I'm not sure if a single massive sample project is the way to go. I was able to load the project and recompile it with no problem. But due to the size, it was sluggish to load. And I still have not been able to locate the main form for the sample project...
The learning curve is also an issue that has been echoed by other forum members here. You have what seems to be a well thought out group of objects. But the help file really needs more walkthroughs.
My main interest is control functionality, not application skinning. I prefer for the OS theme or WindowBlinds to handle look and feel. Skinning in an ASP.NET application is important. I think it is less so in a desktop app. I suspect some developers who use the controls will not make up their own themes and will just use the default 'Telerik' style.
The controls were not installed by default into my toolbox. It would be nice if a "Telerik WinForms Controls" toolbox group was created and populated.
Seems like most of the control fonts default to MS Sans Serif. Ugh. I suggest going with Verdana or Tahoma for a more up to date look.
In the end, I'm not sure if this suite is going to be right for my project. I heard of the suite through a slick, multi-page ad in MSDN. And I thought it would be a low impact, light set of Vista-style controls that are not native to the Framework.
But it seems like the controls are more similar to other big suites on the market. It is a nice package, but I might end up using only 10% of the controls and still have to ship 7.5 MB of runtime assemblies. And isn't the market filled with dock, toolstrip and panel controls?
I'm going to continue evaluating the controls. And I will keep watching the website for updates. But at this point I'm on the fence.
Thanks for listening.
-- Bryan Kinkel