Description

This clean, minimalist theme relies solely on color and intensity to convey a contact's status. The basic assumption here is that it's a nearly effortless cognitive process to read a word and comprehend its color at the same time.

Explanation

This Contact List Style consists of a Color Theme and a List Layout that are designed to be used in tandem with each other.

The idea is that you should be able to look at a name on the contact list and instantly know all the relevant information. Rather than requiring the user to look for a name and then look for a status icon, this theme saves a step by eliminating status icons entirely.

Color conveys the basic status categories. Intensity conveys activity vs. inactivity. (See below for a nifty legend!) By using a deep black background, the color & intensity are very easily recognized.

Looks Good With...

The associated List Layout removes the extraneous icons and provides layout settings that, IMO, help make the text and status information easier to read. You may, of course, wish to tweak it to your liking. I also strongly recommend using this theme with the "borderless" or the "group bubbles" window style, as pictured in the screen shot.

The default font is "Eurostile," which you can get a copy of by downloading Universal theme. (BriteLite also works well with other "narrow-stroke" fonts, like Courier New.)

Special Thanks

I must give credit to Diatribe, creator of the Universal theme, which was used as a basic starting point. I also wish to thank the creators of everyone's favorite childhood toy, from which the name of this theme was inspired.

Color

Green: Available/just signed on
Grey: Unavailable
Orange: Typing
Yellow: Message waiting
Red: User just signed off

Intensity

Bright: User is active
Faded: User is idle
Really faded: User is not even online (or is using "mobile" feature)

Changes

0.4 = Mobile contacts now have lesser intensity.
0.3.1 = Files now install properly when double-clicking.
0.3 = Initial release

Images

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Current Version:	0.4
Last Updated:	02/21/09