All of these Vista themes are free, and can be loaded onto your system once you have installed the Ux Theme Multi-Patcher. Please note that if you have upgraded XP to Service Pack 3, you must use the Patcher program linked here instead.
Free Of Vista Theme For Windows Xp
Installation instructions are included in each theme's archive file. ZIP archives can be opened by Windows directly, RAR archives can be opened by 7-Zip which is also free. I've looked at lots of themes, and I'm sure that these are the best of the best.
From the glossy black finish on the compact Taskbar, to the Explorer "Tasks" panel which has been turned horizontal, to the multiple Start Menu options, to the crystal-white glass finish on the windows, I am in love with this theme. It's the best and most Vista-like I've seen yet.
I found these amazing themes which all vista users can use on their desktops. You can choose whichever suits your taste. Some of the themes might require Free Theme Manager. Click on the images, and it will take you to download page.
You can also try to Download Free Windows XP themes and styles if you are an XP user. In order to give your Windows XP a Vista-style look, you can either download the free themes or use Vista Transformation Pack.
This guide (but not the filepack) has been updated as of 11/19/08. I plan to upload a refreshed filepack later this week which will include the updated information and newer version files. If you looked this over when it was first released, you may want to check it out again. Here's how to give your Windows XP installation a complete overhaul. It covers updating the interface, customizing, free software, speed tweaks, maintenance and troubleshooting. All the essential files you need are included in the downloadable 158.56MB Conversion Package. This guide is also located within, in case you want a quick reference; however, updates are done to this online version regularly, so there are some differences. It should be viewable in Wordpad.The package includes Vista themes, screensavers, games, cursors, applications, Wallpaper, user account images, screenshots, tweaking tools, and more. It is a single archive, split into two pieces due to 100MB file hosting size restrictions; Part1 and Part2 are two halves of the same file. You need both to extract, and it will use both parts automatically. My apologies to those not familiar with RAR files or multi-part archives.Part1 (100431 KB) Mirrors: Rapidshare, Mediafire, MyFreeFileHosting, Filecrunch, Uploaded.to, FilehostingPart2 (65828 KB) Mirrors: Rapidshare, Mediafire, MyFreeFileHosting, Filecrunch, Uploaded.to, FilehostingUse Winrar or 7zip to extract.Guide Contents:-Preface (pg.1)-Part One (pg.2) Installing the Conversion Package. Very useful for those 'downgrading' Vista machines to XP but still wanting to keep the new look and features.-Part Two (pg.3) More Vista-izing with applications. Free software, both to further enhance the GUI, and just to spread the word on productive or enjoyable programs.-Part Three (pg.4) Tweaking and speed tricks. Walk-through on the steps I personally take for each old computer I refurbish. Gives new life to old hardware. Makes an eight-year-old Pentium III 700MHz with 256MB RAM very usable with XP, even 'fast!'-Part Four (pg.6) Keeping your newly prettified machine in top shape. A message from a techie to consumers, tips on the future, and a few warnings on what NOT to do.-Part Five (pg.8) Final words. About the author.
If you're satisfied with what we've accomplished so far, feel free to stop. But there's much more to do, and it's worth it!1. Download Mozilla Firefox and set it as your default browser if you haven't already. Internet Explorer is simply the number one cause of spyware, viruses, and maddeningly useless toolbar addons which clog up, hijack and slow down your system. Several Vista themes are available for it; I've included my favorite in XP_Vista_Conversion_Package\Firefox Theme.1a. Now that you're using Firefox, do yourself a favor and download the AdBlock Plus plugin. This wonderful module blocks the majority of the ads, banners, and pop-up garbage we're plagued with online. You can also block anything you like on the fly as you run into it. This will also frequently speed up browsing, since you aren't forced to waste bandwidth on ugly flashing advertisements :)2. Vista has Widgets (like an analog clock and weather), so let's add this feature to XP. One option is to run the Yahoo Widgets setup, located in the XP_Vista_Conversion_Package\Programs directory. Do NOT just hit Next all the way through setup. On the first screen, click next. On the second page, click Next. On the third, unless you want to want them changed, UNCHECK the homepage and search engine option and click Install. When installation is complete, hit Close and Yahoo Widgets will start. Customize then as you wish. Another great option for widgets and a full Vista-like sidebar and, visit here. I found both nice, but ended up choosing not to use this feature. Normally my browser is fullscreened so they aren't even visible... hence, not useful. Update: The actual Vista Sidebar has been ported over to XP (thanks for the heads-up, Robots199)! You can grab it here. I haven't tested it yet, but the reports are that it works, and uses the actual Vista gadgets. Just make sure to install all needed components first, like .Net.3. The extras in this step may slow down your system! However, if you want a closer Vista look, the following items will definitely help. If you want the transparent window edges that Vista sports, you can acquire it free from here; for overall transparency, this works well. To get the thumbnail taskbar tooltips, grab this program. A Flip 3D-like program can be gotten here, and drive icons with free space bars can be found here. This is a good collection of Vista system icons, and this is a pretty sweet logon screen. Vista system sounds can be gotten from here. The 'breadcrumbs' directory idea in explorer is imitated using this or this application. What else do we need? Oh yes, the new Search tool in the Start bar. No problem, you can get a very close facsimile here. I was able to enable all these items on a Pentium IV 3.4GHz machine without serious slowdown, but those who care more about speed than eye candy might want to pick and choose.4. While not exactly Vista-themed, I also download and install Open Office (a full Microsoft Word/Excel/Powerpoint compatible office suite) and Winamp 5.5 (universal feature-filled media player, with built-in Shoutcast radio/TV tuner). Both require a little tweaking for maximum performance, and Winamp needs a lot of bundled options unchecked during setup, so be watchful. Very basically: When installing Winamp, choose Next-> I Agree-> Next-> UNCHECK Winamp Agent, then hit Next-> Uncheck what you wish, hit next-> UNCHECK the three 'additional features,' then finish installing. After installing both, click Start-> Run-> msconfig-> OK. Select the Startup tab, and uncheck the Java scheduler and Winamp. In Winamp, added performance can be gained by choosing Options-> Appearance and unselecting options (reflections, visualizations). They're great free programs; much better than the Wordpad and WMP that XP comes stock with. Another good free application is VideoLAN. It handles pretty much any DVD, music or video file you can throw at it- without ever worrying about needing to install a codec or Divx.5. For free online messaging, there's several options. Miranda and Trillian connect to pretty much all online networks (AIM, Yahoo, MSN, Google, ICQ, etc). In my opinion, the single-use one-network applications have become bloated adware and are no longer useful. Another great option I use myself is Meebo. Think of it as a Trillian within your web browser. All settings and chat logs are saved to a central server, making them accessible anywhere you have net access- great for a work/home situation. I use it everyday in Firefox, giving myself a built-in spell-check- which is quite handy when trying to sound intelligent online ;)6. I personally feel that file sharing programs such as Limewire are to be avoided at all cost. Besides slowing down your computer and chewing up your bandwidth 24/7, that network is also overloaded with trojans and viruses. If you must get files from somewhere online, there are many safer options- torrents, binary newsgroups, or even Google. Torrents sometimes carry trojans as well, but there's a simple way to stay relatively safe- find a torrent site that lets users post comments. If there is anything wrong with the files or contents, others tend to immediately post about it. You do need a provider for newsgroup access; however a few ISP's still offer this service free for customers. Google can easily be used to find music as well, by searching for intitle:index.of "mp3"+"whatever" -htm -html -php -asp "last modified" (just replace 'whatever' with the song or artist you are looking for). This same process can be used for videos (-inurl:(htmhtmlphp) intitle:"index of" +"last modified" +"parent directory" +description +size +(.mpg.avi.flv.wmv.di) "whatever") or files (-inurl:(htmhtmlphp) intitle:"index of" +"last modified" +"parent directory" +description +size +(.exe.zip) "whatever") as well.
I'm a bit scared to do it because my windows went by by for 5 months and had to be re-installed (to xp) cause it wouldn't load for anything and I lost everything when it happened. I'm a bit scared to do this for fear I'll loose everything again...but I do love the windows vista format since it was on my little computer that I had to use while this one was 'being fixed'(5 months of waiting was a long time to be without my big boy) cause the guy didn't know what he was doing and put the windows program on here that kept asking me for a serial number...don't ask I didn't get it either. But I would love to have the vista look back and not the XP look that's here now. 2ff7e9595c
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