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Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newbie

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Roger
Posts: 20
Joined: June 22nd, 2015, 2:42 pm

Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newbie

Post by Roger »

I'm just getting started with Rainmeter after my Windows 7 desktop weather gadget finally quit working. I use only three Windows 7 gadgets: clock, calendar, and weather. Can anyone recommend the single best rainmeter application to show a clock, calendar, and weather? Please note that I am not asking for many possibilities that I would then have to evaluate and figure out. Please recommend only the best, easiest way to get Rainmeter to show a clock, calendar, and weather in order to replace my Windows 7 gadgets. Thanks !!
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eclectic-tech
Rainmeter Sage
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Joined: April 12th, 2012, 9:40 pm
Location: Cedar Point, Ohio, USA

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by eclectic-tech »

Welcome to forum Roger!

Can you post an image of your broken widget? That will help define you aesthetics, and narrow the suggests to similar designs.

Sadly, what you are asking for is literally impossible...
"only the best" is a purely subjective... everyone is going to have their own valid "best" skin in their eyes.

Since 'you' will be the decider of 'best' (for you), it is wishful thinking that anyone can tell you what the perfect clock, calendar, and weather skins will be.

With no knowledge of your style, I will suggest:
Take a look through the Featured Skins in the Rainmeter DeviantArt Group page for "the best" mostly voted in by the community.

Weather2 by VClouds
This is one of the best weather skins I have seen (my opinion).

VClouds also designed 'Glasses' a suite of skins that contain most widgets people use.

I think it will be a fruitful search, and I am sure you will find what you are looking for in the 1000's of skins available.

If you need to modify something to your preference, the forum members here are always willing to help you!

Welcome! :welcome:
Roger
Posts: 20
Joined: June 22nd, 2015, 2:42 pm

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by Roger »

Thank you, eclectic-tech, for your reply. I would be glad to post an image from my desktop but don't know how to do it. The image is currently on my clipboard but won't paste here. How do I copy from my Windows clipboard to this note?
I looked through "Featured Skins" that you mentioned but didn't see anything that looked much like the Windows 7 gadgets. I would be glad for any further recommendations of skins that look like Windows 7 gadgets or other instructions. Thanks again.
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balala
Rainmeter Sage
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Joined: October 11th, 2010, 6:27 pm
Location: Gheorgheni, Romania

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by balala »

The simplest to insert the image is using any image editor (like the default Windows Paint). Open it, click to Edit - Paste, then save the image and post it as an attachement. Usualy each image editor (I'm using Paint.NET) let you to paste the images from the clipboard.
I have some very old skins, I'm not currently using. But I usualy not deleting the skins I have, so I still have them. As you said you're looking for some skins to replace the Windows 7 gadgets and I think these skins are closest to the old Windows 7 gadgets, maybe you'd like them. These was the first skins I downloaded and started using with Rainmeter, many years ago. So, take a look at the attachement and if you think you'd like them, please let me know and I'll modify them a bit (as I wrote the code is very old and need to be updated a bit), then I'll upload here (the Weather is translated into hungarian, but I can easily modify it to english).
You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Roger
Posts: 20
Joined: June 22nd, 2015, 2:42 pm

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by Roger »

THanks Balala, that's exactly what I would like to have. I have installed rainmaker and now there are several skins on my desktop, but I have no idea how to find or install new ones, so if you can tell me how to use yours, that would be great. thanks !!
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balala
Rainmeter Sage
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Joined: October 11th, 2010, 6:27 pm
Location: Gheorgheni, Romania

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by balala »

Ok Roger, glad if you like them. I just mention those skins aren't mine, I also downloaded them with many years ago (as I said, these was the first skins I've used). Later today I'll make a few updates on the codes, will pack them and will upload all three. Please come back later, you'll find them.
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balala
Rainmeter Sage
Posts: 16110
Joined: October 11th, 2010, 6:27 pm
Location: Gheorgheni, Romania

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by balala »

Finaly Roger, here's the rmskin pack of those three skins (in face there're more then three, each config contains more ini files). As the pack is too large, I had to upload it to a filesharing site (FileFactory). Here's the link. To can use, download it and simply double click to the file. It'll install all you need and the Antique clock will be loaded (details). Then you can right click to the Rainmeter icon in the Notification area, go to Skins -> Clock, Calendar, Weather and there you'll have three folders: Calendar, Clock and Weather. Go to any of these and you'll see its content, which can be subfolders (Clock and Calendar) or the skins themselves (Weather). If you have subfolders, you have to go until you find the skins, then simply click to the desired skin. When you've loaded a skin and you're hovering your mouse over it, a small menu will appear on the right side. Using it, you can easily close the skin or change the loaded one. Be careful, the pack contains an executable app (weather settings). If you're affraid to use it, you can delete it. This case you'll have to manualy set up the weather skin. To do that, open the Settings.inc file (@Resources folder) and replace the infos (city, state and the most important weather code - read this for details).
I hope you'll like these skins. Please let me know if you realy do.
Roger
Posts: 20
Joined: June 22nd, 2015, 2:42 pm

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by Roger »

Thanks, Balala, I tried to download the files, but FileFactory seems to want me to install a download program or something. Can you put it into a Google Drive folder somewhere and send me the link to it? If you can't do that, I will try again, but I hesitate to install an unknown program on my PC. Thanks so much for your response.
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eclectic-tech
Rainmeter Sage
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Joined: April 12th, 2012, 9:40 pm
Location: Cedar Point, Ohio, USA

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by eclectic-tech »

Roger wrote:Thanks, Balala, I tried to download the files, but FileFactory seems to want me to install a download program or something. Can you put it into a Google Drive folder somewhere and send me the link to it? If you can't do that, I will try again, but I hesitate to install an unknown program on my PC. Thanks so much for your response.
There is a lot of adware you need to ignore...

Scroll down on the page, and look for a "Slow Download" button. That will start an internal timer that delays the download for 60 seconds. It may popup a window under your current browser with another ad...

Eventually that area of the page will change to a "Start Download" button. Click that to download only the rmskin file balala posted.

As balala mentioned, he included an exe to help set the weather. If you get a warning from your virus program, ignore it. I downloaded the package and it is not infected.

EDIT: BTW... Nice skins! Great job, balala!
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balala
Rainmeter Sage
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Joined: October 11th, 2010, 6:27 pm
Location: Gheorgheni, Romania

Re: Please recommend the single best rainmeter skin for newb

Post by balala »

Roger, you definitely don't have to install anything, just follow eclectic-tech's instructions to download the file. Or, in the meantime I uploaded the file to Google Drive to, here's the link: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Bz7mLoinHYMDN2pNaFFkSWJyM0k/view
I hope this is the proper link, but as I'm not currently using Google Drive, I'm not sure if everithing is ok. Please let me know if the link is working.