I've been meaning to ask, how do you completely disable Aero? I don't mean just the window transparency, I mean everything. I want a local login that looks and behaves like the OS does when you connect with RDC. We have a plethora of curmudgeons at work so I want to try living like this for a while to see how XP-like the experience is.

The only thing I've been able to find is creating a shortcut to "rundll32.exe dwmApi #104" but that just seems to turn off the window transparency.

 

real easy. Right click on the desktop and choose personalize. choose any of the easy access themes at the bottom of the window. The first one is aero basic and the next one gives it that server 2003 look.

you know you love it

 

if you're asking how to turn off Desktop Window manager, I don't think you can. It's an integral part of the OS since vista. I know if I'm sometimes have some sort of video artifacts caused by what ever reason, if I go to task manager and and the dwm.exe process and closes and restarts in less than 2 secs and all my video glitches are solved.

 

Also I should mention to those of you interested build 7022 x86 which was built about a month after the beta has been released to the torrents and has a few fixes over the beta such as

I think I may try it out on another partition.

 

hey doucher, if I wanted to run windows 7 on my external hard drive... how would I do that? Would that be possible?

 

possibly, it's up to your laptop's bios. If you can boot from a usb drive then yes it'll work fine. I don't think they make PCs anymore that can't boot from a USB drive sooo I'll assume you can. Insert the win 7 dvd and boot from it, during the install process it'll ask you where you want to install the OS choose your external drive and boom you're off to the races. Win 7 should edit your BCD file (like boot.ini in XP days) and add an entry for Win 7 and set it as the default. So when everythings done your system will post and then load the BCD file on your OS drive and from there it will give you the option to boot into Win7 or Vista but the default is going to be Win7 so if you have the drive unplugged for some reason you'll get an error.

For BCD editing I use EasyBCD, in case you want to change the default OS back to Vista which might not be a bad idea since WIn7 would be on an external drive
http://neosmart.net/dl.php?id=1

 

thanks for the info!! I'll figure out what I end up doing!!

 

I downloaded (via bit torrent) and installed build 7022 today. If you want you can too, the key that you got with the Win7 beta will work with this build as well. A homegroup is created automatically if you specify that you have a home network but only printers are shared automatically, you know have to choose to share your other files. This is a good compromise.

The taskpane that was green in vista and blue in the Win7 beta is now silver with a hint of blue, it now matches the look of the rest of Win7.

 

The OCZ SSD (apex 128GB) arrived today. After a partition alignment with diskpar, I loaded it up with Windows 7000 b7022.

My initial thoughts...This thing SCREAMS. Its unreal. Things just open up instantly. Imagine opening notepad on your current machine. well imagine any program on your computer opening that fast The machine boots up under 30 seconds and as soon as you can move the mouse you can click on an icon and open a program. There is no wait. I booted up several times and as soon as I got mouse control i clicked on firefox and it just popped open. I had to wait longer for the internet to download the page, hah.

I guess I should mention the test rig:

Intel Core 2 Duo E6550 @ 2.33Ghz CPU
Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L Mobo
(2) 1GB G.Skill DDR2 (P/N: F2-6400CL5-1GBNQ) Memory Modules


Plenty of testing to be done though.

 

I installed build 7022 on my raptor RAID 0 and the windows experience index gave it a score of 5.9. What does it give your OCZ apex drive? The highest score is 7.9

You should buy another apex ssd and male a raid 0 out of them that'd be bad ass

 

which section did you get 5.9 on? Primary hard disk?

 

Primary hard disk score is 6.5

 

Interesting, Though I have two of the cheapest WD 160gb hard drives I could find in raid 0 and it also gave it a 5.9

One thing I have been messing with is the libraries. I keep all my files on a linux server and mount the different shares as drives. I find that it won't let me add those drives to the libraries from windows explorer because they aren't indexed. The only way to add the drives I could find is to add the the folders to the libraries in windows media player.

This is fine, but if I want to use libraries to organize a file that isn't picture, video, or music I am pretty much screwed.

 

You can create your own libraries. I have one for downloads. I think if you right click ok the libraries icon there's an option to create your own.

 

Yes I can, but that isn't really my problem. It doesn't matter which library it is, I can't include a non indexed share unless it's through WMP12. I understand that a search on the drive will be slow because it isn't indexed, but I don't quite understand why it just can't include the files.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3317/...ab977985_o.png

 

Oh I getcha. I've yet to try libraries with network shares. Now it will add local folders to the library that aren't part of the index.

 

makes me just want to build a new rig to test. I'm missing a processor and memory. btw, I didnt know they had a 128GB ssd?

 

^^ Yep, hell they even had 256GB SSD drives now but they are outrageously priced

 

it appears you are not alone.
http://www.sevenforums.com/network-i...e-library.html

 

Vid I made showing speed of the SSD on a fresh install of windows 7

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56svbv4JzsE

 

DAMN!!!!!!!!! Imma have to get me one of those!!!!!! Why'd you have to tempt me like that. that's badass

 

See what I mean! Soon as I got mouse control, I clicked firefox and it just opened instantly. Thats how everything is. I showed my boss and he said we should get a few more but I told him i didn't mind waiting to see if the prices were going to drop again soon. Newegg notifier ftw.

 

we have a very similar system too I have a Gigabyte p35-ds4 and it has the longest post process I've ever seen, it takes literally 40sec to get to my boot menu. This is with quick boot on. Damn I need to upgrade my system to Core i7 920, 6gb DDR3, new mobo, and a RAID 0 SSD array.

 

Do you have AV installed? I know my boot up of 7022 is faster without AV.

 

No, there are no programs loading at startup other than the default ones. I'm loading windows vista business on the drive right now. i'll do the same test and also load NAV on it to see how it does.

 

I hear Norton 2009 is really fast and is the fastest AV out ther. They've made a lot of changes and it doesn't suck anymore. I've thought of getting it but still don't like the idea of paying for AV.

 

Just finished loading vista business sp1 and symantec endpoint protection v11. Boot up slightly slower on vista with and without AV. I tried the same trick though once I gained mouse control and IE still opened right up even with the AV installed, didn't slow it down a bit

 

C'mon, it's a Symantec product. It has to Suck. Symantec are the grand masters of taking decent core products and then slathering liberal coatings of suck all over them.

 

I went to newegg and look for a 128GB SSD. Your video said it's a 120GB. Maybe I can get an intel ssd somehow

 

I know that's what I thought but I've read a couple article comparing a bunch of AVs for speed and Norton 2009 wins or comes close to winning alot of them. It had the 2nd least impact on AV-comparatives performance test

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/new...rmance-hit.ars

<div class="cbMrgnBtmMD"><h3>Norton AntiVirus Reviews</h3><ul class="listSQor">
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.geek.com/articles/chips/review-norton-antivirus-2009-20081215" target="_blank"><strong>December 2008 Geek.com: Review: Norton AntiVirus 2009 </strong></a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://reviews.cnet.com/internet-security-and-firewall/norton-antivirus-2009/4505-3667_7-33246574.html?tag=txt%3bpage" target="_blank"><strong>October 2008 CNET: Norton AntiVirus 2009</strong></a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://reviews.cnet.com/internet-security-and-firewall/norton-internet-security-2009/4505-3667_7-33246586.html?tag=mncol;lst" target="_blank">September 2008 CNET: Norton Internet Security 2009</a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://review.zdnet.com/internet-security-firewall/norton-internet-security-2009/4505-3667_16-33246586.html" target="_blank"><strong>September 2008 ZDNET: Norton Internet Security 2009</strong></a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://ptech.allthingsd.com/20080917/symantec-rewrites-its-security-suite-to-curb-nuisances/" target="_blank">September 2008 Wall Street Journal: Symantec Rewrites Its Security Suites</a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.appscout.com/2008/09/norton_internet_security_2009.php" target="_blank">September 2008 AppScout: New Norton Internet Security PC Mags Editors’ Choice</a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.geek.com/norton-2009-products-arrive-focused-on-performance-20080911/" target="_blank"><strong>September 2008 Geek.com: Norton 2009 products Arrive Focused on Performance</strong></a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.hothardware.com/News/Symantec-Launches-Debloated-2009-Products" target="_blank">September 2008 Hot Hardware: Symantec Launches Debloated 2009 Products</a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,2845,2330002,00.asp" target="_blank"><strong>September 2008 ExtremeTech: New Norton AV Shoots for Smallest Footprint Ever</strong></a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://tnerd.com/2008/09/10/norton-2009-antivirus-internet-security-released-much-faster-and-lighter" target="_blank">September 2008 Tech Nerd: Norton 2009 Released! Much Faster and Lighter</a></li>
<li><a class="popup" href="http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=19&entry_id=30091" target="_blank">September 2008 San Francisco Chronicle: Faster than a lumbering ox</a></li>
</ul>
</div>

 

Billiam that ease of access theme I showed you earlier, was that what you were looking for?

 

I've been hammered at work. Haven't had a chance to play. I'm going to try it now.

 

I guess I'll post this here as well. I made a couple cool Win7 themes that were based on photos of the Large Hadron Collider. I've always thought they were cool photos so I downloaded a bunch of high res photos and downsized them so they'd fit on a 30inch monitor (1600pix tall photos) I made two themes that you can download here

http://cid-028bafd302e0beb1.skydrive...ic?sa=31897464

Here's some downsized samples

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3286241856/" title="LHC11 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3506/3286241856_641fc060d5_b.jpg" width="1024" height="686" alt="LHC11" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3285422611/" title="LHC9 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3414/3285422611_d83136a01e_b.jpg" width="1024" height="683" alt="LHC9" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3286243468/" title="LHC8 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3388/3286243468_6d3a6c194a_b.jpg" width="1024" height="771" alt="LHC8" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3285424923/" title="LHC6 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3611/3285424923_07a6f8cc94_b.jpg" width="1024" height="768" alt="LHC6" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3285426129/" title="LHC1 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3298/3285426129_b58cf7b133_b.jpg" width="1024" height="686" alt="LHC1" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3286247100/" title="LHC13 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3649/3286247100_f24da42656_b.jpg" width="1024" height="686" alt="LHC13" /></a>

I made another theme based of an artist drawing of the LHC theme that were made to be similar to Da Vinci's drawings (Da Vinci didn't make drawings of the LHC but if he did this is what they think they'd look like)

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3286248158/" title="oreach-2009-001 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3524/3286248158_88ed28bca2_b.jpg" width="1024" height="962" alt="oreach-2009-001" /></a>
<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/25469567@N06/3286249196/" title="oreach-2009-001_20 by klxz79, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3663/3286249196_b6311d5149_b.jpg" width="1024" height="962" alt="oreach-2009-001_20" /></a>

Again the link for both of these is
http://cid-028bafd302e0beb1.skydrive...ic?sa=31897464

 

Been running 7 now for about a week. I like it alot. I never could get it to work correctly until they released a patch last week to fix an issue with mapped drives and AV programs. No major issues that i've found since then.

Some pretty sweet wallpapers here.

http://www.techmynd.com/16-windows-7...on-wallpapers/

 

Bad ass. Makes me REALLY want an SSD

 

yup everything is running great over here. MS made a blog post about some of the changes made since the beta that will be in the RC build and there's some interesting stuff, nothing huge but...

WMP will now support .mov format as well (this means there's no need for quicktime on the PC now)

Aero Peek has been available when previewing windows by hovering over the icons on the taskbar, this capability has been added for when you switch between apps using alt + tab, like so



If you drag a file over top of an app icon on the taskbar while holding down the SHIFT key it will now open the file with that app.

Since programs are not allowed to be automatically pinned to the taskbar during install they will now temporarily appear at the bottom of the start menu after install making it easier to drag that app to the taskbar if you would wish to do so

Win + E will go back to opening the Computer window instead of Libraries

More Devices are capable of the device stage features. In fact my printer which is a HP LaserJet 1320 is now device stage capable and it's a few years old

You can view the rest of the list which has 36 items on it here
http://blogs.msdn.com/e7/archive/200...ince-beta.aspx

Remember this isn't the complete list that was just some of the things so expect more

Here's device stage for my old LaserJet 1320



p.s. Yes Billiam I am using PCL 6 drivers for this printer now, I'm gonna give it a shot and see how it works

 

Hmmmm... I wonder how long that one was in the works.

Apple: "Tell you what Microsoft, we'll license ActiveSync from you for the iPhone if you license QuickTime from us for the next version of Windows."

 

iTunes still requires quicktime to work, hopefully Apple will rewrite iTunes and make it more windows friendly like they've done in Safari 4 and make it so you don't have to install quicktime and the required codecs will become part of iTunes instead of requiring quicktime.

 

Also in build 7022 the ability to preview AAC and mp4 h.264 files within windows explorer is enabled. I'm trying out the movies part of Windows media center and using my PC as a DLNA server so I can stream H.264 movies to any DLNA capable device in the house like my PS3 or other PCs.

Also in relation to streaming you guys should try out the "Allows internet access to home media" feature. It pretty easy just open WMP and click stream and choose "Allows internet access to home media" and follow the steps, you'll have to install the Windows Live signin assistant and link your Live ID with your user account and then after you do that you can stream your media over the internet to other Live ID accounts that you approve if they've got the WMP 12 as well and their Live ID is linked with their user account.

 

If you're interested a 64 bit flavor of build 7048 is available on the torrents it was built on Feb 19th which is more than two months after the beta build so it's got a lot more fixes and tweaks. I'm downloading now and will upgrade my build 7000 to 7048. I still have 32 bit build 7022 as well. I'll report how the upgrade goes, but honestly I expect it to fail miserably.

more info on build 7048
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/0...4-bit-edition/
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/0...48-screenshot/