Dreams are high quality
visualizations from Stardock
that run exclusively on
Windows Vista Ultimate and
transform the static wallpaper
users spend all day looking
at, turning their PC desktop
into a world of motion and
activity.
Dreams
are subtle, looped motion
videos or animations that
bring new life to the desktop
without slowing down your PC.
Watch a serene nature scene
while you type an email.
Glance at a meteor shower as
you work on a document. Make
your desktop interesting again
with a Dream enhanced for
Windows® DreamScene™ and
Windows Vista™
Ultimate.
neowin.net -
14.02.2007TweakVista Beta Now Available
TweakVista is a utility that enables
users to optimize the
performance and behavior of
Windows Vista. The program has
been designed to allow both
casual, non-technical users to
safely use it as well as
contain a host of advanced
features for power users to
dig into the internals of
Windows Vista.
The
feature-packed utility
includes features such as:
- Security Handling:
Users can now easily and
safely adjust the way Windows
handles security prompting
including the new UAC (User
Account Control)
-
Memory Optimization:
TweakVista knows which
start-up services different
types of users will typically
use and offers recommendations
on what services to disable.
Users can easily switch
between different profiles
(including the default) based
on their needs to maximize
performance and memory use.
- Resource Control: Tweak
Vista has several features for
keeping an eye on and flagging
programs that use excessive
amounts of resources (memory,
CPU, or system handles) as
well as integrating seamlessly
with built in hardware
diagnostic reports...
winbeta.org -
21.06.2007Stardock Delivers Object
Desktop 2007
Stardock on Tuesday released
the 2007 version of its
popular Object Desktop suite
of Windows customization
utilities. The package of
tools enables customers to
completely change the way
Windows looks and functions to
suit their personal tastes...
betanews.com -
02.08.2006WindowBlinds 6 Alters Vista Interface
Stardock has released version 6 of its popular WindowBlinds user interface skinning application, which is the first tool that can overhaul the look of
Windows Vista - from the Taskbar to window borders and buttons...
betanews.com -
03.10.2007DeskScapes 2.0 Preview Available
Stardock is pleased to announce that the DeskScapes 2.0 preview version is now available. DeskScapes allows users of Windows Vista to have animated
wallpapers on their desktop. It runs the Stardock created .DREAM format which can contain videos as animated wallpapers or dynamically generated
content.
What makes DeskScapes special is that animated wallpapers can be run that use hardly any system resources (obviously
this will depend on what animated wallpaper is chosen). It integrates seamlessly with the Windows Vista desktop background dialog so picking animated
wallpapers is much the same as picking any other desktop wallpaper.
winbeta.org -
13.03.2008How to fix three "broken" features of Vista
Jonathan Schlaffer: Certain problems with Vista wont be fixed by service packs or by updates but rather were actually part of the design. Users got
used to XP and the way XP did things but Vista does some things differently. To help get your sanity back here are three things you can do to make
Vista more amiable.
First, lets tackle UAC. Vistas UAC enables account controls which requires you to specify program actions
when they need elevated permissions. The problem is that almost every action in Vista will require such. This can be turned off while still leaving
the more important virtualization protection in place.
There are two ways to do this, by using native commands in Vista which is
a 6-step process and should be avoided by everyone unless you want to create śLocal Security Policyť specifically for that. I cant recommend doing
so. Instead, download
Tweak UAC which will allow you to painlessly enable quiet mode.
winbeta.org -
26.02.2008Stardock outlines Object Desktop for Vista plans
Software developer Stardock
Corp. has begun to unveil its
Windows Vista plans for its
popular desktop enhancement
suite, Object Desktop. Object
Desktop is a set of programs
designed to allow users to
customize their Windows
experience. On Windows, it was
the first product to provide
OS skinning, widgets and
gadgets, alpha blended
shadows, min/max effects, ZIP
files as folders, and a number
of other features that users
take for granted today.
Stardock believes that
Windows Vista offers the most
potential yet for users to be
able to personalize their
Windows experience. This is
due to a new feature in
Windows Vista known as the
Desktop Window Manager (DWM)
which is a compositor that
turns the Windows Vista
desktop into a 3D surface
(much like you'd have in
computer game). This allows
for what Stardock claims is
"cool and interesting ways to
display information, programs,
and data without suffering the
performance hit because most
of it is being done on the
video card."
This
week, Stardock intends to
release the beta of
WindowBlinds for Windows Vista
for Object Desktop users and
has announced support for
creating gadgets for the
Windows Sidebar using
DesktopX. It has released a
document outlining some of its
"first wave" of Windows
Vista applications for Object
Desktop. This also includes
the ability to use WPF and
.NET for Sidebar gadgets via
Object Desktop.
Microsoft's Jim Allchin has
asked developers to make full
use of Windows Vista in order
to help differentiate Windows
Vista from Windows XP. With
its expected January release,
a lot of users are looking for
tangible benefits of Windows
Vista over Windows XP.
Microsoft has asserted that
the Windows Presentation
Foundation (WPF) and DWM along
with enhanced security, and a
new communications layer help
make Vista a compelling
upgrade.
neowin.net -
15.11.2006Animated wallpapers no longer just for the Vista elite
Animated
wallpapers have been one of the “Extras” that Microsoft has touted as a selling point for customers of its priciest Windows Vista SKU.
But now Stardock is bringing animated wallpapers to the Vista masses.
Stardock, a Gold Certified Microsoft partner, worked with Microsoft on DreamScene — a desktop-display feature that
allows users to make looped, full-motion video their desktop wallpaper (as opposed to using static images only for background wallpaper). After a
number of delays,
Microsoft finally released DreamScene in September 2007.
Stardock helped to create much of the initial
wallpaper content for DreamScene and then went on to release DeskScapes 1.0 for Vista Ultimate users interested in enhancing DreamScene. With
DeskScapes 2.0, Stardock has decided to make animated wallpapers avaialble to users of Vista Business, Home Premium and Ultimate users. The Standard
edition of the product will be available as a free download; an enhanced version with additional features and “premium” content also will
be availbale for $19.95.
neowin.net -
13.11.2007Stardock WindowBlinds 6 transforms Windows XP, Vista user experience
Stardock, the worlds largest Windows customization company, released the highly anticipated
sixth version of WindowBlinds today. With over 12 million downloads on CNETs Download.com, WindowBlinds is a utility that allows users to change the
look and feel of the Windows desktop experience by applying skins to the user interface. WindowBlinds can change title bars, push buttons, Start bars,
scrollbars and nearly every other element of the Windows user interface. The software is $19.95 and can be downloaded directly from
www.windowblinds.net.
A WindowBlinds skin can change Windows to look
like an alternative operating system, favorite sports car brands, favorite sports team, or virtually anything else. With modern video cards,
WindowBlinds can do this without reducing performance. WindowBlinds 6 adds the ability to have śblurred glassť window borders on Windows XP which
allows artists to make skins that could make Windows XP look virtually identical to Windows Vista.
Additionally, WindowBlinds 6
adds full support for customizing Microsofts new Windows Vista operating system. Everything from Internet Explorer 7 skinning, Sidebar skinning to
explorer backgrounds, WindowBlinds 6 skins virtually every element of Windows Vista while making full use of the hardware acceleration features on
Windows Vista for maximum performance.
winbeta.org -
03.10.2007Windows Vista gets skinned
Software developer Stardock released WindowBlinds 6 today. Amongst the new features includes the ability to customize the entire Windows Vista user
interface as well as the capability to give Windows XP users the look and feel of Aero (Vista).
CNET.com has taken a look at the new
version and highlighted just how close to Vista WindowBlinds can visually bring XP. WindowBlinds 6 can even do the blur effect on XP with superior
performance to the same hardware on Windows Vista. Computerworld has pointed out that programs like WindowBlinds force Microsoft to make a stronger
case for Windows Vista and in particular Windows Vista Ultimate (which Stardock is also involved with).
neowin.net -
03.10.2007How to fix 3 "broken features" in Windows Vista
Certain problems with Vista won’t be fixed by service packs or by updates but rather were actually part of the design. Users got used to XP and
the way XP did things but Vista does some things differently. To help get your sanity back here are three things you can do to make Vista more
amiable.
First, let’s tackle UAC. Vista’s UAC enables account controls which requires you to specify program actions when they
need elevated permissions. The problem is that almost every action in Vista will require such. This can be turned off while still leaving the more
important virtualization protection in place.
There are two ways to do this, by using native commands in Vista which is a 6-step process
and should be avoided by everyone unless you want to create “Local Security Policy” specifically for that. I can’t recommend doing
so. Instead, download
Tweak UAC which will allow you to painlessly enable quiet mode.
neowin.net -
26.02.2008NVIDIA branded version of Impulse announced
NVIDIA and Stardock have announced a special Impulse 'NVIDIA Edition' which will be specially branded for NVIDIA users. Gamers will be able
to be informed of video card driver updates and install them via Stardock's Impulse. Users will also use Impulse to see the latest gaming news
and purchase and download PC games straight from Impulse. "The single biggest issue preventing PC gamers today from having an optimal experience is
a failure to update their video card drivers," said Brad Wardell, CEO and president of Stardock. "For many users, updating video drivers has been a
complicated and sometimes confusing experience.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
02.09.2009Now all Vista users can Dream
Windows Vista Ultimate users are no longer the only ones who can run animated wallpaper on their desktop. Software developer Stardock has released a
free preview of DeskScapes 2.0 which enables all users of Windows Vista to run .DREAM animated wallpapers (there are hundreds of them).
Last year, Microsoft released Windows DreamScene as a Windows Vista Ultimate. Stardock developed some of the animated wallpapres for Windows
DreamScene as well as provided DeskScapes 1.0 which allowed DreamScene to run the new .DREAM animated wallpaper format. DeskScapes allowed for not
just video dreams (which tend to use more CPU) but dynamic dreams as well which use virtually no CPU whatsoever by putting the animation purely on the
video accelerator.
Neowin will have some exclusive .DREAM content coming out this Summer. Stay tuned.
neowin.net -
14.03.2008WindowBlinds 5 Brings Vista UI
to XP
One of the most anticipated
features in Windows Vista is
its redesigned user interface
that features glass-like title
bars and alpha blended
windows. But with the upgrade
a year away, Stardock has
released WindowBlinds 5 to
offer Windows XP users the
same capabilities right
now.
Photos:
View images of
WindowBlinds 5..
betanews.com -
30.11.2005Tweak MCE PowerToy Available
for Download
Tweak MCE gives you
access to systems settings and
options not normally exposed
in the Windows XP Media Center
Edition user interface,
including remote control
settings, Skip and Replay time
customizations, user interface
options, and more. It also
helps you to optimize Media
Center Extender for plasma and
non-CRT displays. It works
with Update Rollup 2 for
Windows XP Media Center
Edition
2005.
Syst
em
Requirements:
-Supported
Operating Systems: Windows XP
Media Center
Edition
Dow
nload:
Tweak MCE
PowerToy..
winbeta.org -
08.11.2005WinBubble 1.6 was released
A Windows Vista tweaker, able to do with two mouse clicks what it would take a beginner and expert user several minutes or even hours deep inside the
Windows registry. WinBubble 1.0 to 1.5, "Bridging the Gap" started as a way to tweak and customize the amazing Vista screensavers. Remember this
message box? "This screensaver has no options that you can set.”
Now it has become a major aid to making Windows Vista look, feel
and act the way you want it to. WinBubble 1.6 will start the idea of simplicity combined with knowledge. In just two clicks, WinBubble will help you
to Customize and Tweak your Windows Vista easily.
Its features cover Customization, Security and Optimization.
neowin.net -
01.02.2008
Windows Vista Memory Tweak Guide