Windows 7 Public Beta Available Friday

It seems NOT every windowblinds skins will look right with this Windows 7 base on its look. The problem is some skins cannot be edited with skinstudio because the images aren't unlocked if I can put it that way. But I'll update to it anyway.

Yay.. 3 OS's to skin for now

Weird. Locked in dll files? Theres tools for that. ResEdit (freeware) or Resource Tuner (payware). You can edit exe, dll, ocx, almost any file with it. Extract/replace images, change text etc.

Yah. Noobs like me are still trying to figure out how to marry the other two, and now comes a third.

 

Im still workin on skinning win 95..

i have to preserve my WB investment ..so ill pass on this download. thx anyway 

Psshh! I haven't figured out how to skin any...

Based on what happened with Windows Vista and WindowBlinds, it is likely WB will try its very best to make older non Windows 7 aware skins look good on Windows 7.

Right now you can use a WindowBlinds skin designed for XP back in October 2001 on Windows Vista.

IMHO they should relaease it as Vista SP 2 and regain some consumer confidence. Companies certainly won't be upgrading sytems over the next couple of years. Many didn't upgrade to Vista. I just don't understand the move by MS. Well, I understand it, I just feel cheated by Vista. $ 3500 of hardware to run the shitty OS.  

What happens after August? Can you downgrade? Will there be another Beta? Will beta testers be screwed?

I disagree.  The further they distance themselves from the Vista branding the better. 




If it's any indication from the past, you will have to go back to another OS.

Better for them. If I can run 7 on my current hardware without upgrade and its not stupidly priced, I'll relax a bit but I don't know much as of now.

JoDa: Simple 'fix': dual boot.
I have XP/Vista/W7 on the same machine right now (Though I never use the slow-ass XP anymore.
If one goes bust, I always have one of the other two to rely on for fixing whatever OS went belly up

so snowman is W7 good enough to download and have a play with.....?

How large is the download? Is 7 WindowBlinds compatible? Even if it's not, I shall check it out!

Lately, I still feel that way!

You'll find Windows 7 is better/faster than Vista in every way and, yes, even faster than XP now.

If W7 is anything like Vista, when the beta(s) run out there will be a RC release prior to going gold and release to stores... which has been touted to be as early as Dec 09 in time for holiday spending.

From what I have read around the net there is absolutely nothing about Windows 7 that I would even care about, it is just another Windows Vista with a few minor modifications, and to spend hours downloading something I will never use would be a waste of time so I will pass on this one.

Personally I think Microsoft should have improved Windows XP and not even have bothered making a new OS, especially one (oops, now 2!) OS's that a pain in the rear to skin. I mean c'mon now, the only thing around to skin Vista for .msstyles format is AVE's Vista Style Builder, which is a super pain to use and would take a total genius to figure out. The only thing around to skin in Windowblinds format is SkinStudio 6, which is also very cumbersome to use and limited in its abilities. Why can't someone design a program that is so easy to use that a child could figure it out! Even SkinStudio 5 had its drawbacks. Now, if someone would have designed a program to skin Vista in either .msstyles or Windowblinds format that was like StyleBuilder from TGTSoft, I don't think anyone would have complained at all. It is sooooooooooo easy to use!

 

Windows 7 will be released this summer.

While many are sceptical about W7 being released at all this year, I read an article (I think linked to from majorgeeks) where the writer spoke with some authority about W7 being released July 09... and another (Mary Foley, I think) proffering late Nov early Dec as being preferred by Microsoft.

In any event, given the 1st public beta becomes available in just 3 or so hours, it's hard to imagine MS will repeat the constant delays fiasco of Vista with W7. Despite the economic crisis affecting much of the World, Microsoft WILL release W7 to retail later this year.... US Summertime sounds good to me.

Anyone who is skeptical of Windows 7 coming out this year doesn't know what they are talking about. 

...really?...there are so many things wrong with that statement.

I'm skeptical if the public beta will be released this year.  

They should have expected to get some interest...they were so hammered that they postponed the release until they get enough servers up to handle the traffic.

Yeah over 8 hours since the gazetted realease and still nothing.... not enough servers to handle the traffic?  I mean, for the size of Microsoft, like what's that all about?\

They should have been much better prepared than that/this...tut, tut.  *deducts brownie points*