Microsoft Office 2007
Friday, March 10, 2006 by Island Dog | Discussion: Windows Software
Microsoft has put up a preview section for Office 2007.
Preview of the "new" gui - http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/uioverview.mspx
Prices - http://www.microsoft.com/office/preview/pricing.mspx
Origami See the Ultra-Mobile PC Interface in Action
Thursday, March 9, 2006 by Clonmelchat | Discussion: Personal Computing
Program Launcher makes it easy to get going
The Touch Pack is a preinstalled suite of software that is built on top of the Windows XP operating system, specifically designed for UMPCs by Microsoft.
The Touch Pack's Program Launcher organizes software programs into categories and it uses large buttons and icons to make it easy to find and launch your favorite applications. The Program Launcher's categories, backgrounds, and shortcuts are all customizable.
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/umpc/howitworks.mspxLink
Don't see what Vista offers over XP except a new GUI?
Wednesday, March 1, 2006 by Thomas Thomassen | Discussion: Personal Computing
IMO it's these changes that's the important part about Vista. It seem many people make up their mind of what they can see from the screenshots.
Offical Windows Vista versions
Monday, February 27, 2006 by Island Dog | Discussion: Windows Vista
Here is the "official" Vista versions.
Windows Vista Home Basic: For consumers that want to simply use the PC to browse the Internet, correspond with friends and family over email or perform basic document creation and editing tasks, Windows Vista Home Basic will deliver a safer, more reliable and more productive computing environment.
Windows Vista Home Premium: Will help consumers utilize mobile or desktop PC functionality more effectively while enabling the enjoyment of new, exciting digital entertainment experiences – all with the benefit of added security and reliability. Windows Vista Home Premium includes everything in Windows Vista Home Basic, plus the Windows Vista Aero™ and Media Center and Tablet PC capabilities.
Windows Vista Ultimate: Windows Vista Ultimate is the edition of Windows Vista that has it all. It is the first operating system that brings together all of the consumer-oriented features available in Windows Vista Home Premium with all of the business-oriented features available in Windows Vista Business.
Two versions will cater to businesses:
Windows Vista Business: For small to medium size businesses, Windows Vista Business will help keep PCs running smoothly and securely so they are less reliant on dedicated IT support. For larger organizations, Windows Vista Business will provide dramatic new infrastructure improvements that will enable IT staff to spend less time focused on day to day maintenance of PCs and more time adding strategic value to the organization.
Windows Vista Enterprise: To better address the needs of large, global organizations and those with highly complex IT infrastructures, Windows Vista Enterprise is designed to significantly lower IT costs and risk. In addition to all of the features available in Windows Vista Business, Windows Vista Enterprise is designed to provide higher levels of data protection using hardware-based encryption technology.
Vista and DRM
Friday, February 24, 2006 by Island Dog | Discussion: Personal Computing
I have been reading some articles on the DRM that Vista will supposedly include. I would like everyones opinoins on these.
"Microsoft is taking some heat over a digital-rights management (DRM) feature it's folding into its upcoming Vista (formerly Longhorn) operating system.
The feature, called Output Content Protection Management, encompasses several DRM-related schemes. The one that's raised hackles in several articles and blogs is a DRM-related check that's performed when playing back video on Vista-equipped PCs. According to Microsoft's description, the feature "makes sure that the PC's video outputs have the required protection or that they are turned off if such protection is not available."
In plain English, this means that Vista machines won't be able to play next-generation, high-definition DVDs in their full, high-resolution glory unless they're equipped with monitors that support a new DRM scheme called High-Bandwidth Digital Copy Protection, or HDCP. "
Techweb article - http://www.techweb.com/wire/software/167101037
IE 7 Beta 2 Review
Good, Very Good!
Saturday, February 4, 2006 by Larry Kuperman | Discussion: Internet
Key Features: Tabbed Browsing, a Streamlined (and highly configurable) user interface, greatly improved security, RSS feed support, toolbar search box. For a full feature list see Link (Some IE7 features will not be available until Vista rolls out.
Killer Feature: Quick tabs, thumb nail view of the tabs that you have open.
If you have used Firefox, the experience will be immediately familiar. Set up was easy, configuration was intuitive. The tabs look the way I have my tabs set in Firefox (I use Tab Mix Plus) and useage was familiar. IE 7 install also optionally runs the Microsoft Malicious Software Removal Tool at installation,which was a nice touch, I thought.
I configured the search box immediately, choosing Google over MSN Seach without problem.
Memory usage still seems higher than for Firefox. IE7 with two tabs open: 67 Mb. Firefox 1.5.0.1 with the same two tabs: 47 Mb. If anyone gets different results, I would like to see them.
As mentioned before, security is GREATLY improved. Tools> Manage Add Ons lets you see what is running and gives you the option of Enabling/Disabling an Add On or deleting it all together. There are also built-in links for a number of Add Ons, including security ones, at http://windowsmarketplace.com/content.aspx?ctId=63 You can get Pop Up blockers, anti-Spyware programs, etc.
The interface is way cleaner, although you can easily go back the IE6 "classic" look if you want. See Link
IE7 is obviously intended to go head to head with Mozilla's Firefox. In my not-so-humble opinion, it is competitive. It doesn't blow Firefox away, but it is much better than IE6.
Take the full tour at Link
UnderTheSkin Episode 5 Show Notes
Check the links out!
Saturday, January 28, 2006 by qrush | Discussion: Community
News:
1) SkinArtistry closing down http://skinartistry.com/news.php
2) Winter contests Skinbase Winter Theme Contest: http://www.skinbase.org/news.php?topicid=1165 , Skinning.net wallpaper poll: https://www.wincustomize.com/forums.aspx?SID=1&AID=98705&c=1
3) SoundPackager! Woot! https://www.wincustomize.com/articles.aspx?SID=1&AID=98383&c=1
Skins:
1) Geyorkias by BlinkChang https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SkinID=1438&LibID=2
2) Medusa - Dev-C++by D. Arnaez https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SkinID=1908&LibID=39
3) Battlefield 2 by Josephs https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SkinID=5524&LibID=1
4) Mushrooms by GH33DA https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SID=1&SkinID=26606&LibID=8
5) Sputnik by Dace K https://www.wincustomize.com/ViewSkin.aspx?SID=1&SkinID=1794&LibID=25
Questions (lots talked about...look for us mentioning you!) : https://www.wincustomize.com/Forums.aspx?ForumID=189&AID=98679#772973
Thanks for listening, everyone!
**More links and thumbnails coming on Saturday or Sunday...
ObjectDock Plus – Editing Non-Tabbed Docks 102
A mini tutorial for beginners
Sunday, January 22, 2006 by Corky_O | Discussion: Tutorials
ObjectDock Plus – Editing Non-Tabbed Docks 102
This mini tutorial is designed for beginners who want to understand the steps involved in adding entries to non-tabbed docks using ObjectDock Plus, as well as a few additional features available via the dock context menu.
An assumption has been made that users have already installed ObjectDock Plus, so please do so before using the procedures in this tutorial (note – make sure that any free version of ObjectDock has been uninstalled previous to installing ObjectDock Plus). If you have any content files that you have downloaded for use with the free version, it is recommended that you copy these files to a temporary folder on your computer before uninstalling the free version of ObjectDock.
For this mini tutorial I will be using a dock similar to the one created in "ObjectDock Plus – Create A Non-Tabbed Dock 101", which can be found here http://corkyo.wincustomize.com/Articles.aspx?AID=98639
This mini tutorial has been created using the default Windows XP installation and settings.
Before adding anything to the dock, let’s remove some of the default content to get us closer to a "blank canvas", by removing two of the entries as shown in the image below:
Note – leaving one default entry until you have added one of your own entries will prevent the dock background from stretching across the screen in strange ways. The final default entry can be removed after adding one of your own entries.
ADDING AN ENTRY TO A NON-TABBED DOCK
You can create a new dock entry (icon) using either the context (right-click) menu, or using the "drag-n-drop" method. Both of which are illustrated below.
Context Menu Method
1 - Right-click on the dock > mouse-over the "Add Entry" option > select a new entry type to add to the dock (in this case, a "New Shortcut") as shown in the image below:
Please notice that the context menu is divided into groups, with new links and system related entries in the top group, with Docklets in the lower section, and at the bottom you will see the "My Docks" option (which invokes the current dock listing dialog).
2 – Right-click the remaining "New Shortcut" that was just added, and then select the "Dock Entry Properties" option as shown in the image below:
This will result in the display of the Dock Entry Properties dialog shown below:
The "Title" text box at the top of the dialog contains the text that will display on mouse-over of the dock entry. You can change this text, or delete it. Deleting the text will result in no text being displayed on mouse-over. To change the text font and size, you can use the "ObjectDock Properties (AKA the "Dock Settings) > General category > Advanced Options" dialog, which is discussed in the "ObjectDock Plus – Create A Non-Tabbed Dock 101" mini tutorial.
2 – Assign a link for the new dock entry by using one of the following methods: (1) use the preset drop-down list, (2) use the Browse button to locate an "executable" file, or (3) type or paste the address to a folder or file in the "Link" text box. In this case, we will select "My Documents" from the preset drop-down list as shown in the image below:
Note - the "Arguments" text box is for command specific actions, and is beyond the scope of this mini tutorial.
3 – Select an image for your entry by clicking the "Change Image" button as shown in the image below:
This will invoke the Choose Image dialog, which is a basic explorer window allowing you to select a folder in the left pane, and then an image from the selected folder in the main pane as shown below:
Alternatively, you can use the "Browse" button to navigate to any ".ico" or ".png" file. Note – for editing and designing a theme which you intend to distribute, it is recommended that you keep all files in the ObjectDock sub-directory. This will make your theme more likely to be compatible with another users’ computer.
DRAG-N-DROP METHOD
On your keyboard, hold down the "Windows" key (key with flying window symbol), and immediately press the "E" key – to invoke "Explorer". Alternatively, you can open "My Computer" and click the "Folders" button in the toolbar. You can then drag-n-drop any icon from either the left pane, or main pane onto the dock – as illustrated by dragging the "My Computer" icon onto the dock - in the image below:
The result of dragging My Computer onto the dock is shown in the image below:
Note – change the text and image the same way indicated for the context menu method.
I have added a few other entries using the methods above to add some functional content to the dock, including the "Recycle Bin" – which I used the context menu method to illustrate it’s location in the menu as shown in the image below:
Make sure to change both the "Empty" and "Full" images for the recycle bin as shown in the image below:
DOCK BACKGROUND
Let’s polish the theme off with some increase in icon size, and a matching background for the dock, by right-clicking the dock and selecting "Dock Properties" as shown in the image below:
Click the "Appearance" category and use the "Icon Size" slider to increase icons to 72 pixels, and then use the "Background" drop-down list to select a background – as shown in the image below:
LOCKING FEATURE
You can lock the icons in place on the dock to prevent deleting one by accidentally dragging if off the dock and watching it disappear in a "POOF" – which I have managed to do a few times previous to the addition of this feature. To lock the icons in place, right-click the dock > select "Lock Dragging" as shown in the image below:
Well, that is all for this lesson.
I hope you found this mini tutorial useful. Until next time, have fun and "Keep On Customizing".
ObjectDock Plus – Create Tabbed Dock 101
A mini tutorial for beginners
Sunday, January 22, 2006 by Corky_O | Discussion: Tutorials
ObjectDock Plus – Create Tabbed Dock 101
This mini tutorial is designed for beginners who want to understand the basic steps involved in creating tabbed docks using ObjectDock Plus.
An assumption has been made that users have already installed ObjectDock Plus, so please do so before using the procedures in this tutorial (note – make sure that any free version of ObjectDock has been uninstalled previous to installing ObjectDock Plus). If you have any content files that you have downloaded for use with the free version, it is recommended that you copy these files to a temporary folder on your computer before uninstalling the free version of ObjectDock.
This mini tutorial has been created using the default Windows XP installation and settings, and illustrates procedures using the main ObjectDock Plus dialog boxes.
STARTING OBJECTDOCK PLUS
Start ObjectDock Plus by clicking Start > All Programs > click either the Stardock, or Object Desktop folder > click ObjectDock Plus icon.
If this is the first time you have started any ObjectDock program (Free or Plus version) on your computer, you may see a message from your firewall program informing you that ObjectDock.exe is attempting to access the internet. This message may be similar to the one shown in the image below:
Note – in this case, ObjectDock is attempting to access the weather information from the internet for use by the Weather docklet on both the tabbed and non-tabbed docks that load by default. Allowing this access is safe, and no personal information is given out by the ObjectDock program.
CREATING OR EDITING A TABBED DOCK
1 – Right-click the ObjectDock icon in the notification area (A.K.A. the ‘system tray’) of the taskbar, and then select and click "My Docks" as shown in the image below:
Note – this tutorial will use a blank "My Docks" dialog (starting with no docks). If you want to start with a "blank canvas" when designing a new theme, simply select any current docks in the list, and then click the "Remove this dock" button to delete the dock – as shown in the image below:
2 – Once you have removed all docks, click "Create new tabbed dock" as shown in the image below:
This will place a default tabbed dock on your desktop, and invoke the ObjectDock Properties dialog (A.K.A. the "Dock Settings" dialog) to allow dock editing. Note – if you wish to edit an existing dock listed in "My Docks" dialog, simply select the dock in the list, and click the "Edit this dock" button to invoke the same dialog.
To complete the creation of a "blank canvas" tabbed dock, we can remove entries by dragging them off of the dock where they will disappear in a "POOF" when you release the mouse button, as shown in the image below:
EDITING A TABBED DOCK
1 – Click the "Positioning" category in the left-hand list of the dock settings dialog to display the options as shown in the image below:
This will allow you to edit the dock’s screen position, z-order alignment, and mouse-over activation speeds (when mouse-over activation is selected). You can also enable or disable taskbar buttons using the radio buttons (note – the system tray option will add additional ObjectDock icons to the system tray, in addition to the one that is displayed when ObjectDock Plus is loaded. Currently, you cannot remove the one system tray icon displayed when ObjectDock Plus is loaded – this may or may not change in future builds).
Note – in the image above, I have selected the "Show dock as drawer" at top of screen.
To make the dock easier to work with, you can right-click the dock and select "Detach from edge", which I have done to complete this mini tutorial as shown in the image below:
2 – Click the "Size & Appearance" category on the left-hand list of the dock settings dialog to display the options as shown in the image below:
This category allows you to enable and set icon zooming options, work with tab positioning, tab size, tab alignment, and entry (icon) name options. Note – the "Tab Position" options will be grayed out when the dock is set as a drawer in the "Positioning" category.
3 – Click the "Tabs & Styles" category in the left-hand list of the dock settings dialog to display the options as shown in the image below:
This category allows you to add a tab to the dock, and to edit the current tab styles. To edit a tab style, select the tab name in the tab names list. This will display the style options in the lower half of the dialog as shown in the image below:
To change the name (text) on the tab, simply highlight the text in the "Name" field, and type the new name. To change the tab and background style, use the drop-down "Style" list to select and apply a background from the list (the background style is applied in real-time when selected). You can colorize the tab and background by using the "Color" drop-down list – which offers (1) preset colors, (2) "None" (the tab style default), and (3) "Other" option to invoke the color picker to set a custom color.
4 – You can reattach the dock to the edge by right-clicking a tab, and then selecting the "Attach to edge" option as shown in the image below:
5 – You can use the "Hotspots" option, which is found in the top section of the left-hand list in the dock settings, to set a hotspot on the screen; that when bumped with the mouse, will display the tabbed dock on top of all windows, or hide the dock. The image below shows this dialog, in which you simply click one of the areas indicated by the black arrows to assign the hotspot and use the drop-down list to select an action.
Note – selecting "Do nothing to this tabbed dock", and then clicking the dock will clear any assigned hotspot.
6 – Finally, you can set ObjectDock to load at startup by selecting the option under the General category as shown in the image below:
This concludes the basics on creating a tabbed dock. More to come in "ObjectDock Plus - Editing Tabbed Docks 102".
I hope you found this mini tutorial useful. Until next time, have fun and "Keep On Customizing".