Alternatives to Application Enhancer?

[WonderFool]

For the record, I did search for this topic around here, but I got mostly topics dealing with "Application" or "Enhancer" and not "Application Enhancer".

Some of the senior experts here seem to suggest generally avoiding APE because it seems to be invisibly tied to system instability. In my experience, I would have to agree - I had been blaming some instability on a freeware for Safari called Stand (or was it SafariStand?), which I would like to believe is not guilty, though really I don't know. I had been getting "Unexpectedly Quit" errors frequently, but not since I got rid of Metallifizer and Slider (APE Modules).

That said, getting rid of them left my system kinda weird. Safari, a brushed metal app (if I remember right), has the white look. (See below). I don't like the white look, but even before that I would rather not have 3 different looks - brushed metal, white, and the newer itunes 5 Smooth metal look. It gets really messed up, because everything is relative - brushed metal is relatively heavy and complex looking, and the white look is relatively washed-out. The Smooth look is my preference, but obviously very little is made to look like that. I am told the pro apps have a different look, which is great for them - I have some 3rd party apps that look different too but they are not the norm and I don't care.

Let me cut it short here before I bore you further with my aesthetic choices. I want to fix some of the apps APE's metallifizer left metallifized, and I want to know if there is something out there that can unify the apps without using APE. Preferably, I'd like to make them all (or most) the Smooth look.

That, and, any insight concerning APE would be appreciated! (For example, is there an alternative to ClearDock?)

[WonderFool]

Here's my signature if it helps.

[virius]

Originally Posted by WonderFool

That, and, any insight concerning APE would be appreciated! (For example, is there an alternative to ClearDock?)

I use Transparent Dock, Donationware/8$ Shareware to get the, well transparent Dock and some other bonus features. I can recommend it.

Referring to the APE question, I'd like to wait for more insightful persons than I am…

Greetings!

[Mikuro]

I don't think there's anything inherently unstable about APE. It's that anything that uses it has the potential to screw things up. There are other things, like SIMBL, that can be used to accomplish many of the same tasks — but their plugins come with stability risks, as well. (I'm also not aware of any SIMBL-based answers to your particular need, although there might be some out there.)

There are also more direct OS hacks, like Iridium and Shapeshifter (neither of which I've ever used at length, so I can't vouch for them). But IMO the risk is even greater with that kind of approach, since they don't try to provide isolation like APE and SIMBL do.

[bobw]

I've been using APE since I started using OS X. I have never had any problems. I don't use much, just FruitMenu and ClearDock.

[WonderFool]

Originally Posted by virius

I use Transparent Dock, Donationware/8$ Shareware to get the, well transparent Dock and some other bonus features. I can recommend it.

Thanks for that. I'll check it out as soon as I can. Like bobw was saying, I never had problems with cleardock specifically, though the other APE modules i was using seemed to be the root of some app-crashing. I figure since ClearDock isn't supposed to mess with anything but the dock, I will leave it unless Transparent Dock offers the same features. Got to go try it.

Come to think of it, there were some occasions trying to call up the dock (I have it on the option that it pops up when you put the mouse down there), it would fail to come up for a really long time. No response, like there was no dock. Switching users and such fixes it usually. Maybe another problem I wouldn't have if I didn't use APE? I don't want to blame just anything on APE, but if the mishaps go away when I get rid of it, I consider that enough evidence, and getting rid of Metallifizer/Slider seemed to help.
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Shapeshifter and such look a bit overboard for me, and anyway it uses APE (right?) so I don't really want to venture there. I don't really want customizability so much, basically because I'm pretty happy with what I've got. I just wish that I could unify all the themes to the Smooth itunes look.

And I forgot to mention...I would prefer freeware, though I would pay to get a unified Smooth look, if I had to. I haven't found any such thing though, and I was wondering if it is even possible? (Like for Finder?)

[fryke]

I'm certainly one of those advising NOT to use APE. I'm sure there *are* users like bobw who have no problems with APE and the modules they're using. Problem is that too often I've found people with strange problems suddenly having very good experiences with their Macs once they got rid of APE and all its modules.
I'm aware of the fact that unsanity tries its best to update APE and the modules often to keep the inconsisencies, bugs (which are known to do anything from "unexpectedly quitting" apps to kernel panics!) and instabilities to a minimum. But I guess a system without APE just is inherently less prone to those instabilities.

So: I'd try looking on macupdate.com and versiontracker.com for APE-less replacements for the tasks you're achieving with APE modules, currently. Maybe in order to put things right about those metallified apps, you'll first have to activate it again and turn it off correctly for the apps you've applied it to.

I've personally had good results with theme changers _other_ than ShapeShifter (APE) and metallifier (APE). Then again, Mac OS X updates regularly overwrite the installed themes, and replacing the original theme _is_ kinda like open heart surgery, so I've moved away from it in the past two years. Now I live with Apple's choices and only grumble sometimes about them. I'm hoping that with Mac OS X 10.5, we'll see the different looks _gone_ and the OS move to an improved version of the unified look.

[WonderFool]

Originally Posted by Mikuro

I don't think there's anything inherently unstable about APE. It's that anything that uses it has the potential to screw things up. There are other things, like SIMBL, that can be used to accomplish many of the same tasks — but their plugins come with stability risks, as well. (I'm also not aware of any SIMBL-based answers to your particular need, although there might be some out there.)

There are also more direct OS hacks, like Iridium and Shapeshifter (neither of which I've ever used at length, so I can't vouch for them). But IMO the risk is even greater with that kind of approach, since they don't try to provide isolation like APE and SIMBL do.

I'm not sure I know enough to follow you, but I think I get the general idea. Iridium, however, looks interesting, though I'll have to check it out later. Thank you. I might try it and see if it makes anything unstable, as you say the risk is higher. Only, just looking at their site, it seems to be the white-ish look only? Still, all white is better than all mingled i guess. Sure wish they'd settle on Smooth.