Somehow I get the feeling you've written one or two tiny programs from scratch with simple skinning capabilities included from the get-go and you've decided that it must be equally simple to add skinning anywhere and everywhere.
The only thing you're right about is it was a tiny application, however, the skinning was dynamic (I could create a new window and add a few controls to it without having to change the skinning engine and the new window would still be skinned), the only problem with it was that it didn't handle invalid skins (eg: supplying a number when a filepath is required) very well.
I can assure you that's not the case.
I can assure you it is.
As for picture windows, they actually add to the functionality of mIRC, so I'd hardly put them in the same boat with skinning.
I agree, that was a bad example.
You seem to be implying that mIRC is an ugly blemish on your work-of-art desktop and that skinning must be added to protect your virgin eyes from it's hideousness.
You couldn't be more wrong...
Whereas I think it looks fine as it is and does it's job well, and would be far better served by becoming a program that looks fine and does it's job very well.
I think it looks fine too, I don't even have a problem with the mIRC interface.
I just like to load skins or themes sometimes.
