Feature request: open stack visuals

[Shari]

>Not only does this demonstrate "window cloaking" of sorts, but it 
>can also do a simple magnify effect.  A reset button is included but 
>will have to be messed with to work correctly on Windows without 
>recapturing the stack window (interesting that taking a capture on 
>the Windows desktop reveals any hidden MC windows).
>
>The above technique was recently discussed a bit on the list.  At a 
>high level, faking a custom window is fairly easy to do, but it is 
>not a very good workaround for 2 reasons:
>
>1) If the user switches to another application and places yours in 
>the background, any changes to foreground window positions will not 
>be reflected in your false backdrop.
>
>2) In OSX, all windows are drawn with a live dropshadow cast by the 
>window's true dimensions, thus any fake masking is clearly visible.
>
>Still waiting anxiously for a custom window solution in MC 2.4... :-)

As it's intended for use on Mac, Windows and OS X any solution that 
will not work on all three is out.  With my neat new tool Metacard, 
all projects from here forward get coded once, specifically for cross 
platform compatibility, with no changes to the stacks later (except 
improvements, bug squishes, etc. :-)

It's tough because there are still XCMD's I'd love to use, one 
specifically that queries Internet Config for the user name, or ones 
that get the specific machine id (I've followed that thread and tried 
out the final piece of code that was cross platform, but it produced 
a popup dialog window asking for the location of Apple System 
Profiler, as mine is not in the Apple folder.  I figure if mine 
isn't, others aren't, and I'd rather avoid having someone else get 
that dialog and wanting to know what it's all about.)

I'd love to use the resource fork still for sounds and graphics, it 
would be so much simpler!  If I edit a graphic, just paste the new 
graphic where the old one was.  But I want cross platform programs, 
to expand my user base so lots more people can register my programs, 
so some sacrifices to accommodate Microsnot are necessary.

Speaking of graphics, it would be nice if Metacard recognized slots, 
so that you could have several small graphics together in an image, 
and just pull one from the appropriate slot as needed.  So that 
makers of adventure games don't end up with 1000 icon sized graphics 
to import.  Though the slots should be rectangular rather than true 
square, as that is the standard size for this ...

So that when you say "set the icon of btn x to slot 15 of image id 
1234" you get just that one slot's image :-)
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