"Grey Image" Problem Fixed in Wickr

My Flickr widget, Wickr, has had this problem where parts of image(s) being displayed are "greyed-out" as if the image is being displayed before has completed its download from the net. The problem is that the images is not from the net, they are from the hard disk. The cause of this problem is the fade animation used on the image. It only happens when the fade animation effect is used on multiple images, or big images. I've tried to get around this problem by creating my own fade function instead of using the built-in fade function in Konfabulator, but it resulted in the same greyed-out image. I've even tried a 2-step fade where the image goes to 50%, then 100% opacity, and even then the problem still persists.

The "grey image" problem.

I posted this problem on the Konfabulator forums, and at first they didn't understand the problem and said that the image hasn't completed its download from the internet, but I keep telling them that it is from the hard disk, not the net. I was somewhat miffed at the fact that they thought I was a n00b at widget making. I told them I know my stuff, and gave instructions on how to recreate the problem on Wickr, and finally the problem is recognized as a bug and has been reported. It's a Windows-only bug and doesn't occur on Macs.

So the "fix" to the problem was to do away with the fade animation altogether. It's a small aesthetic blow to the widget, but a necessary one to maintain a high degree of usability. In the course of fixing the problem, I also decided to update the widget for Kanofabulator 4.0. So, Wickr now has a dock icon, and its id is a UUID. The update also requires me to address the change in the onMouseMove function in Konfabulator 4.0, as it is not the same as in previous versions. onMouseMove is now called whenever the mouse moves over the object, not when the mouse drags over the object. For the drag action, they introduced onMouseDrag.

Wickr dock icon.

I plan to overhaul the whole widget sometime in the future as some parts of the code are really dated, and Flickr have changed their API quite a bit of too. I don't know when I'll get around to doing it though.

Introducing RIGGLATIONS

I've finally finished my Digg widget. It's called Rigglations. It's a widget that shows the relationships between Digg members. It's quite useful if you're trying to figure out who's been rigging Digg. Get it? Rigging, .. Rigglations. This is only an early release. It's half done. I'll be adding more cool features soon. I hope the widget gets frontpaged on Digg. That would awesome. If I do get frontpaged, I don't know whether my hosting service provider can handle it.

So now I have 2 widgets floating around on the internets. Wickr is doing okay. The usage data I get from Flickr shows light but steady traffic. I've been wanting to make a To Do List widget that incorporates Remember The Milk for a long time now. Maybe I'll get around to making it soon.

Digg Widget Delay

Well I won't be able to finish my Digg widget on time. Some core design flaws forced me to rewrite a lot of code, and not to mention the all important laziness factor. The widget has 2 main parts. I'm undecided on whether to finish both parts before releasing it, which will take longer, or to release it after finishing the first part. Since it's being delayed, I might as well finish up the whole thing, but if I did that, it may take too much time that I'll miss the "buzz" period where Digg users will be looking at new Digg apps due to the Digg API contest. But if I release it not fully featured during the buzz period, the widget won't be as useful and won't attract many users. So, the ideal situation is for me to finish up the whole thing in time for the said period. Good luck with THAT.

Working on a Digg widget

I've been working on a new Digg widget for the past few weeks. I plan to release on the 16/17th of this month. I'm not eligible for the Digg API Contest, but I hope to release it as soon as the contest reaches its closing date so that I don't get accused of ripping another person's idea. Even though I won't be surprised if someone else came up with a similar concept for an app, as it is not mind-blowing idea. However, I think the implementation and its usability is the app's strength. I can't say too much about what it does, but I think it'll one kick-ass widget. Hey, I can't help it, I'm Mr. Vain.

I may not have the time to include all the features that I want to within this week, so I'll release a version with only the core functionality at version 1.0. A few weeks after that, I'll probably update it to include the remaining features.