Slashdot Mirror

...why do scientists still involve/include "Time" in their equations when determining or extrapolating theories on relativity such as the proper mass of the universe? In short wouldn't it be prudent to omit time from the equation since "time" doesn't exist? I think, and this is only a theory of mine, that there is no such thing as time. What is referred to as time is, on a molecular/atomic scale, simply gravitational and/or magnetic field enhanced rate of change fluctuations in sub atomic particles. ie; decay rates altered by outside forces...

"Sure you can alter windows with a disassembler, but is it legal to do so? And is it legal to distribute the changes?"

First of all, I don't NEED to alter windows because it is extendable easily, period (as it does the job quite well for myself @ least, as is) via disassembling its native files.

FIRST OF ALL - Most of the time (if needed)?

1.) You can layer drivers (filtering ones) for example, to even alter how Windows works from a "low level" perspective even, for various purposes.

2.) Barring that, in usermode operations, things like Windows Messaging systems (passing them across hWnds from another program, OR the OS itself) allow you to change a TON of characteristics &/or behaviours of things in Windows as well.

3.) You can use what I mentioned: SHELL EXTENSIONS!

That takes care of that question from you & YES, you can do that on LINUX (any *NIX imo) too!

----

Secondly - you missed my point about shell extensions (I said "shell extensions", NOT replacements):

"As for third party addons, shell replacements may exist but they always seemed very clunky compared to changing your window manager on unix" - by Bert64 (520050) on Sunday August 05, @07:23PM (#20125677)

There ARE shell replacements for Explorer.exe (this is relatively EASY to do in fact, via one area of the registry in fact)... but, I LIKE Explorer.exe (for the most part) & when I want to add more to it?

There are SHELL EXTENSIONS & these are the little tools you can extend its GUI with, and you would be surprised how many there are (right click file context menus, & FAR more).

See this site, for an example of HOW MANY & how varied, shell extensions (sometimes called Explorer addons) there are:

http://shellcity.net/

"Can you access a CD thats formatted with anything other than ISO9660/UDF?" - by Bert64 (520050) on Sunday August 05, @07:23PM (#20125677)

Good question : Doesn't NERO (a Win32 burner program) allow this? I know it writes a TON of formats, but on reading them?? I am NOT admittedly 110% sure!

HOWEVER, I imagine IF it can write them?? IT CAN READ THEM AS WELL... right? So, given that, I imagine I can via a software called NERO (& others like it).

("Disclaimer": I don't play much with burners other than for making data backups, & the normal formats you mention, work just fine for myself!)

"As for changing the filesystems, can you actually boot the OS from a new filesystem?" - by Bert64 (520050) on Sunday August 05, @07:23PM (#20125677)

Another GOOD question: Here is my answer - why bother? NTFS does the job excellently, on many fronts!

However, this I am NOT sure of admittedly (& you may be correct on this point in fact, I can concede things here & there, because I do NOT know "everything")

Could you though? Whew, @ least not without hacking the boot loaders for NT-based Win32 OS (normal ones) & probably a TON more of the OS itself most likely!

(AGAIN though - Not worth it/why bother?)

I have, again, a watch that runs on x86 & basically DOMINATES it, because it has the best driver support there is, bar-none (& also runs on 90% of the world's computers anyhow).

Still, why would I want to bootup an OS that runs on one of the finest, most secure filesystems there is in NTFS (or FAT/FAT32 which it can bootup from, but NTFS IS their superior on many counts) from ANOTHER filesystem for, when NTFS does it great, as is?

I know of only 1 "hole" in NTFS & it probably extends to other filesystems too (because they maintain DB's of the file data) & that is zero byte sized file creation: You create TONS of zerobyte files, say, in a virus/trojan/malware (etc.) in a looping process... they take up no space technically right? WRONG - you CAN "bloat" the NTFS MFT$ eventually doing this, & lose all your diskspace eventually (I would wager this would do

Try some of the windows shells and file explorer replacements. Microsoft has made it easy.

"SHELLS IN WIN 2000 AND XP..........This is so important, we had to report it, even though it's not a program. We found out from Shelfront, which, according to Rootrider, "found out .... from LS2K, which found out about this from Desktopian.org, which in turn found out from Ephedrine. Check this out... If you're running Windows NT 5.x (Windows 2000 or XP) run 'gpedit.msc' from the Run dialog (doesn't seem to run from lsxcommand unless you use the complete path). Now navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > System. Check out the 'Custom User Interface.' This setting lets you change your Windows shell. That's right... Microsoft actually provided a [hidden] built-in way to change the shell. I haven't tried it myself yet, but it seems that it works quite well, which is good since configuration of shells in NT5 has been the only real problem (besides those fugly systray buttons) with running shells in NT" (As for XP, recent reports indicate this tweak won't work in XP Home, only Pro.) (Our link's to Shellfront).....(free).....GO THERE!"

The Linux kernel interrupts the computer 100 times per second (100 Hz) to monitor and possibly switch running processes. Recent 2.6 kernels added a compile time option to make that 100, 250, or 1000 Hz, and there's talk of figuring some way to make that more flexible. Looking at the performance of GIMPS, I have not seen any difference between 250 Hz and 100 Hz, but then the Linux kernel I understand is pretty efficient with the housekeeping. Windows 9x had this 18 (18.2?) interrupts per second in which an internal clock was updated, and think Windows NT went with some other higher frequency interval, but not too high because then their kernel processes would take too much time. If the OS is doing a lot of housekeeping and doing it inefficiently, and I think all the Windows up to and including XP must be, then an improvement there could indeed make everything run 10% faster.

I remembered another thought for a faster Windows experience. Change the Explorer shell, which I've read is rather slow and bloated, to something like what Litestep used to be. Here are some links to shells.

I should have been more clear. What I ment was Windows 98 and below on a Dos kernel. And Kde and Gnome have the same amount of functionality (note: not just usablity) of Windows 98.

And for the record you can skin the hell out of Windows as well as have virtual desktops.

Actualy, you can do multipul desktops on windows.
the first time I saw it was in a program called litestep (if that isn't up there's an older version here).
Not only did it do multipule desktops it also skins them too. There's tons of other shell replacements like it at shell city. Some are better than others thou.....

Turns out ripping out the shell in windows isn't that hard.

These days I just use the normal shell and some random tool that came with my nvidia card that let's you have multipule desktops. Handy when some game blows up your refresh rate (civ 3).

You can replace the shell on windows - A long time ago I used Litestep as an alternative GUI for windows.

Essentially you create a replacement process for 'explorer.exe' then you tell the system to use it, the trick is that you have to handle the same command line interface as the original explorer, and you have to do the lookups for the control panel, etc to make it useable.

There's an index of replacement UI's and wrappers at Shellcity.net.

On July 8, 1947, at the so called "Foster Ranch" in the desert outside Roswell, New Mexico, a certain incident occurred. While the details of the incident are vague at best, and no certain conclusions can be drawn from the many contradictory stories surrounding it, one thing is clear: a small disk, made of apparently magnetic materials embedded and sheathed in celluloid or flexible bakelite, was recovered by RAAF investigators from a Major Jesse Marcel, a RAAF officer who was one of the first to explore the site of the "incident"....

The TRUE Story. Better check it out....

There are a few:

• Litestep
• Geoshell
• Shell City has a few links

There's also progman.exe*, shipped with windows. I've heard tell of a "winfile" also supposedly built in, but I don't know anything about that.

I've tried a few of these, but some of them (Blackbox) seemed to take more resources than Explorer! Another caveat, the ports of *nix windows managers retain the *nix settings system, so setting them up can be a pain if you don't have experience with them.

*Yes, that is progman of Win16 fame.

The Apple comes with an actual GUI far superior to Microsoft Windows

bb4win, which mimics the black box look and feel and is even compatible with the many existing black box styles.

While LiteStep (one of the oldest windows shells) mimics the NeXT OS/Window Manager and has thousands of themes (and it's even GPL).

If you use either of these or one of the many other shells (see Shell Extension City) along with WindowBlinds you won't even know you're using Windows (you can even make it look like KDE or OS X if you want).

The point of all this is to say you're not stuck with the Windows interface, the start button, the task bar, the clock, or that annoying grouping feature of the programs menu. And I think MS has even embraced this some-what with an actual entry for "custom user interface" in gpedit.msc (Win2k and XP pro only). ... So stop complaining about the Windows interface.

On the other hand if you were talking about the much complained about "fisher price" interface you can turn all that !@#$! off, albeit in no less then 4 different places (or crack open the regedit).

----------

Heres one. This URL is at fault for one, but just look at how its search button works.
Check it out though, Its a great site besides that :-)

Have you looked at Shellcity? There's lots of great UI tweaks and utilities for making Windows look a lot better, including replacements for the Explorer shell like Litestep (the Litestep site seems to be down right now, however). With a shell replacement, you can regain that control of having the desktop you want.

You are incorrect sir. There is a thriving community of developers that have been writing replacement shells for the microsoft operating systems for years. LiteStep, Outsider, revel to name a few. Check out Shell City They have lots of information on it.

Dont be so quick do dismiss alternate shells. I have been using litestep for a while and it is amazing. You have complete control over every aspect of your desktop.

As a long time computer user, starting from a C64/Floppy/300 baud modems to DualP3s/Terrabyte storage/DSL I have migrated and changed the way I interact with GUI's and store my files many times over the years.

Mark Hursts ideas are almost like mine. I will break it down a little as to HD layout then OS.
I have normally have 2 HDs in my system, HDA for my OS's and HDB for my Games and Work. HDA I break down into 4 Paritions.
HDA1 for Win98,
HDA2 for Win2K,
HDA3 for either a Linux dristro or WinXP beta
HDA4 for the swap if im using linux.
HDB1 is 1 parition, normally 3 folders, Games, Work and Emulators. (Im a UAE and Mame freak.)

I dont normally use boot loaders other than Win2k's, If i boot linux i use loadlin, it seems easier for me to maintain. (C:\linux)

Im a big fan of Norton Ghost, using ghost on the paritions, I can restore quickly. As I like to play around with drivers and migrate my HD's to more space. I also burn the .gho files on CDs. If the files are larger than 700 megs, I rar the ghost images and make it self extractable. So I can boot a fresh HD from floppy. I also copy the CD images to the HD, unrar, and ghost from the whole image.

I'm a little more in depth on my HDA1 drive, I use directory names, Apps, GFX, Net, Sound, Utils, Work. I also have the normal windows directories, My Documents, Windows and Temp. Under My Documents I put My Pictures, My Music and Favorites. I then use M$ Tweak UI to point all windows versions on my HD to c:\My documents, C:\My Documents\favorites, etc.. This keeps all my files at hand if im either Win98, Win2K or linux. It makes it easier to keep every file in the same place under ever os. (Example, IE for Win2K and Win98 point to the same favorites, so my bookmarks are the same.)

After I get the basic windows installed (doesnt matter what version). I upgrade the entire installation with the newest patches and drivers. Then register file types for my apps, not windows defaults. Apps include textpad, winzip,winrar,cdrwin,nero,acdsee,winamp,proxomitro n. Windows modifications as x-teq and m$ powertoys.

Now that windows is installed, and apps, I keep a shortcut to a folder NET in c:\net\net on my desktop. This folder c:\net\net keeps shortcuts for all my programs. Even if I reinstall windows, my c:\net\net folder stays. I put a shortcut of my NET folder in my tooltray. I can either alt-tab or click on the tooltray icon (in case my apps are maximized) to have access to my favorite apps. I really dont use the start menu, as it takes longer to get to my commonly used applications.

Microsoft has weened us off Dual pane file managers.(I miss fileman!) This was (IMHO) the hardest thing to get used to in win95 and new versions of windows. Trying to copy files from a file viewed pane, then select the destination folder is slower and has more steps involved. M$ introduced powertoys that included "Copy To and Move To" extensions to windows, that at least helped. I do keep a copy of 2xExplorer for when I need to handle large ammount of files.

The part that actually increased my productivity was the toolbar. Being able to have access to my running applications, instead of alt-tabbing was a nice changed. It also provides a quick visual que on what programs im running. The tooltray also speeds up access to my c:\net\net quick launch folder full of shortcuts.

Drag and Drop, right mouse menus have become standard. I have found that I now drag mp3's onto winamp, and right mouse clicking and enqueing them. My older habit was using playlists for everything. IE didnt have the best right mouse menus, but with IE6, they have the most common menus again. (Using proxomitron and enabling all right mouse clicks also helps)

Now as my Linux GUI, I really use Windows as workstation, and unix as a server and display X back to my windows box. (X-win32 is far the best for this.) But when Im using a unix workstation, I normally install IceWM. IceWM is small, fast and has a toolbar and tooltray. It is highly customizable and can add those extra buttons that come in handy. The windowshade mode which rolls up the window to a bar is very handy. Comes in handy when I need to view multiple load balanced servers at the same time. Also for quick eye-candy, I like the network and cpu meters on the toolbar, dont really need it, but nice to see.

Started to use WinXP beta, and I'm pretty impressed with its Font Smoothing features. Check out some screenshots I made for friends here and here.. The font smoothing works all throught the GUI, notice how the menus are changed.

I spend too much time playing around with new utilities and GUI's for windows. If your interested in modifing your windows GUI, check out Shell City, WindowBlinds, and Litestep.

Have fun!
-Brook

Everybody cares about what their homepage is; it's just that some don't know that it can be changed to a much speedier and useful site or hard disk file than the default. My opinion? AOL has really become a bunch of turds. You used to be able to count on them for support on important web issues -- spam, open broadband lines, etc. But now they've become just a bunch of corporate lackeys...
Vacation at Shell Extension City

It's our fear of the enemy which forces us into using the same tactics he uses. I've often wondered at how insecure we in the United States must be as a society that we take such draconian measures against our social problems (i.e., very long mandatory sentences for drug use, the difficulty of using the insanity defense for any crime, etc.). Now you might say that you do not feel so insecure, or that, intuitively, you do not feel we are very insecure as a society---maybe not, but consider that the insecurity rises not from our society as a whole, but rather from a very small portion of it which is extremely rightward leaning. The problem is this small minority has gained a disproportionate amount of power because of its extreme wealth and ability to influence the political process.

Vacation at Shell Extension City

I see no flaw in their business plan, nor any danger to the company. Those who wish to use the scanner as intended can still just do it. The presence on the web of other drivers doesn't make the CueCat useless for DC's intended purpose. DC's big mistake is publicizing the presence of those other drivers (or rather, reacting to their presence in a manner that brings down publicity. mostly bad, on them). This alerts millions of potential users that alternatives are available.

VACATION AT SHELL EXTENSION CITY

'Scuse me? Every respectable newspaper practices the censored type of journalism you preach? Look just over the last 2 weeks. How 'bout the phrase uttered by Presidential candidate Bush when he called a reporter "New York Times Asshole"? Bush's words were broadcast, unchanged, by every major TV network, and carried, uncensored, by most newspapers, including my home town paper, the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

Come vacation at Shell Extension City

We have 2000 applications in our database here at Shell Extension City. Does this mean we have 2.8 percent of all applications ever made for the PC? Heh heh, I'm glad to hear that. Geeze, what a tremendously useful site we are.... (Uh..software for geeks, doncha know?)

Geez...where're your math skills? I don't care how empty the universe is, given the span of time the thing will drift (forever), it will eventually collide with each and every other body out there (assuming it's not destroyed in any given collision).

Come visit Shell Extension City