Well, thanks to Chris and his intrepid suggestions, we have chosen to build v0.0.1 as the first client build for the project. The process has been very interesting.
In this build we have elected to shelf the marquee for the time being and work on the far easier messengeresque style alert UI system - and the results are fantastic. The _event form spawns each time that an alert is received and it has built in functionality that enables each alert spawn to determine when and where it should appear on the screen.
Technically speaking the 0.0.1 build isn’t much at all, but its a valid proof of concept that has shaped the way the TouchStone UI will operate.
The Current List of Problems (what we are so cutely describing as the CLOP):
We are having troubles with alerts overlapping each other if alerts are terminated as a new one are spawned. To combat this we have developed the TouchStone Alert Buffer - a subsystem that queues up Alerts that are unable to be displayed at the screen immediately.
Displaying alerts on any screen is going to be a problem, but for the time being, the screen is going to be divided up into "slots". These slots will be defined by a member of a UI class called clrGlobal. The array will store which slots are filled and which are empty. Events will be launched into available slots or be moved to the buffer subsystem. The number of slots will be derived later to accommodate screens of any resolution.
Apart form this, things are actually moving far faster then I initially thought possible. More importantly though, things are fun - so it makes the journey all the more rewarding.