Windows 7 Build 6936 Screenshots IS HERE !

[ToneKnee]

If Windows XP beta 1 looked like this, I'm not able to imagine the finale release of 7 which is already very promising...

But it might be how Vista Beta 1 looked, not much different from the RTM.

[Rudy]

"Watercolor" or anything like it requires the themes service, and it can't be implemented without it. Since I had already explained that, mentioning it in the context of Windows Classic is what confused me.

Classic == No themes service.

Basic == Themes service.

Aero == Themes service + DWM.

Changes to "classic" are pretty much impossible without breaking lots of things.

If you're suggesting that Basic be made to look more like Watercolor, that's unlikely. Changes to Basic just aren't worth the effort, IMHO, and running with the DWM provides countless benefits so that's where all effort is directed these days. "Aero" is the Windows look and feel, and there are lots of options for customizing it in-box (color, transparency, background, cursors, etc).

If you want something more custom than that, you have the third-party options.

what they could have though is something like:

Watercolor (or insert simpler theme) == Theme service + DWM

There's no reason why they can't have Aero and another alternative, maybe something simpler and less flashy (I hate glass :x). DWM doesn't mean they have to use transparency

[Mercellus]

what they could have though is something like:

Watercolor (or insert simpler theme) == Theme service + DWM

There's no reason why they can't have Aero and another alternative, maybe something simpler and less flashy (I hate glass :x). DWM doesn't mean they have to use transparency

Agreed, there is absolutely no reason why other themes can't take advantage of the Desktop Window Manager, much like what you see today in various Linux distributions with Compiz. I would love to see some more basic themes in Windows 7, something clean and minimalist, without losing the fluidity of DWM and hardware acceleration (seeing as Microsoft killed GDI acceleration in Windows Vista when DWM is off).

[JOHW]

I find Aero Basic pretty ugly as compared to the full fledged DWM Aero..

I would much prefer it to switch to Watercolor, but then it would be pretty inconsistent with DWM Aero..

[Rudy]

I find Aero Basic pretty ugly as compared to the full fledged DWM Aero..

I would much prefer it to switch to Watercolor, but then it would be pretty inconsistent with DWM Aero..

Even a remake of Luna using the DWM would be better than glass

[HawkMan]

what they could have though is something like:

Watercolor (or insert simpler theme) == Theme service + DWM

There's no reason why they can't have Aero and another alternative, maybe something simpler and less flashy (I hate glass :x). DWM doesn't mean they have to use transparency

you do know that there's a checkbox to turn off transparency on aero, and aero like themes if you have modifed widnows to support styles.

then you have DWM without glass/transparency

and you can do this in plain old Vista.

[Imran Hussain]

Even a remake of Luna using the DWM would be better than glass

Luna wouldn't make any sense using DWM. It just doesn't seem as if it could benefit from DWM as well as glass can.

[Rudy]

you do know that there's a checkbox to turn off transparency on aero, and aero like themes if you have modifed widnows to support styles.

then you have DWM without glass/transparency

I did when I was running Vista, but I'm just suggesting that there's no reason for having just Aero, there could easily be another theme included with 7

[Quillz]

Pointless.

Not sure why the classic theme still exists if I'm honest. Think majority of the systems would would Basic quite well. Not used the classic theme myself since Win 2K.

Because with Windows, you're given options. It's there if you want it. Some people like it.

[profets]

you do know that there's a checkbox to turn off transparency on aero, and aero like themes if you have modifed widnows to support styles.

then you have DWM without glass/transparency

and you can do this in plain old Vista.

yeah, aero actually looks quite nice with transparency turned off

[Rudy]

Luna wouldn't make any sense using DWM. It just doesn't seem as if it could benefit from DWM as well as glass can.

Why not? Transparency is just one of the features of DWM (and not a very useful one at that)

[Imran Hussain]

Why not? Transparency is just one of the features of DWM (and not a very useful one at that)

Transparency was there in 2000 and XP as well. What Glass provides you is more like opacity rather than the former. And I like glass now actually. I didn't like Luna but got used to it. Same with glass. Microsoft can't just satisfy all of their billions of users with one UI for sure. Neither can they make do with a dull gray UI for a minority. :D

[Rudy]

Transparency was there in 2000 and XP as well. What Glass provides you is more like opacity rather than the former. And I like glass now actually. I didn't like Luna but got used to it. Same with glass. Microsoft can't just satisfy all of their billions of users with one UI for sure. Neither can they make do with a dull gray UI for a minority. :D

The transparency offered in Win2k/XP is NOTHING like what DWM offers. And for your second point, that's pretty much what I'm saying, I realize they can't please everyone and that's why they should have more options for the theme, it still won't please everyone but it will please more people

[Quillz]

The transparency offered in Win2k/XP is NOTHING like what DWM offers. And for your second point, that's pretty much what I'm saying, I realize they can't please everyone and that's why they should have more options for the theme, it still won't please everyone but it will please more people

But the Aero Glass UI already has far more options than Luna ever did. With Aero Glass, you get a color slider and can also control the transparency, hue and saturation. There are literally millions of combinations to be made, meaning you can get the exact color you want with the exact transparency you want. With Luna, you had blue, green or silver, and that was it.

[Brandon Live Veteran]

There's no reason why they can't have Aero and another alternative, maybe something simpler and less flashy (I hate glass :x ). DWM doesn't mean they have to use transparency

No reason? How about...

1) Radically different themes / visual styles take a lot of time to design, implement, and test.

2) Challenges in how you handle apps that extend the frame or draw glass in their window frame. What do you draw there instead?

3) Since apps tend to target one look-and-feel, many will look out of place, especially those drawing their own non-client areas.

4) Diminishes branding ability.

3) Support costs go up.

Those are just a few off the top of my head.

[George P Global Moderator]

They're doing a good job of letting you customize the Win7 UI it seems, so while you might not like Aero and Glass etc, you can change that and maybe more in Win7 come RTM. They might make it easier for people to make and implement their own custom themes/skinz like they have with XP and even Vista, though you had to hack the dll file.

Either way, I was never a big fan of Luna on XP and have used a few different skins on XP. The default XP themes never felt right to me.

[Nomad77]

If anybody's interested: Here's the fish wallpaper from build 6936 (which I found on WinFuture.de):

Thanks, do you have the link? It won't save in a image format.

[JOHW]

Thanks, do you have the link? It won't save in a image format.

No idea why you can't get it, but here it is

[Nomad77]

Thanks, it's good now.

[SMELTN]

Thanks, it's good now.

All you had to do was name it fish.jpg or whatever instead of index and it would have worked. :)

[Malskazz]

What is wrong with Classic, i dont get it.. I love it in XP, all the visual styles are crap (almost) imo, and Classic just keeps it simple and fast.

[MeDieViL02]

What is wrong with Classic, i dont get it.. I love it in XP, all the visual styles are crap (almost) imo, and Classic just keeps it simple and fast.

in my opinion classic is just fugly, glass for the win!

[jjrambo]

Not sure what happened to my previous post, it might got deleted but i will repeat.

Windows 2000 GUI is the best looking OS GUI till this day. That classic view had specific shade of gray color which is not found in any of other Microsoft Releases.

Windows GUI is getting worse and worse with Windows XP release.

I miss Windows 2000 Professional, and it was and it's still the best OS ever released.

I think Windows 7 is going to be better then Vista, much better GUI wise which one step forward. I'm glad Microsoft is going to remove Windows Mail. We really don't need duplicates Live Mail -> Windows Mail and things like that.

[profets]

Not sure what happened to my previous post, it might got deleted but i will repeat.

Windows 2000 GUI is the best looking OS GUI till this day. That classic view had specific shade of gray color which is not found in any of other Microsoft Releases.

Windows GUI is getting worse and worse with Windows XP release.

I miss Windows 2000 Professional, and it was and it's still the best OS ever released.

I think Windows 7 is going to be better then Vista, much better GUI wise which one step forward. I'm glad Microsoft is going to remove Windows Mail. We really don't need duplicates Live Mail -> Windows Mail and things like that.

why dont you stop wasting everyone's time and go play with windows 2000 then?

[Imran Hussain]

OMG! People liking and using Windows 2000 should be banned from the Internet and confined to Intranets only!