The original offline character builder has been adapted to enable custom content pretty well.
If you dont mind editing XML
Or taking a trip to the vast, gray area of, "Did I just violate my terms of service?"
Really, is it that big of a deal to write in your custom magic item? If you do, you can keep using the up-to-date online builder.
Some of them read these forums, but, frankly, no amount of kvetching is going to make custom items appear any faster. The guys working on the online tools are already swamped with work - bug fixes, new features, entire new apps. They know a lot of people want ways to add custom content, but unfortunately that's one of the most difficult things to implement properly (there's a reason it was implemented at such a shallow level in the offline builder). Given enough time, they'll get to it.
Right, like the Character Visualizer and Game Table.
Really, is it that big of a deal to write in your custom magic item? If you do, you can keep using the up-to-date online builder.
For things like armor, neck slot items, weapons, and implements, I would give the character a generic +X item, and then make up my own custom item card and give it to them. That way the math is correct AND they have a card (to with the rest) that has the pertinent information, like critical damage and powers.
Now, if it is an item that has a property that changes some bonus in a persistent way (beyond the standard enhancement bonuses), this method obviously does not work.
The thing is that, if they made customizeable content available, it might considerably lower the amount of time it takes them to update it with new content, since the writers and editors would be able to do this themselves, instead of asking the coders to get it in there.Some of them read these forums, but, frankly, no amount of kvetching is going to make custom items appear any faster. The guys working on the online tools are already swamped with work - bug fixes, new features, entire new apps. They know a lot of people want ways to add custom content, but unfortunately that's one of the most difficult things to implement properly (there's a reason it was implemented at such a shallow level in the offline builder). Given enough time, they'll get to it.
The thing is that, if they made customizeable content available, it might considerably lower the amount of time it takes them to update it with new content, since the writers and editors would be able to do this themselves, instead of asking the coders to get it in there.