Good news everyone.  We finally got finished with Auction Sidebar Tool v2.9 and it has been uploaded to Windows Live Gallery.  Primarily, the purpose of the new version was to fix the connection issues everyone's been having.  Couple this with the recent fixes I put out on the server and hopefully everyone will be connection issue free now. 

Download now or read on for what's new and improved.

We were planning on making the next version a major release, but the connection problems meant that we had to release minor update first.  That being said, a lot of work went into this version that you probably won't notice (because it's all behind the scenese stuff).

Firstly, the ActiveX control we use to show popup messages, hoverviews and perform browser sync operations has been completely recoded to use the .NET framework.  This means it's more efficient and can do things a little better.  Some of the main changes include:

• Multiple gadgets using the control will stack popups on top of each other when shown at the same time.
• HoverViews now have a definable level of transparency (although the setting isn't present in this release of Auction Sidebar Tool).
• BrowserSync now has partial support for Google Chrome.
• We are able to use the Windows HotKey API to perform actions like bringing AuctionST to the front and focusing the search box.
• The right-click menu is much more dynamic now and is able to contain sub-menus and have icons for menu items.
• We can send some requests directly to eBay without the need for a server.

You may notice that popup messages look slightly different and we're hoping to improve the look and styling in the future.  This new ActiveX control is also present in Amazon Sidebar Tool and may make an appearance in some of our future gadgets too.

As for the actual gadget, the changes are mostly bug fixes, behind the scenes improvements and code changes to accommodate the new ActiveX control.  The biggest new feature is the implementation of a HotKey to bring Auction Sidebar Tool to the front.  The default key combination for this is Win + A but this can be changed to Win + Shift + A in the gadget's settings.  The beauty of this new feature is that no matter what you're doing on your computer, you bring the gadget to the front and instantly type in the search box.  How many other gadgets can boast a feature like that?

We hope you enjoy the new features and would like to thank everyone for their patience during the problems lately.  If anyone has any new issues to report, please use the forums.