WindowBlinds 6 = No more reasons to get Vista.

I'm pretty sure most people who want Vista are more into the look and feel of the operating system more than anything else. The look of AERO Glass, the wallpapers, Sidebar and all the translucent effects are a sure winner especially when demoing at a nearest computer store.


About a couple months ago, there were Vista theme packs like Vista Transformation Pack as well as the previous version of WindowBlinds that changed the look of Windows XP to about 85-90% of how Vista actually looks. The biggest hurdle was actually duplicating the blurring affect that most people actually don't see, it's actually a very subtle effect, but dramtically makes the text more readable on a translucent background.

With WindowBlinds 6 releasing within 48 days from today, XP users can finally embrace true Vista-like visuals, added they use the Vista Transformation Pack 7 to convert all your icons and bootscreens and the Vista RTM Sidebar. What used to be a clever trick using a toolbar to replace the visuals in Windows XP to emulate the Explorer window, seems not to be needed anymore, infact the blurring/transparency effect with the address bar and icons look identical to Vista. What's also a bonus is that they have found a way to implement blurring without highend DX10 Graphic Cards on Vista. Even a lower graphics card that normally would be allowed only the Standard theme is now allowed to run an AERO Glass exact-Look-a-Like theme using WB6. Even on Vista, Stardock claims that using their theme system instead would increase performance and with lower memory usage compared to the actual engine that Vista uses.

I can't wait. Now that I have plans to change to XP again, this should put the nail in the door.

Russia: Sex Holiday

It has declared Sept. 12 the Day of Conception and for the third year running is giving couples time off from work to procreate.

Read Here

A holiday that sends couples home encouraging procreation.. err. SEX, with the aim of having a child 9 months later on Russia's National Day. If achieved, you win prizes such as cars, money, and other incentive merchandise.

At first it may seem like a sick joke. It really isn't, on further thoughts it's actually the most ridiculous thing a nation could do to combat a population crisis. It's true that their future is at stake since their birth rate and deathrate is so lopsided, however, I think the government fails to perceive that there can be bigger problems by creating such a Holiday.

Orphans & Adoption levels. It's a known issue in Russia where orphans numbers are climbing. I can only think this will add to that.
Prostitution for hire for this contest. Promotion of sex on a day that everyone is doing it can only lead to pervertedness for those who do not have a sexual partner. Who is to stop a lonely individual on the day of the holiday to hire a prostitute?
Sexually transmitted diseases. Enough said.

Flash Fun : Creating Pet Avatars

Working with my previous employer and they asked me to help with a big name Food Manufacturer in Canada(non-disclosure sorry!), they are creating a kid's site and here are some samples of flash Pets. Still working on the Monkey, Parrot and Snake. Monkey is the hardest right now because it's more humanoid and I need to create a bunch of layers to move limbs and body to create an action. Anyways, back to work!
Penguin	Dog	Monkey
More on these Avatars later!

Ok I've had it! Vista Sucks!

Ever since I upgraded my laptop to Windows Vista Ultimate it's been a total nightmare. There are a few cosmetic things I like about Vista, but at the end I think I'll go back to XP. I've been using Vista since April 07 and so far it's been a struggle having to put up with lots of problems with software incompatibility as well as a number of devices forced to retire due to lack of drivers.

The major issue is that it's painstakingly SLOW, everything I do takes longer than it should. My laptop is always sluggish even after a fresh reboot, boot up takes significantly longer and my laptop is constantly hotter than it was compared to XP. The constant nagging of files being deleted, BSOD, program error shutdowns (ie; Illustrator CS3) and harddrive spinning has really made me gone berserk. CPU processes always take up 15-20% even on idle which is completely absurd, if I were to run any program it easily hits 100%, making my laptop hotter than it already is, ontop of that, ACPI control is lacking and I can't make any modifications to the cooling fan speeds to compensate for the extra heat Vista is giving off.

I think I will venture back to XP where my system was stable for over a year(that's the longest for any Microsoft product I've had), and if I feel nostalgic about the look & feel I'll reinstall Vista Transformation Pack 6 with WindowBlinds & Kaye Irene's WhiteFlame Theme as well as the RTM Sidebar Latest Vaio pack. Hey it's close enough!