with how often IconX tries to reread the wallpaper settings in the registry.

-db 5/18/2007


Big Update: I fixed a couple bugs and added a few features.  You can now have separate icons & folders for each desktop.  File/Desktop Management is very simple: the Virtual Desktop folders sit on your real Desktop (named "VirtualDesktopXX").  As you switch between virtualdesktops, SVDhelper changes the XP Desktop Special Folder assignment (like TweakUI).  When you quit SVDhelper, it will restore your original Desktop (as well as your original wallpaper).

These virtual Desktop folders will work with IconX, but there is a big drawback: IconX will reset the icon positions when you switch in/out of each desktop.  I've tried making separate IconX config files for each desktop -- but IconX seems to be keeping a copy of its config file in memory and reseting icon positions when files appear/disappear.  The only workable solution would be to unload iconx, switch desktops, copy in the corresponding config file, then reload iconx....  I may have an implementation of this put together one of these days.

Safety tips: Download and install TweakUI or some similar utility that lets you change the location of your Desktop directory.  When you start up SVDhelper, it will try to reset your real Desktop directory if it is still assigned to a virtual desktop.

-db 5/22/2007


Okay. The final piece of the puzzle is in place. SVDhelper will now store separate desktop icons per virtualdesktop and will also retain their icon positions when used with IconX. This last feature is a little more brute force than the stuff in the last two updates. In between virtualdesktop switches, I am unloading IconX, replacing the user.icons with a corresponding copy for the active virtualdesktop, and then reloading IconX. As a side benefit to loading/unloading IconX, the wallpapers will now update immediately.  SVDhelper, pretty much does everything I wanted it to do, so this will be my last update... Some things other people could work on are JPEG support, ActiveX hooks for scripting with DesktopX, etc. More than likely, it would probably be easier to just wait for the next version of ObjectDesktop.

A few specifics: I hardcoded SVDhelper to run IconX from c:\program files. If you have it installed elsewhere, you'll have to load it up manually. If you have it running, SVDhelper will figure out it's fullpath and restart it between desktops.

Some things to remember: Download TweakUI! You will need it to fix your desktop folder assignment if your system crashes. Also - you can backup the "user.icons" files in "Local Settings\Application Data\Stardock\IconX". That way, you can save your desktop icon setups in case they get hosed at any point. SVDhelper already makes one backup by putting a ".1" at the end of the filenames. This is only helpful for the very last virtualdesktop switch you made.

-db 5/23/2007


Several bugs related to changing desktops and turning off wallpapers in SVD were fixed. Note: Virtual DesktopFolders will not work unless you turn on wallpapers in SVD. This is how SVDhelper knows which VD is currently active.

-db

