TEKNIDERMY - ISSUE 7: November/December 2001

The Birth of Pixtudio
by migellito

For those involved with skin design, Treetog and Alexandrie are
names you've been familiar with for a long time. What isn't so familiar
is the new direction in which they're taking their gui design talents. While
continuing to post skins for everyone at the sites throughout the
community, they've begun making skins for sale as well.

The site itself is a showcase of excellent web design skills. It's
straightforward and intutive, yet remains unique and interesting. Among
the many sites which serve in part as online portfolios, it stands out
as an excellent model for webmasters.

In addition to offering examples of the sites and applications to
which these two have lent their talents, expanded skin suites are
offered for sale. The fee garners a full suite with graphics that show
intensive hours of work beyond that in most skins.

Will we begin seeing deluxe skin suites for sale elsewhere? I for one believe that will mark the true success and acceptance of skinning - when not only the
applications necessary for gui designs to work, but the very skins
themselves become valuable enough to support a viable career.

Tek: You are two of the most prominent names in Windows skinning. What
made you decide to join forces in Pixtudio?

Alexandri: It was not a real skinning decision. It was web site side.
We already made some skins together, but one day Renato came and told me
Jorge Coelho wanted a web site. So I asked Renato if he would like to
make a web site with me. He hates html, but he loves graphics, and then
we decided to join our efforts in everything :)

Tek: How do you split the duties for doing the graphics for the site?

Alexandri: Well 95% Renato ;)

treetog: Well, we have been working together since the end of last
year. We became very close friends and we discovered that we had too
many things in common. Example:, we would like to find jobs on the
graphic design area, but in our countries it is very hard, because we
don't have history in the area, so we decided to try to work by our own,
then the Pixtudio site idea came up.

Alexandri: We have to say that our story is a long story. Take my
resume and his resume - you will get a sort of resume ;)

Tek: How long were the two of you working on Pixtudio before it went
online?

Alexandri: Hmmm - since the end of July.

treetog: Yup, around 2 months to launch it.

Alexandri: We decided to join our efforts after Jorge's new web site
looks.

Tek: That's impressive preparation. It shows in the site as well. Was
there a conscious effort to make it a 'showpiece' to encourage
web-design jobs?

treetog: Sure! this is our main goal on Pixtudio, so we thought we
should make it kinda "eye-candy".

Tek: Why did you decide not to use Flash?

Alexandri: We are not familiar enough with Flash, but time will come.
We can make some nice things, but simple things.

treetog: I'm not a big Flash fan too. =/

Alexandri: Me either.

Tek: Any specific reasons?

Alexandri: Often gives a cold impression. A lot of animation that uses
flash has this problem.

treetog: I'm kind of old fashioned boy.

Tek: :)

Tek: Is all of your work available on the site?

Alexandri: Hmmm no, still missing some. 2D, 3D and some hired skins.
Logos too.

treetog: I think that mine are 95% there, I just didn't upload some
old (and crappy) NextStart themes.

Alexandri: I lost some of my old skins when I was using lufia as my
nick.

Tek: That was a long time ago :)

Alexandri: Yeah.

Tek: Have you been able to locate any amongst skin collectors? Anyone
out there who had the skins you lost?

Alexandri: Some of them, but the worst is I don't remember the name of
some old skins.

Tek: That would make it very difficult.. Do you plan to host anyone
else's skins?

Alexandri: Hmmm - did not think about it.

treetog: We already host some skins from different authors, but just
ports of our work.

Alexandri: ...or skins that go together.

Tek: I see.. so that you have the full suites.

Alexandri: Yeah

treetog: Yup! =)

Tek: What else is offered at Pixtudio.. skins.. web design..

Alexandri: Logos, customized skins for apps, 2D.

treetog: Most things that we used to make.

Alexandri: A lot of things related to web pages and graphics.

treetog: ...and web programming! Jo, you need to advertise
yourself! =?

Alexandri: lol.. Anything except porn ;)

Tek: Would customized app skins include doing the UI for various
commercial apps?

treetog: Yup! I already made some skins for other commercial
applications. OH! I forgot to say, we do GUI design also. =)

Tek: So, you've already gotten several projects via Pixtudio?

Alexandri: No, mostly jobs I made before, and Renato too.

treetog: After its opening we already had many different contacts,
for all kinds of work.

Tek: Can you share the names of the programs? Anything we might
recognize?

Alexandri: I mostly do jobs for Stardock, WinStep Web site,
Wincustomize administration + coding. I made a lot of skins lately for
Stardock WindowBlinds, for the new version 3.

treetog: Hmmm. let's see...I made Skins for Simi Motion (it's a 3d
animator program,) for Headline Viewer (an online news reader) and many
default skins for almost a dozen apps, like NextStart, Ez Pop, Box IP,
Box SYS, Box Bar, etc...

Tek: It's excellent work :) What was the inspiration behind the look
of the Pixtudio site?

treetog: None, I just thought about something futuristic.

Alexandri: Pixtudio design started blue to finish green.

Tek: Have you done any "outside advertising" for Pixtudio, or do you plan
to?

Alexandri: Advertising?

treetog: Not yet, Michael, we are having very good traffic until now,
but we plan to do this in the future. We had over 10,000 visitors in
the first week, which is much more then I expected.

Tek: Although your site has only been online for a short time, have you
had any interested clients yet?

treetog: Yup! Thank God! =?

Alexandri: Sure :) We have a new contract soon, but it's still a secret!

Tek: Do you have a schedule at all for skin suites to be offered for
sale on the site? A certain number of them you'd like to do per year
perhaps?

Alexandri: We are planning to make free suites and non-free too.

treetog: This is not something with planned dates, but we will have
new suites all the time, free and non-free. Other artists are being
invited to make suites with us.

Tek: What will the difference be between the free and paid suites?

Alexandri: No difference.

treetog: In fact, nothing more then some the user will help us with a
small fee, and others not.

Alexandri: We just want to keep free suites too.

treetog: About their content, nothing except their size. The size of
the exclusive suites are bigger than the free ones.

Tek: I see :) We have a lot to look forward to then :)

treetog: Sure thing =)

Tek: What are your plans for the future of Pixtudio?

Alexandri: Same as today.

treetog: It's a little soon to say that, but we already have fixed
our plans until next January.

Alexandri: ...but it would be nice to be able to live on skinning
contracts.

Tek: Do you feel that will be possible?

Alexandri: Sure, it has to become this way.

treetog: Yes, it WILL!

Alexandri: We hope to help others skinners too.

treetog: We don't intend to become rich with this, just to maintain
our families.

Alexandri: Currently we are trying to get the server hosting paid by
itself. Currently this is our main goal. After, we'll see.

Tek: Well, that's a great place to start. Do you think this will
become a model for other skinners as well?

Alexandri: We hope so.

treetog: Maybe, I think this can happen.

Alexandri: We hope skinners will do like us, as long as there is still
respect in the way it's done.

Tek: Johanne, could you expand a bit on what you mean? Respect in what
way?

Alexandri: Well, when you do try to sell suites the way we are doing,
it's important to do the things right, and also this is important to
offer support when someone buys something. The customer will expect to
have services. You cannot throw away a suite, sell it and then fu<k
them if the download did not work. See what I mean?

Tek: Exactly.. :) What sort of support will you offer?

Alexandri: We currently answer people if they have problems by email.
Also, Renato added 2 skins in the suites. It was some days after, he
sent the 2 skins to everyone. We are planning to add some tutorials.

Tek: Impressive.. tutorials for skinning?

Alexandri: Probably, we will add a messageboard to let people ask
questions online. Tutorials for skins and web stuff.
treetog: =)
Alexandri: We haves plans for that, but cannot talk to much about it,
since we have not decided yet the way we will do it.

Tek: Well, it sounds very accommodating. People are really buying much
more than a skin suite :)

Alexandri: We also would like to help people that are not skinners to
install software.

treetog: This is the spirit, help people who are helping us. =)

Alexandri: When you are a newbie, sometimes it's a real pain to find how
to install skins.

Tek: I know from personal experience how many people crave help with
things like this. So many people involved in skinning are already very
experienced with computers, and it's easy to overlook this. Any time
frame in mind for this to be in place?

Alexandri: We don't know when everything will be set in place, but we
are working on the best way to have it. As soon as we can, but this can
be in a few months. This is hard work.

Tek: :) yes, it is. Especially with all the other things you're doing.

The release of Windows XP is just around the corner. What effect do you
think this will have on skinning, and people's desire for skins?

Alexandri: I think we will have a lot more people than we currently
have. A lot of people still don't know they can do that on their computer.

treetog: Ditto!

Alexandri: But when they will know, they will try to find more styles,
more looks, change colors. I personally think this is a great thing for
the community.

Tek: It may be a great chance for other skinnable applications to
become more popular too, if this is true.

treetog: The more the computer and software is easy to use, the more
people will learn fast how to customize it.

Alexandri: It will be so easy to find other skinnable apps for people
on internet.

Tek: Well, is there anything else either of you would like to add?

treetog: Well, I just like to thank the opportunity that Teknidermy is giving to us to explain our points of view.

Alexandri: hehehe yeah thanks Teknidermy!

Tek: Teknidermy is honored to have you both! :)