Quick video demo of Fences in action.

Download at https://www.stardock.com/products/fences

If you have a Windows PC you should download this program. Seriously.

Before…

After…

Stardock’s new killer app: Fences. Download it, it’s free!

https://www.stardock.com/products/fences

Stardock is excited to announce its most innovative desktop utility application since the popular WindowBlinds today – Stardock Fences for Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7. The free application from Stardock clears desktop clutter and provides consistency and organization for groups of files on the desktop. Fences allows users to literally “draw” labeled shaded areas on the desktop which become movable & resizable “containers” for desktop icons. These groups arrange and hide the files on the computer's desktop solving the "constant mess" problem that has plagued the desktop since its inception.

To help solve another weak point of the desktop - the mere appearance of clutter, Fences offers a novel quick-hide feature. Users can double click the desktop and all of the icons will fade out. When users double click again the icons will return. Users can pick and choose which desktop icons hide when the feature is activated.

Visit the Fences website to see more screenshots and videos of Fences in action, and for your free download.

• https://www.stardock.com/products/fences/index.asp

After a lot of speculation over the last couple of months, we finally have confirmation on the Windows 7 SKU’s.  At first look, it looks like Windows 7 Professional will be the way to go.

Windows 7 Starter
Market: Emerging markets, with new PCs only
Key features: Enhanced taskbar, Jump Lists, Windows Media Player, Backup and Restore, Action Center, Device Stage, Play To, Fax and Scan, basic games
What's missing: Aero Glass, many Aero desktop enhancements, Windows Touch, Media Center, Live thumbnail previews, Home Group creation

Windows 7 Home Premium
Market: Mainstream retail market
Key features: Aero Glass, Aero Background, Windows Touch, Home Group creation, Media Center, DVD playback and authoring, premium games
What's missing: Domain join, Remote Desktop host, advanced backup, EFS, Mobility Center, Offline Folders

Windows 7 Professional (superset of Home)
Market: Mainstream retail market
Key features: Domain join, Remote Desktop host, location aware printing, EFS, Mobility Center, Presentation Mode, Offline Folders, Media Center
What's missing: BitLocker, BitLocker To Go, AppLocker, Direct Access, Branche Cache, MUI language packs, boot from VHD

Windows 7 Enterprise
Market: Volume-license business customers only
Key features: BitLocker, BitLocker To Go, AppLocker, Direct Access, Branche Cache, MUI language packs, boot from VHD
What's missing: Retail licensing

Windows 7 Ultimate
Market: Retail market, limited availability
Key features: BitLocker, BitLocker To Go, AppLocker, Direct Access, Branche Cache, MUI language packs, boot from VHD
What's missing: Volume licensing

Link: Neowin.net

I’m running the BETA of Windows 7 and it’s been running so well that I’ve decided to make it my quasi-production machine.

Windows 7 is a massive usability upgrade from any previous version of Windows.  Much of the changes are just minor in terms of effort but just make the whole system feel a lot better designed.

For example, if I want look at my connected devices I see this:

Notice I don’t see a bunch of crap. I just see the stuff actually connected to the machine. It’s a very nice change from what has been in Windows before.

One of the purposes of this series of articles is to let you know what programs I have problems with, and which ones work right.

Over the coming weeks and months I’ll give you generalized reports on the progress of our software (Stardock’s) running on Windows 7 as well as highlighting cool little touches in Windows 7.

Now, for the purposes of making life hard on Stardock, I’m not just running a beta of Windows 7, I’m running a beta of Windows 7 64-bit.  By the time Windows 7 is released, all applicable Stardock software must run on this machine.

Now let me make it clear from the start that I’m just looking for feedback on features you would like to see for WindowBlinds in Windows 7.  Many people are trying the Windows 7 beta, and through your experiences so far, is there anything different you would like to see WB try to accomplish? 

Please be specific and screenshots and mockups would definitely be welcome.

I’m still enjoy Windows 7 so far, and I have been playing around with it ever since I got it installed.  I wanted to share some screenshots for those who are going to test the beta.  I’m also trying out the photo gallery feature in Live Writer.

View Full Album

If you use a PC day in and day out, customizing your desktop environment is something you can do to bring a more “personal” touch to your desktop.  WindowBlinds allows users of Windows XP and Windows Vista the option to change the look and feel of their desktop by changing the visual style of Windows, also called skinning.  There are literally thousands and thousands of skins for WindowBlinds created by hobbyists, all the way up to professional graphic designers.  There are skins to match just about every taste and style, however, sometimes you might want your own style or just a few simple UI changes.  This is where SkinStudio comes in.

Windows XP (Un-skinned and skinned)

SkinStudio is an application developed by Stardock, which also develop WindowBlinds.  SkinStudio’s main function is to create and edit skins for use with WindowBlinds.  At first thought, creating skins for Windows could be a daunting task, but SkinStudio has been developed for making skins or modifying existing ones easy for the every day user.  You might like the look of a particular visual style or theme, but just want to change the start button for example.  You can easily do this with SkinStudio, and I wanted to share some resources to get your started.

Some things you will need:

• A copy of SkinStudio.  SkinStudio is a free download, and SkinStudio Pro is available for purchase for just $20.
  
  
• Graphics editor of choice.  There are many options here, some paid and some for free.  My favorite free editors are Paint.NET and the Gimp.  Other applications I recommend are Photoshop, Photoshop Elements, and Paint Shop Pro.
  
  
• SkinStudio tutorial.  This tutorial was created with beginners in mind, and goes through the complete process of creating a skin from start to finish.  It’s also available as a .pdf download, so you can print and follow from there as well.
  
  
• WinCustomize Wiki.  The WC Wiki has a ton of resources, many of which are generated by the skinning community themselves.  It’s a great place to get other tutorials.

With the tools above, you can have your new or modified skin going in no time at all.  SkinStudio has different categories to help you find the section of skin you want to create. 

For more information, including screenshots and downloads, visit www.skinstudio.net.

Well I finally got Windows 7 installed on my laptop.  The only issue I had was getting the partitioning right, but that was my problem. 

Installation took about 10 minutes, and in about 20 minutes overall I was on the desktop ready to work.  Very impressive!

So far, Windows 7 seems very fast and haven’t run into any problems as of yet.  No problems with application compatibility yet, and I’m really liking some of the design changes.

Still have a lot to go through, but my initial quick impression is great!

Social Networks are popular as ever, and I’m proud to say we have made good use of the technology to keep our users, friends, fan, and everybody else updated with what’s going on with our games, applications, and services.  I have made posts in the past on some of our specific networks, but today I wanted to create a directory where you can help us by joining our networks.

Twitter:

@islanddog – My Twitter account where you can keep updated on just about everything going on with Stardock, and tech in general.

@mittense – One of Stardock’s game developers, definitely a good follow here.

@stardock – This is our official Stardock Twitter account.  Keep updated with the latest Stardock news.

@impulsedriven – This is our official Impulse account.  Just as above, keep up with the latest Impulse releases and related news.

@wincustomize – This is our account for WinCustomize.  Aside from news, we often post featured skins and articles.

Friendfeed:

PC Gamers room – This is a Friendfeed room that has news, articles, and anything else related to PC gaming.

Facebook:

Desktop Customization group – We have a group with hundreds of members who are interested in customizing the desktop.  Anybody can join.

Sins of a Solar Empire fan page – We have a fan page on Facebook for Sins that is approaching a thousand members!  It’s another great place to associate with other Sins fans.

Elemental: War of Magic fan page – Same as the Sins page, we have this setup for fans of the upcoming game, Elemental.

Stardock fan page – Come join our fan group for Stardock!

WinCustomize fan page – Support WinCustomize at our fan page on Facebook.

Demigod fan page – Stay up to date with other fans of Demigod.