•   microsoft.com/presspass
•   jcxp.net
•   betanews.com
•   neowin.net
•   winbeta.org
•   msdn.microsoft.com
•   windowsxp / expertzone
•   ms.com/windowsvista

• Windows 7 Wallpapers
• Vista Wallpapers
• Windows Wallpapers

1. 50% OSX


2. 34% Windows XP


3. 15% random Linux distros


4. 1% Vista (me)

 This style can be found in the Windows Embedded Standard CTP Refresh. It's called "Embedded" and, along with the wallpaper, gets copied into the image if the Windows XP UI component is added. As it's digitally signed it works with any XP/Server 2003 install. The archive I uploaded below contains the Embedded folder and the Embedded.theme to be copied to %systemroot%resourcesthemes and the wallpaper in its original format and size.




winbeta.org - 09.10.2008

.mobi Aims to Standardize Mobile Web

AT CTIA The theme of fixing the poor mobile Internet experience has been an overarching theme so far at this year's CTIA Wireless show in Las Vegas. .mobi's Alexa Raad thinks her company is about to solve that, and she sat down with BetaNews to tell us why...
betanews.com - 04.04.2006

Google preparing to launch theme gallery for Chrome

Last week, information was spread that Google planned to implement proper theme support within their Chrome browser. Just recently, people have discovered, in the developer builds of the browser, that the company has built in the theme support already. It was unclear how they'd plan to display said themes, though many suspected the obvious choice of an online gallery; now, however, TechCrunch is reporting that this has been all but confirmed, with several themes already having been discovered. TechCrunch states that the themes will be available at this link, which has obviously yet to go online, but you can already preview it if you have the very latest build of the Chrome browser.

Read full story.....
neowin.net - 03.08.2009

Six reasons OSX will not go mainstream

Apple has a great consumer OS on its hands. Its sleek, it's easy to use and it will not ever make it to mainstream America. There are 6 reasons why we will never see Apple take more than a third of the market share. For the sake of this article, mainstream will be referred to as greater than 33% of all computers.

Reason #6: The corporate world won't adopt OSX. Look around your office, more than likely you're looking at a Windows based environment. While it's true that not all companies run Windows, it is safe to say that the majority do in some form. Why wont corporations switch? Its simple, companies invest millions of dollars to keep up a Windows based infrastructure. The only thing costlier than maintaining thousands of computers is to replace them all, all with OSX.

If we can't convert our companies to OSX then we stand little chance in convincing institutions of higher education to do the same. The idea is based on a waterfall principle that we need a major change on one front to affect the rest. The problem is that the world revolves around money and it costs money to replace current infrastructures with OSX. While corporations are not the only user of computers they have a massive trickle down effect. The average person can pick up and use a Windows computer without a problem no matter what version they use; it's a 'comfortable' operating system. The same can not be said about OSX, while it may be easy to use, not nearly as many people have used OSX as compared to Windows. If our corporations use Windows our schools will teach upon it, how many people have taken a Windows based course before?

Reason #5: Software. Let's take a simple look at the available software titles out there for each platform. Regardless of the topic Windows based programs dwarf the OSX competition with ease. If your looking for a program to do a certain task you will, without a doubt, have more options on Windows PC. If you're a hardcore gamer there is no option but to have a copy of Windows at your disposal if you care to keep up on the most current titles.

If you're into business software the options for OSX are dismal at best. While it's unfortunate that Microsoft commands so much power but the latest versions of Microsoft Office always come out on Windows before OSX. While not a deal breaker for the home user it can be for reason #5.

Reason #4: Apples Image. Apple has built the image that it is modern and un-Microsoft. While this is working out great for Apple in the short term it also limits its user base. Take a look at any OSX vs Vista advertisement. It's always the cool kid making fun of the suit Vista. While this is great for the college student looking to get a computer it doesn't work so well with mom and dad who very well may see themselves as a 'suit' in that picture. Look around your dinner table and more than likely your father or mother is a suit at work. Professionalism is key to many adults and Apple has steered itself away from be the professional option. Good for poor college kids not so good for the hard working suit.

Reason #3: OSX is a closed platform. Want to build a custom computer with OSX; don't even try (legally). Apple has limited the configurations that OSX can be implemented on. This works well for Apple's business model but anyone who wants to construct a custom built computer is not able to use OSX (legally). If you're trying to build the ultimate computer with bleeding edge technology for your need, OSX is not an option. Lock the platform and you lock out consumers.

Reason #2: The Apple Tax. To get a computer running OSX you must buy a computer from Apple. Apple computers have a higher cost than a traditional PC from Dell or HP. Also it has to be mentioned that there is no low-cost option. The cheapest option is the Mac-mini which starts at $599.99. For someone looking to buy a budget PC, Apple is not an option.

Reason #1: Steve Jobs. To become a major competitor you must remain strong for the foreseeable future. Many people don't like to buy into a product that doesn't have a long life ahead of it. Regardless of how well OSX runs, how cool it looks, it can all be attributed back to Steve Jobs; he is the master of sales and marketing. Much of Apple's recent success can be attributed to his skills. Steve Jobs will not live nor want to work forever. When Steve passes the buck to the next person in line will his horde of followers accept this?

Read full story.....
neowin.net - 13.11.2008

Could Mac OSX run Windows apps natively?

Once Intel chips landed inside Macs and Boot Camp made its debut, it got a lot harder to blame rumor mongers for making a certain leap: Mac OS X could one day run Windows apps sans-Windows. Indeed, projects like the open source Wine have facilitated some of this functionality, albeit in a limited fashion, for some time now. But a new discussion on a Wine mailing list could refresh hope for those looking to get their Frankenstein on with Mac OS X and Windows computing.

The discussion begins with a mailing list message called Interesting Behavior of OS X, in which Steven Edwards describes the discovery that Leopard apparently contains an undocumented loader for Portable Executables, a type of file used in 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows. More poking around revealed that Leopard's own loader tries to find Windows DLL files when attempting to load a Windows binary.


Read full story.....
neowin.net - 03.12.2007

Snow Leopard to bring a new 'marble' appearance?

Apple has always said that the new version of OS X dubbed "Snow Leopard" would be about performance gains and not new visuals. With that in mind it has been circulating the web in resounding fashion that Apple will release a new theme for OS X when the product is launched. A mockup (below) gives a possible rendering of what the new theme may look like. There is not much else to go on but when a story gets this big it generally means there is some credibility behind the source. Keep your eyes peeled as it is expected that this theme will be unveiled anytime between now and the upcoming WWDC.

Read full story.....
neowin.net - 26.03.2009

New theme coming for Vista

Mentioned at a dinner last night with Jim Allchin was that a new theme is coming to replace the Non-Aero Theme for Vista Capable PCs (PC's that cannot run Windows Aero).

Also mentioned were some other great features coming from Vista, Restart Manager and Windows ReadyBoost.


jcxp.net - 25.05.2006

Gmail offers new Inbox themes

Gmail owners, Google, wanted "to go beyond simple color customization" and have announced 30 new themes. There's many new themes to fit your style, a shiny theme with chrome styling, another one that turns your inbox into a retro notepad, nature themes that change scenery over time and even a weather theme that can rain on your mailbox. There's even an old school ascii theme (Terminal) to geek up your mailbox. Google have also done some work to Gmail's default look to make it "crisper and cleaner". To customise your inbox, go to the Themes tab under Settings.

Read full story.....
neowin.net - 20.11.2008

Royale Noir: secret XP theme uncovered

Sometime after the launch of XP, somewhere in Redmond, someone on the Microsoft design team was in the progress of developing something for Media Center. It was believed to be too powerful for public consumption and forever archived in the servers at 1 Microsoft Way.



Devoted Channel9 member W3bbo spotted an interesting theme on one of the people_ready television commercials airing in the States. After some dedicated searching, he finally uncovered this mystery XP theme by Microsoft. W3bbo writes,



"D uring Royales development (the XP Media Center theme), the graphic artists also produced a black version of the skin, sans the overused glass effect. The result is an aesthetic black skin named Royale Noir, it even works with Office 2003.



Since the skin was never released (or reached final adjustments) there are a few issues with it: some of the colors dont meet the overall feel (theyre too purple-ish compared to the greys of the bitmaps) and the inactive titlebars are a little too dark.


..
windowsvistax.com - 31.10.2006

New Windows Vista Standard Theme

Screenshots recently released have confirmed speculation that the Windows Vista "Scrap Metal" theme would not in fact be the final visual style that users without Aero Glass would see. The new visual style seems to resemble the Aero Glass style much more closely.


jcxp.net - 07.07.2006

Snow Leopard: New Marble Interface?

With every release of OS X, like most operating systems, interface changes are constantly being made. Snow Leopard, Apple's upcoming operating system, is yet to see any major UI changes in the currently available builds. However, a source has revealed a new theme that may be underway.

Recently leaked information states that Snow Leopard will use the Marble theme instead of Aqua. While not much is known about the new theme, Marble is expected to consist of a flattened Aqua look and pick up some elements from iTunes and iPhoto, unifying the style across the operating system.

Snow Leopard is expected to be released in this quarter.


jcxp.net - 15.01.2009

Apple strikes again to halt iPhone jailbreaking

Apple's latest update to OSX, 10.5.6, includes an impressive list of performance and bug fixes but hidden amongst the latest and greatest is that 10.5.6 disables the Pwnage tool, making you unable to jailbreak or unlock your iPhone or iPod Touch with Mac OSX. The update prevents jailbreaking by disabling the software at the OS level. Apple is stopping 10.5.6 Mac's from recognizing the device in DFU (device firmware update) mode by using new code that affects the USB ports on Apple computers at the driver level and how they interact with the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Read full story.....
neowin.net - 16.12.2008