Patent ID: 7451399

Claim:
One or more computer-readable media comprising computer-readable instructions thereon which, when executed by a computer, perform a method comprising: processing at least one skin definition file resident on the one or more computer-readable media, the skin definition file defining a skin and being defined in a hierarchical tag-based language; accessing one or more art files resident on the one or more computer-readable media, the art files containing images associated with the skin, wherein at least one art file defines a primary image that can be viewed by a user when the skin is installed, the primary image containing one or more user viewable elements associated with the skin; accessing at least one art file that defines a secondary image that is viewable in response to a user action; accessing at least one art file that defines a mapping image to specify skin regions that respond to user input; and processing the hierarchical tag-based language to facilitate the rendering of the skin, wherein the hierarchical tag-based language comprises: at least one tag pair that contains information that identifies the primary image containing the one or more user-viewable elements associated with the skin; at least one tag pair that contains information that identifies the mapping image, the mapping image having one or more colors, each color defining a region of the mapping image; and at least one tag pair that contains information that establishes a color mapping relationship between at least one secondary image and associated colors in the mapping image, wherein when the skin is rendered, each color region of the mapping image defines an area of the skin that is dedicated to its associated secondary image.