Category Archives: Operating Systems

Windows XP themes for Windows 8.1 (or Windows 7)

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Since Microsoft has finally put an end to support of the most popular Operating System it ever made (Brilliant), the Computer User Community at large is less than enthused. Many users who became comfortable with Windows XP did not relish the idea of learning a new Desktop and navigation scheme (look and feel). So they just stuck with XP and never bothered with Windows Vista, Windows 7, or Windows 8/8.1. Are they now faced with a steep learning curve? Maybe, maybe not…

Did you know recreating a Windows XP look and feel is possible for Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1?

While it requires a level of technical knowledge to do so, if you are fretting over what to do in a world without Windows XP, rest assured there is more than one way to make the desktop of the newer OS look a lot like Windows XP.

R.I.P. Windows XP

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April 8, 2014:

R.I.P Windows XP

Today is the day that Microsoft officially pulled the plug on Windows XP…

While applauding Microsoft for the longevity of Windows XP is outside typical human nature, perhaps vilification of the company over it’s greatest Operating System success is a bit cliche as well. Windows XP has truly had a glorious run for a major revision of OS Kernel and User Interface. However, it’s not hard to agree that the business case for continuing to support it has faded to nothing. Microsoft has been warning the public for well over 7 years that they need to retire Windows XP and it is now over 2.5 years beyond the 10 years that was originally promised for support in the service terms document. Don’t get me wrong, I know many technical users who depend on Windows XP native applications for their livelihood. Applications that have never been updated to run on anything but Windows XP in many cases. Windows XP was the greatest, but the scales have tipped in the direction of liability. It’s time has passed.

So what is a dedicated Windows XP user to do? Well, my advice is fairly conservative.

  • Make sure all of the Security related patches (updates) have been installed.
  • Consider using a third party Antivirus progrm if you don’t already (just because Microsoft will quit updating Securty Essentials and Firewall for XP as well). Many Internet Service Providers (ISPs) supply one with the service at no extra charge, so use that if you can.
  • If you can afford it, get a new computer with a newer OS as soon as possible and start learning how to use it before retiring your Windows XP computer.
  • Most Important!!! Ifyou use Windows XP for banking, bill paying, or online shopping, STOP doing that as soon as possible!
  • Need more help? Click here.

R.I.P Windows XP

BTW: I use a variety of OS (while I use W7 most of the time, my current favorite OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, also obsolete and superseded after 14 months can’t even run on a 32 bit CPU).

Screen Sharing on a MAC (Alternative Method)

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Many are familiar with the “Screen Sharing” feature in MAC OS X. It allows you to connect remotely to the desktop of another MAC when that other MAC is accessible as a network share and has the Screen Sharing feature enabled under the Sharing setting in System Preferences. A “Share Screen” button will be displayed to the left of the connnect/disconnect button for the network computer in the upper right of the finder window when that remote computer is selected in the network page or in the sidebar.

Unless… If you have a network with multiple subnets, routers and/or firewalls. Network discovery services like DNS and Bonjour may not get through these boundaries. Then you may not see the “Share Screen” button, so what do you do?

Watch the video for an alternative method…

This method uses Safari to launch Screen Sharing via the http port.

Windows Server 2012 Essentials First Look

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Update November 2, 2012: The video is now available with Captions in several languages. Just select the CC icon to include the Closed Caption Text in your favorite language.

Windows Server 2012 Essentials First Look. A quick tour of Microsoft Windows Server 2012 Essentials, the latest Server OS from Microsoft as of this post.

I am evaluating this new basic version of Windows Server. It was released to manufacturing (RTM) on October 9, 2012 and released to MSDN Subscibers on October 10, 2012.

Posted by Vernon, Engineer LLC October 19, 2012

Creating a Windows Form Application on Windows 8

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Updated October 26, 2012: Windows 8 is now in the wild!

Update October 17, 2012: A new version of this video is now available with complete Closed Caption Narrative. Just select the CC icon to include the Closed Caption Text.

Windows 8 was just released for public consumption October 26, 2012. This video demonstrates how designing a standard Windows Form Application remains largely unchanged from earlier versions of the OS and Development tools. This demonstration uses Microsoft Visual Studio 2012 on a fresh installation of Windows 8.

Posted by Vernon Johnson, Engineer LLC September 30, 2012