Make Win 7 look/act like 2k/XP?

[randomizer]

Linux allows far more flexibility than Windows ever will. There is no obligation for any Linux distribution to work on any hardware, but Windows must because you pay for a licence to use it, meaning you have a right to expect a quality product. For this reason Windows must go through slower development to ensure existing features aren't broken, new features work, and backwards compatibility is maintained to a reasonable degree. If something doesn't work on Windows you can flood MS phone lines for support. If it doesn't work on Linux you can only whinge on forums about it.

 

[Zoron]

LOL.

Fortunately, the Linux community is generally very helpful and will either give you or point you to step by step instructions to accomplish your goals. The only thing I ever phone MS for is product activation.

Windows 7 (as well as Vista) has a "Classic" theme to make the GUI more like XP's. Personally, it really doesn't bother me if the GUI is changes... the changes aren't usually significant enough to slow me down much. I'm sure that MS's marketing department also has something to do with changing the GUI... after all if it looks exactly like XP then what is there to differentiate it from XP? Will enough people buy the new OS when it doesn't look any different from the old one? You and I may know there's a difference, but the "average Joe" won't. The average Joe makes up the majority of home computer users... so MS has to try to appeal to them as well.

 

[Bullheaded67]

My wife is probably the worst person I know of when it comes to changing the desktop environment on her PC. I have worked in large corporate IT for 20 years now and have seen a lot of people - she is still the worst. That said, it took her about a week to get used to using Windows 7 and she now loves it.

OMG it's change!!!! well you know - sometimes change is a good thing. Try learning why they made the changes to the GUI and what it can do for you before you start complaining just because it is different. No fair going in right away and trying to change the configuration and then saying it sucks either.

Frankly, I wasn't a big fan of Vista - it pains me having to use it in the office now instead of 7. If you give 7 an honest try and it's not for you then so be it, but don't gripe just because it is different. Progress sometimes brings changes we have to adapt to or suffer for lack thereof.

 

[djcoolmasterx]

Just incase anyone is interested, I use a VBsript file on my desktop to toggle hidden files which is much faster then going through all the menus. Works on Vista and Windows 7. Not sure about XP though.

[cpp]If 1=1 Then

Set sh = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
theKey = "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Hidden"
setHidden = sh.RegRead(theKey)

If setHidden = 1 Then
setHidden = 0
MsgBox "System and hidden files will no longer appear in Explorer.",64,"Hidden File Exchange"
Else
setHidden = 1
MsgBox "System and hidden files will appear in Explorer.",64,"Hidden File Exchange"
End If

sh.RegWrite theKey,setHidden,"REG_DWORD"
Set sh = Nothing

End If[/cpp]


Save it in notepad as, anyfile, togglehidden.vbs

 

[Zoron]

Don't know about that... I can click pretty fast...

 

[gcortes]

In my XP System I moved my "My Documents" folder onto the D: drive. That still left a lot of Windows-managed files on the OS drive under "Documents and Settings" folder which I could pretty much ignore. I've decided to take the same tack with Windows 7. I've created a separate root folder on my D: drive and I store all my stuff in there. I've created shortcuts to that from the "real" My Documents folder so that I can easily get to my stuff from all of the standard dialogue boxes. I'm not 100% sure that this is the right way to go yet, but it's nice to have all that unwanted cr*p out of the way and to have the files I can see in the explorer window match the files I can see at the command line.

I've want to do the same thing. I currently use Vista and followed an online article on how to move some of the default folders. I was hoping there would be a better way in Windows 7. Apparently there is. I came across several posts in Mircosofts Technet that indicated you could right click on C:/Users/yourNameHere, select Properties, and then the Transfer tab. That would allow you to move that user to another drive. I don't see that option in my Build 7100 version of the OS so I can't confirm it works. Hopefully the option is in the RTM version. Wish I could get my hands on it.

It was also mentioned by one author that you could use WAIK to configure an install of the OS that did the same thing, presumably placing the entire Users directory where you wanted it. Another poster said the procedure was problematic. My quick read through the documentation for the WAIK made it seem like quite a bit of work.

Curt

 

[Skw]

I keep XP until world ends.

Vista and 7 sucks every way.

 

[sminlal]

It was also mentioned by one author that you could use WAIK to configure an install of the OS that did the same thing, presumably placing the entire Users directory where you wanted it.

The disadvantage of the WAIK method (apart from the effort) is that the initial administrative account ends up on the data drive as well. This makes it difficult to sign on and recover the system if the data drive dies.

I like to leave the initial administrative account on the system drive and then reconfigure the profiles directory in the registry so that all users created after that go onto the data drive. You can do this by:

- run RegEdit
- navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
- Change the value of ProfilesDirectory from "%SystemDrive%\..." to "D:\..."

Note, though, that the accounts still get all the extra folders like "My Music", "My Videos", "Downloads", etc. etc - so this isn't a complete solution for people such as myself who want their own "Documents" folder without all the extra cr@p...

 

[qams]

It would be nice if XP theme will be available in 7

 

[sminlal]

I keep XP until world ends.

You'll be fine as long as you can scrounge around in flea markets and garage sales to replace your hardware as it fails...

 

[reconviperone1]

Thanks for all the replies guys. I would stay with 2K/XP except that I plan on running 12GB RAM and want to use an i7, and from what I understand, the newer OS's are better at handling the multiple cores and additional memory (certainly the 32-bit limit -- if 64-bit XP didn't get such poor reviews, I'd be considering it over everything else).


Certainly I'm not shunning progress, nor do I churn butter on the weekends in an electricity-deprived village in the woods. I've just become continually frustrated with interfaces that fundamentally change the way I interact with the computer, that's all. I shouldn't have to learn a new GUI every XX number of years. You call it progress, fine. If you've happy with the new gee/whiz/flash/bang aspects of Win7, more power to you.

I may be old fashioned (hell, I don't even have LED fans in my case or a touch screen on my cell phone, oh the calamity) but I don't look forward to changing the way I interface with my PC just because I want to upgrade to software that lets me use the latest hardware.

And I guarantee you I'm not alone in my opinion

I agree with the led thing, i went from a themaltak with a million lights to a antec p182, thats a big black monstrosity, and touch screen phones are kinda annoying when you are having a text argument with your woman(we are both in our late thirties, go figure), but thats it, i love windows 7, like i love xp, funny thing it took me years to love xp(kept 98se for years)loved windows 7 immediately, and to be quite honest vista is not so bad with the service packs.

 

[djcoolmasterx]

I keep XP until world ends.

Vista and 7 sucks every way.

You better help the world ends soon or you will be massively out of date in a couple of years.

 

[JonathanDeane]

You'll be fine as long as you can scrounge around in flea markets and garage sales to replace your hardware as it fails...

lol I do that already but I am looking for things I know are out of date.... (currently collecting NES and SNES stuff some original Playstation games and always old old computer parts lol)

Reminds me I just picked up Brood Wars for 1$ and while it plays on Windows 7 it needs a patch or something, colors are slightly messed up.

Amazingly Diablo 2 and LoD runs perfectly considering how old it is.

Of course I am keeping some old hardware around for the day XP falls into collector status...

I guess I could just run it in a VM but its never quite the same

I run MAME to play some old arcade games that never came to the home consoles but even that is not the same (its just better then nothing) Not knocking the MAME team they do things that I would say where nearly impossible but you just cant emulate a smoke filled arcade full of people to make friends with or just pummel with your skills!


I guess the whole point of this long rambling post is just, why make 7 look like XP ? XP was great but it looked like Windows 95 and that time is long gone now. Things have moved on some for the better and some for the worse but you take the good you take the bad you take them both and there you have, the facts of life.

 

[sminlal]

lol I do that already but I am looking for things I know are out of date.... (currently collecting NES and SNES stuff some original Playstation games and always old old computer parts lol)

The computer industry moves so fast that the trailing edge is right behind the leading edge. If you're willing to set your personal technology calendar back a few dozen months you can enjoy all of the technological treats for dirt cheap prices.

 

[Zoron]

I fully agree with JD... Windows 7's interface is cleaner and faster than XP's... so why anyone would want to hang onto XP's now dated interface escapes me. Sure, it may be what you're used to... but for the most part Windows is Windows... it's not going to be so drastic a change that you can't find anything.

 

[gcortes]

You'll be fine as long as you can scrounge around in flea markets and garage sales to replace your hardware as it fails...

Maybe I could run XP on my IMSAI. That would be a lot better than CPM. Do you think I could do it 32K of memory

 

[gcortes]

The disadvantage of the WAIK method (apart from the effort) is that the initial administrative account ends up on the data drive as well. This makes it difficult to sign on and recover the system if the data drive dies.

I like to leave the initial administrative account on the system drive and then reconfigure the profiles directory in the registry so that all users created after that go onto the data drive. You can do this by:

- run RegEdit
- navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\ProfileList
- Change the value of ProfilesDirectory from "%SystemDrive%\..." to "D:\..."

Note, though, that the accounts still get all the extra folders like "My Music", "My Videos", "Downloads", etc. etc - so this isn't a complete solution for people such as myself who want their own "Documents" folder without all the extra cr@p...

I agree that the WAIK method is far to much work for a single install. I found another procedure written for Vista that the author is testing for Windows 7. It's at: http://joshmouch.wordpress.com/2007/04/07/change-user-profile-folder-location-in-vista/

 

[blaklite]

If Win7 is so f'ing brilliant, please explain how you can have a valid folder like

C:\Users\Default\AppData\Local\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\Application Data\..etc..

or C:\Users\Name\My Documents (shortcut) is "Access Denied"
but C:\Users\Name\My Documents (folder) is fine

Shome mishtake shurely

Its's stupid stuff like that that make me wanna forget Win7 et al and stick with what is working. But as the only reason I use M$ is so I can play games, all I really would want is a hack for DX10/11 to be able to run on XP. Then I bet a sizable number of people wouldn't ever move from XP.

Perhaps by the time Win 8 comes around, i'll be so brain dead from M$ telling me black is white, and their desktop is "customizable", I really wont mind so much.

 

[Zoron]

I really don't see what you're complaining about...

As for DX 10 / 11 on XP... it's already been tried and failed. So you can stop getting your hopes up.

 

[blaklite]

I moaned like the rest when 95 went to XP, but this time there is something else. Perhaps i'm just getting old and set in my ways, but this OS just "feels" wrong.

Vista just didn't get me, and as hard as I try I just can't do the same stuff in 7 as quickly as I can in XP. It's mainly the extra crap they have added, the "dumbing down" of the OS, trying to compete with OSX/Apple (on the cheap).

All I would like is to be able to configure stuff more. Case in point, the customizable desktops that M$ rave about. Just collections of pictures for the background, no real "look and feel" changes.
It's very difficult to make an OS that everybody will agree is fast, easy to use etc. So why try? Wouldn't it be better to allow the user the option? With a nice choice of an Easy or Advanced mode for those overwhelmed by whats on offer. I expected Win7 to be a kind of XP+, but instead we got a patched up Vista SP2(3?).

The user interface is so important because it is the way that people interact with the machine, and at the moment I am losing out on the benefits of all of the work that has gone into the kernel, TCP stack, 64bit memory, etc, just because of annoying niggling little things that really shouldn't be a problem.

Add to that the overwhelming media praise for an OS that Vista should have been, big deal they didn't f**k it up as bad as last time, woohoo.

 

[lucuis]

Having used Windows 95, 98, 2000, ME, XP, Vista, and 7, i can say with confidence that you are indeed just getting old and set in your ways.

I used to always like XP, but after using windows 7 for a few months then using XP on a friends computer i now know why windows 7 is so much better.

Aside from the obvious advantages of support, and dx 10/11, windows 7 just feels better. The start menu search first introduced into Vista is a godsend. I don't have to go browsing explorer to get to my files nearly as frequently. Shaving a ton of time off of trivial tasks. Boot time after months of usage is still the same sub 60 seconds, but i do keep a clean system. Msconfig is my friend

I used Vista 64bit for a couple years. It can be tweaked and tuned to run the same as Windows 7. But such optimization took time and patience. So yes Windows 7 is what Vista should have been, plus a little extra since i personally can't do what Microsoft did under the hood.

The user interface is so goddamn similar in terms of usage in general i don't know what the hardcore XP users are complaining about. Having used both, i can say again those users are just being nitpicky. Once you get used to the subtle changes, and ignore the stupid library thing that has been added, you'll wonder why you stuck with XP so long. Just ask my dad, he 'was' one of those hardcore XP users. He now is happily running Windows 7 RC, with a little nudging from me, and isn't looking back.

 

[blaklite]

sigh

 

[Zoron]

You can make 7 look more like XP if that is your wish... there is more to it than just "changing the background". No, everything isn't in exactly the same place as it was with XP, but all the customization options that XP had are still there. The only way to get more is to switch to Linux...

 

[blaklite]

"The only way to get more is to switch to Linux"

As I said I use Windows mainly for games =P
They just seem to have locked down he GUI, forcing you into doing things in a certain way. Take the idiocy of the "Users" folders. I never used them in XP and I dont want to have to move all my stuff into "My Documents" or wherever the hell they are sposed to go, plus the fact that i'm not allowed into MY OWN "Application Data" folder.

The whole thing just stinks of the usual, "Mr Corporation, please allow me to bend forward a bit more while you stick DRM, hidden Admin accounts, WGA, UAC and all the rest of it, up there nice and tight".
I just resent being bullied by the likes of M$, the people that thought that it was a good idea to release vista when they did, and STILL have "Hide extensions for known filetypes" set as default, all I wanted was choice, all I got was PR hype.
As for the big compaines still running 2000/XP etc (yep there are plenty of them), why on earth would they even think about rolling out a Home PC on their networks? yeah right, sally the secretary really needs a new PC so she can run the "Aero" desktop thingmy.

To all the windowz fanboi's here, M$ has sold u a, what was the expression, polished turnip, turkey erm.. something like that newway, I forget.

 

[digitalvivo]

Windows Themes>classic

all you need to do.

Also change is good my friend!