Obsolete Skins

Hi Peter,

The skins, which are now marked as obsolete, will be removed from the Telerik.Web.UI assembly with the Q2 2008 release. We do not encourage you to use these skins in new web applications any more, however, they will be available for download from our website and you will be free to continue using them.

We carried out a skin survey, which showed that the Mac skin is the least used one. On the other hand, the Default2006 skin is rather old and quite similar to the Telerik skin, so no need to have both. The Telerik skin will be modified and polished for Q2 2008 (for example some green elements will be recolored to fit a greater variety of web application designs) and in our opinion, will successfully replace the Default2006 skin. By the way, some other old skins will be beatified too.

Best wishes,
Dimo
the Telerik team

I was using Default2006, so I tried the other skins, and honeslty none of them are good candidates for lighter web page designs.  Vista isOK, but has transparent icon problems when over dark colors (see buttons on top of image dialog)
The Telerik skin is close to Default2006 like you say, but it has little green bits poking out everywhere, and other floureshes.  Default2006, while somewhat dull, fits bet for our light colored screens. 
What are our options after you pull it from the dll?  Can we ship the skin files after that?

Hello Christopher,

Sure, after Q2 2008 you are free to continue using the Default2006 skin as an external skin in all your applications.

Regards,
Dimo
the Telerik team

I'd just like to add to this thread really, to say its a shame that the Default 2006 skin is being removed from the controls. I feel its one of the better, cleaner skins that fit in with any colour scheme and although the Telerik skin is similar it's green highlights wouldn't suit many sites apart from this one as its part of your corporate colour scheme.

Apart from those two, the others seem more based on a blue palette and there will be a gap for a simple, silver and grey theme.

I understand we can use external skinning if need be, but I would imagine future updates to your products and the introduction of new controls will probably make this unworkable.

In short, I'd really like to see the Default 2006 skin remain.

Hi Rob,

We understand your point of view and as stated earlier, I assure you that we will do our best to provide a good replacement for the Default2006 skin by modifying the Telerik skin and/or providing a new gray skin.

Best wishes,
Dimo
the Telerik team

+1 more vote for the Default2006 skin. 

It is sad that Telerik has decided to discontinue support for the most neutral skin they offer.

Upgrading to Prometheus should not dramatically change the look and feel of my application, and if skins are being removed or changed dramatically, it means I need to figure out how to port the old skins that we use in our application to the new framework.  This is work I would have expected Telerik would provide for all older skins.

Hello Matt,

When migrating to RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX, you will be free to continue using Default2006 as a non-embedded skin. We will provide it for download on our website.

Greetings,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Dimo,

But will you continue to update it to reflect future new css classes?  Will downloading a new skin for each control be one more step in the upgrade process?

Thanks,

Matt

Hi Matt,

We will update only the embedded skins.

All the best,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Hi, I just want to add my voice to the "Default2006" supporters.

I'm looking for a skin that is :
1- Neutral in its color scheme
Default skin is out! (what were you thinking for RadGrid, RadWindow, RadMenu?)
Telerik is out (RadMenu)

2- Compact
Telerik skin is out (RadCalendar)
Default is out (RadGrid)
Vista is out (RadWindow)

3- Will not clash with non skinned controls like regular ASP controls...
Default is out..
Vista is out (RadComboBox)

The only consistent skin seemed to be Default2006. I'd rather you remove the "Default" skin and rename "Default2006" back to "Default" as it was before...

Telerik does not seem to be an option (too greenish), Vista is close, but inconsistent...

Thanks for considering this,

Dominic

I agree... you need to have categories: skins for business applications, skins for web 2.0 application (whatever that means) and crazy looking skins. Right now most are blue, the one neutral skin (default 2006) that could be used for business apps is gone. I think what I'm trying to say is that we need variety, and right now they look like they've been done by the same person (they have a similar feel to them).

I think Telerik put this up to a vote at one point. 

Could we have a re-vote please?

I agree with every one here. I am using Default2006. If we have to use the skin as non-embedded, then we can't use the caching , compression features. And if you change any class name then I have find the class name and change it. In the past you guys have changed the class name. So I am voting for Default2006 to stay!

Hello,

Thank you for sharing your opinion.

Please be assured that we are keeping a close eye on this discussion and will do our best to provide a comprehensive set of skins for Q2 2008.

Kind regards,
Dimo
the Telerik team

I also agree with the other users in this thread. I think the skins available are pretty bad. The default skin is hideous. The look of the controls is hurting Telerik. If I show someone examples of the controls, I preface it by saying, "Don't worry, we can change the look.".  The Default2006 skin was the best one. In the 2008 release, the Default2006 skin changed for the worse. For instance the RadWindow Default2006 look is not the same as before. It has a ugly little window icon in the top left corner instead of the simple three little circles of before.

I highly recommend coming out with some new subtle compact skins. Be sure to use a good light monochrome version as the default.

The Telerik controls are great examples of programming, but it is eye-candy that sells. Just look at the popularity of ExtJS and Apple products;-)

Alexander,

I've never seen ExtJS before. After going through their demos I have to agree with you. I think the name of the game is subtlety. Just have a look at this page: http://www.telerik.com/DEMOS/ASPNET/Prometheus/Editor/Examples/Default/DefaultCS.aspx
Is it me or the editor sticks out like a sore thumb in the whole page? I think it's a combination of color (that gray is way too strong) and the fact that it tries to be 3D. The buttons and the toolbar waste a lot of space by being overly rounded and using too much bevel.

Hello Alexander,

I am sorry to hear that the embedded skins do not meet your personal aesthetic requirements. In such cases creating a custom skin remains as an option.

As for the window top-left corner icon - this is a background image, which can be removed by overriding the skin CSS like this:

div.radwindow_Default2006  table.titlebarcontrols  td  a.windowicon
{
     background: .... ;
}


Regards,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Ditto-- please consider keeping the Default2006 skin.

It's apart from the others, in that; it's not too dark, too blue, or too flashy.

Hi David,

I will suggest that we post the new versions of the Telerik skin and the successor of the Default2006 skin before the Q2 release for feedback and the final decision will come afterwards.

Thank you all for sharing your opinion.

All the best,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Hi all,

Please take a look at the following blog post, which reveals our new/modified skins for Q2 2008:

Q2 ASP.NET Skins

Comments are welcome.

All the best,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Do you have a guide for converting ASP.NET style control skins (e.g., ClassicBlue for RadTabStrip) to the new css format that is used in ASP.NET AJAX Controls?

I have a site that uses an old supported style and I'm having a hard time converting to use with RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX

Thanks.

Hello woody,

Yes, here it is:

http://www.telerik.com/help/aspnet-ajax/appearance-migrating-skins.html


If you are looking for migration instructions for other controls as well, please refer to the respective control's help articles and if we do not have such instructions, let us know and we will advise.


Sincerely yours,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Dimo,

Thanks for the post linking to the new previews for the skins. Its nice to know that you realise that there is a need for a simple theme.

I like the new Gray theme, although it still has a little Web 2.0 about it with the gradients. The Default 2006 skin was very understated and very easy to fit in with the look and feel of an existing site with no hassle. I feel, making the gradient a little less prominent on the new Gray theme would do the same and widen its appeal.

I mentioned it previously, but I believe the controls should compliment the design of a site rather than dictate it.

Obviously this is just based on one image,. but thats my thoughts anyway!

Rob

I'm with Rob, there's too much gradient in the gray theme, trying too much to make it look 3D. We also need more screen shots from the theme; just one doesn't do it justice. Also, I hope that blue on gray for the black skin was a test because that looks horrible.

I also agree with Rob, too much gradient in the new Gray skin.

Hi,

Here are some more insights from the new Gray skin.


Regards,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Nice, Grey looks good to me. 
A faint blue version of that would be nice too...
Obviously they can't please all customers at once.  However, getting rid of Default2006 was a bit drastic I think.  This new one I think is a suitable replacement.

I actually like a mild gradient.  But that gradient is more like two tones, light gray and dark gray.  The line between the two colors is too harsh for my liking.  On the grid, it looks like there is a sharp line at the top of all the lower-case letters.  If that were more gradual, I'd like this a lot more. 

Thanks for the updated image.

Overall thats a pleasant skin and to me the nicest that is available but I do agree with the previous post in that the white gradient background is very distinctive and a more subtle gradient would be better.

Ive also noticed a tendency in the newer skins to make things bigger, and more blocky meaning taking more screen space up. This is very much the case in the rad toolbar skins.

Again, I know these are works in progress and we can reskin to fit our personal needs (As we oftern do) and you cant please everyone but those are my thoughts :)

Rob

Here are my 2 cents (no particular order)

1) The border around most of the controls needs to be lighter. The shade used in the outer border for the Window sample is about right. If the border is too noticeable it tends to distract from the content it tries to encompass.
2) I'm looking at the Calendar control: The title bar is a bit too tall in my opinion. The same goes for the Window, those icons are way too big.
3) Since the gradients are too obvious / strong there are some contrast issues, but these should go away once the gradient is adjusted. For example with the PanelBar there isn't sufficient contrast for "Item 3" or for "What to do, Where to go..." The same for the drop down, there should be more emphasis on the text inside the drop down, i.e. more contrast. Having a light gray for "view items 1-200" is OK though. The header for the drop down "Header 1" is a bit too tall, if you make it the same height as the actual drop down or the footer I think it would look better.
4) The dark gray for the scheduler and grid are too heavy. If we use these in a site that doesn't have that dark gray background somewhere else it will look out of place. I think the Default2006 had it right in this case.

Thanks.

I have to agree with the "gradient" issue of the gray skin, but the height of the title bars as mentioned by Peter is a more important issue for me. Try to keep it compact as some users will still have a crappy 1024x768 resolution...

My biggest concern when I try to integrate Telerik controls into an existing application is to be able to gradually incorporate them without breaking the look and feel of the application. If the skin is too flashy, it clashes with the rest and forces me to delay the integration until I can change (and retest) all the UI at once... hence the Default 2006 skin...

That being said, I do appreciate the public consultation for the new skins.

Dominic.

Hi all,

Thank you for your feedback. We will consider all suggestions and modify the new Gray skin, according to the ones we accept. We will change that sharp gradient for sure.

Thanks once again for your involvement.

Best wishes,
Dimo
the Telerik team

One more voice for the default2006 skin.   In the radpanel, the telerik skin is so flat you can't tell the parent bar from sub items. 

Hi all,

The new Gray skin has been modified to look more like the obsolete Default2006 skin, as per your request. You can see it in action in our latest "Futures" release:

RadControls for ASP.NET AJAX - Q2 2008 Futures


Greetings,
Dimo
the Telerik team

Thanks for the update,

The gray skin is marked as "Obsolete" in RadCalendar, I'm sure that's just a minor confusion.

I've put together a "montage" of the current Gray skin side by side with the previous one you showed us and the Default2006 skin. (sadly, attachments don't seem to be allowed in this thread... :-( )

RadWindow:
 - Title bar is still too big, matter of fact, it's bigger than it was in the last preview.
 - The gray border is too prominent.

RadCalendar:
  - Good, but big when compared to Default2006

RadScheduler:
   - The title bar still has the dark gray. In fact, it's even darker...

RadGrid:
   - The selected style is too dark, lighter was better as in the last preview and Default2006.

RadTabStrip:
   - The gradient is still too prominent, especially since the biggest transition occurs right in the middle of the text.

Overall, it's an improvement, but I will still miss the Default2006.

Hope this helps,

Dominic.

Hello Dominic,

The Gray thumb for RadCalendar is fixed now, thank you.

As for the skin itself - well, yes, it is not exactly the same as Default2006 and it should not be. When creating the Gray skin, we tried to make a skin with a modern look, which is a little more usable than Default2006 and has more contrast.

As with all other skins, you are free to modify it by using some custom CSS rules together with the embedded skin, use the old Default2006 skin as a non-embedded skin, or created a custom skin based on one (or both) of these skins.
 

Kind regards,
Dimo
the Telerik team

In the panelbar, the gray does not see quite right.  One, it changes the color of the selection when the parent is clicked, but when child is selected, the parent color returns to normal.  Very inconsistent looking.   Also, the colors that distinguish the parent from the child are too subtle and hard to distinguish.

I know Telerik is tired of hearing this, but it is still NOT a good replacement for Default2006!

Hi Clayton,

Thank you for your feedback regarding the Gray skin. We have fixed the states - if you need the css file, you can find it attached to this post; your Telerik points have been updated.

The Default2006 skin will be available as an external skin, so any designs that currently use it can upgrade at a small cost.

Sincerely yours,
Alex
the Telerik team

Hi guys,

I was wondering, if some users would have made new skins for all components, would telerik consider adding these skins to the embedded ones?

Given that these skins are of the highest quality and not that similar to any current skins of course.

Then these designers could be put in the loop, so when you design new components you could give them heads up so they could skin it. Or you could simply take over the skin once it was accepted. The second option is probably a smarter way.

Anyone who would succesfully submit a skin, meaning telerik liked it and decided to adopt it, would then simply receive a predetermined amount of telerik points.

Regards,
-DJ-

Hi all,

Based on all your feedback we have decided to keep Default2006 skin in the assembly. It seems a lot of people are still using this skin in their applications and have showed concern that it will be removed. Therefore, for all existing applications we will continue to support Default2006 as we have done so far but we strongly recommend using the new Gray skin for all new development.

We encourage people who have custom skins for RadControls to share it with the community and we have awarded telerik points to everyone who has made any contribution either in the forums or code library. We still have not added any customer's skins as embedded but anything that is liked by the community will definitely be included in the assembly.

Please, do not hesitate to share any skin customizations you have made - they will be highly appreciated by your fellow developers using RadControls and your efforts will definitely be rewarded.

Regards,
Ivo
the Telerik team

Thank you!

Also, the 3rd party skins idea is awesome. Let's see what kind of artists we have among us :)

You said the Mac skin will be available for download from the site. I downloaded all the different packages available under the Skin Exchange Program but none of them contain the Mac skin. I was using the Mac skin and now that I have upgraded to Q2 2008 it's gone. Please help.

Hello Jessica,

The Mac and Default2006 skins are now available for download at

http://www.telerik.com/skins/

Best wishes,
Dimo
the Telerik team