Eches - Technology | OS | Mobile | Software | Gadgets » Windows 7 http://eches.net Tips & Tricks related to web, internet and computer Fri, 30 Mar 2012 04:45:46 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 Simplify Skin Pack: Windows 8 Transformation Pack for Windows 7 http://eches.net/simplify-skin-pack-windows-8-transformation-pack-for-windows-7/ http://eches.net/simplify-skin-pack-windows-8-transformation-pack-for-windows-7/#comments Tue, 31 Jan 2012 04:46:17 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=12446 If you follow my blog, you should notice that I've posted many Windows transformation packs so you can enjoy the upcoming Windows features without the need to remove your existing Windows. So here's another cool Windows 8 Skin Pack.

"Simplify Skin Pack" is a customization pack specially for Windows 7 which is originally created by a Deviantart member (hameddanger). This transformation pack is dedicated to the people who love minimal user interface.


How to install Simplify Skin Pack?

1. Download the skin pack (4.5 MB in size) by using the download links at the bottom of this post.

2. Double click the installer.

Simplify Skin pack installation

Simplify Skin pack installation

3. Make sure to untick the 3rd party toolbar installation (you definitely hate the unnecessary load on your browser)

Remove 3rd party browser toolbar installation

Remove 3rd party browser toolbar installation

NOTE: This free skin pack comes with Babylon toolbar, a 3rd party browser toolbar. You can opt out the installation of the toolbar by selecting "Custom Installation" type and un-check all 3 listed options

4. After the installation, you are required to reboot your PC for the Skin Pack to take effect. You will notice the changes almost right away (right from the login windows). The following is a couple of screenshots when using Simplify Skin Pack.

Screenshot 2

Screenshot 1

Screenshot 2

Screenshot 2

With Simplify Skin Pack installed on your PC, you can experience the Windows 8's Metro UI feeling. Simplify Skin Pack also gives you awesome Windows theme along with fabulous login screen, wallpapers and icons.

This transformation pack can be installed on Windows 7 (SP1 or none SP1).

You can download it using following links

Download link: Windows 7 32-bit | Windows 7 64-bit

NOTE: A friendly reminder from me. Be sure to back up your system by creating a restore point before initiating the installation of this Windows skin pack. That way, if you think the look of this skin is not appealing enough, you can always revert it back to the original Windows appearances.

]]> http://eches.net/simplify-skin-pack-windows-8-transformation-pack-for-windows-7/feed/ 0 Download Chinese New Year Dragon theme [Windows 7] http://eches.net/download-chinese-new-year-dragon-theme-windows-7/ http://eches.net/download-chinese-new-year-dragon-theme-windows-7/#comments Sat, 21 Jan 2012 10:29:46 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=12256 Chinese New Year Dragon theme is a free Windows 7 theme to celebrate 2012 New Year. This theme features great examples of new imperial and ancient dragon rendered in stone, bronze and wood. According to Chinese calendar, the 1st day of the 2012 Chinese New Year is on January 23, 2012. You may find the download link at the bottom of this post. While you can jump straight to the link, here's some information about 2012 Chinese New Year to feast our mind.

2012 is the year of Dragon or more precisely is a Water Dragon or Black Dragon year. This is derived from the Stem Branch Calendar that consists of Five Elements (Metal, Wood, Water, Earth and Fire). The Stem-Branch is the system that determines the count of the days, months & years. Basically there are 10 stems & 12 branches in the Stem Branch system. Stems are called according to 5-elements and the Yin-Yang whilst branches use animal names.

Some screenshots

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 1

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 1

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 2

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 2

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 3

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 3

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 4

Chinese New Year Wallpaper 4

Download link

Chinese New Year Dragon theme
]]> http://eches.net/download-chinese-new-year-dragon-theme-windows-7/feed/ 0 Download Windows 7 Theme: Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol http://eches.net/download-windows-7-theme-mission-impossible-ghost-protocol/ http://eches.net/download-windows-7-theme-mission-impossible-ghost-protocol/#comments Tue, 03 Jan 2012 17:24:00 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=10288 Ghost Protocol is the 4th installment of the Mission Impossible series with Ethan Hunt and his team are fighting against the odds to nail Hendricks, a brilliant terrorist who is planning to launch a nuclear attack on the United States soil after gaining access to Russian nuclear launch codes.

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol features Tom Cruise and is now the big hit on cinemas worldwide. Microsoft has recently released the latest Windows 7 theme based on this action movie. Ghost Protocol Windows 7 theme comprises of 11 high quality wallpapers which bring adrenaline pumping actions onto your desktop wallpaper. You can download the latest Windows 7 theme from the following download link.

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 1

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 1

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 2

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 2

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 3

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 3

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 4

Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol Wallpaper 4

Download link: Mission Impossible – Ghost Protocol Windows 7 theme
]]> http://eches.net/download-windows-7-theme-mission-impossible-ghost-protocol/feed/ 0 Download Hotfix 381302 [Windows 7]: Fix slow data transfer rate to Blu-ray disk http://eches.net/download-hotfix-fix381302-windows-7-fix-slow-data-transfer-rate-to-blu-ray-disk/ http://eches.net/download-hotfix-fix381302-windows-7-fix-slow-data-transfer-rate-to-blu-ray-disk/#comments Wed, 09 Nov 2011 09:51:38 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=10156 If your PC or laptop is using Windows 7 and you notice slow data transfer rate when you attempt to copy data of 10 GB or larger onto a blu-ray disc, there is a good news for you. This issue has been addressed by Microsoft and they have come up with a hotfix that remedies the problem. When it is said that the rate is slow, it is extremely slow that the copying process almost comes to a crawl.

Blu-ray disc

According to Microsoft source, this issue is due to the error checking that takes place in Universal Disc File System driver (Udfs.sys) file.

The hotfix is not included in Windows 7 service pack 1; so you need to manually download and update the hotfix. It is advisable to you to apply the hotfix by yourself even though Microsoft has promised to include the hotfix into Service Pack 2 (SP2) because it will take several months before we could see the official release of SP2. You can go the Microsoft's official page through the link at the end of this post.

Blu-ray issue

Download link: Hotfix Fix381302
]]> http://eches.net/download-hotfix-fix381302-windows-7-fix-slow-data-transfer-rate-to-blu-ray-disk/feed/ 0 Download Forza Motorsport 4 Windows 7 themes http://eches.net/download-forza-motorsport-4-windows-7-themes/ http://eches.net/download-forza-motorsport-4-windows-7-themes/#comments Sun, 06 Nov 2011 05:45:35 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=10132 Here is another exciting set of Windows 7 wallpapers from Microsoft, the Forza Motorsport 4 Windows 7 theme. Forza Motorsport 4 is basically an Xbox racing video game developed by Turn 10 Studio. As this article is written, the latest edition of Forza Motorsport series (the 4th installment) was recently released on October 11, 2011. This most recent edition supports the Kinect sensor as well as the standard controller gameplay.

There are 17 high quality wallpapers contained in this Windows theme featuring stunning exotic cars. You can download this astounding theme from the download link at the end of this article.

Forza Motorsport 4 - wallpaper 1

Forza Motorsport 4 - wallpaper 2

Forza Motorsport 4 - wallpaper 3

Download link: Forza Motorsport 4 Windows 7 theme
]]> http://eches.net/download-forza-motorsport-4-windows-7-themes/feed/ 0 Download Windows 7 themes – Tropical Fish http://eches.net/download-windows-7-themes-tropical-fish/ http://eches.net/download-windows-7-themes-tropical-fish/#comments Sun, 06 Nov 2011 05:05:41 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=10123 Microsoft continues to give regular update to its theme gallery by the addition of several more theme sets which I will cover in this post and in a couple more posts. One of the latest themes addition is the Tropical Fish Windows theme.

For those who has little to no knowledge about what tropical fish are, it is basically fish that are found in tropical environments from all around the world; both salt water and freshwater. Normally tropical fish are popular among people and are usually kept in aquarium mainly because of their bright color. This bright coloration as far as freshwater fish are concerned is derived from iridescence, whilst for salt water fish is due to pigmentation.

Tropical Fish Windows theme contains 9 high resolution wallpapers featuring crystal clear close-up of tropical fish as well as coral reefs.

Tropical fish wallpaper 1

Tropical fish wallpaper 2

Tropical fish wallpaper 3

Download link: Tropical Fish
]]> http://eches.net/download-windows-7-themes-tropical-fish/feed/ 0 Download Windows 8 theme pack for Windows 7 http://eches.net/download-windows-8-theme-pack-for-windows-7/ http://eches.net/download-windows-8-theme-pack-for-windows-7/#comments Sun, 02 Oct 2011 12:41:09 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=9355 Windows 8 Developer Preview was recently released a couple of weeks ago and many are quite impressed by what Microsoft has introduced into Windows 8. With Windows 8 seems to be on the right track, people are getting more excited and some have thrown their creativity into desktop wallpapers. One of Windows 8 theme pack for Windows 7 that I came across recently was produced by a guy "bswas" over at DeviantArt. Windows 8 theme pack created by him consists of 5 wonderful and colorful wallpapers. The theme pack is available for free (non-commercial use) from the link at the end of this article.

Windows 8 theme pack for Windows 7

Download link: Windows 8 theme pack for Windows 7
]]> http://eches.net/download-windows-8-theme-pack-for-windows-7/feed/ 0 Download Windows 7 Product Key Finder http://eches.net/download-windows-7-product-key-finder/ http://eches.net/download-windows-7-product-key-finder/#comments Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:53:53 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=9331 Windows 7 Product Key Finder is a small free software that will definitely come handy to Windows user especially one need to find the product key for Windows 7. Windows 7 Product Key Finder is not limited to any version of Windows 7; it cover Home, Premium and Ultimate version.

Windows 7 Key Finder is a standalone utility, so you don't need any installation whatsoever. In order to find the lost Windows 7 product key, you just need to click "Find Windows 7 Product Key" button and the product key will be shown almost immediately. Windows 7 Key Finder also displays Windows version information.

Windows 7 Keyfinder interface

Make sure to copy Windows 7 product key for your future reference.

Download link: Windows 7 Product Key Finder (432 KB) | Official page
]]> http://eches.net/download-windows-7-product-key-finder/feed/ 0 Download Gears of War 3 Delta Squad theme for Windows 7 http://eches.net/download-gears-of-war-3-delta-squad-theme-for-windows-7/ http://eches.net/download-gears-of-war-3-delta-squad-theme-for-windows-7/#comments Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:02:22 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=9316 Gears of War 3 which is developed by Epic Games exclusively for Xbox 360, is a 3rd person shooter video game. This game was originally scheduled to be released in April 2011 but was postponed to a new date (September 20, 2011).

If you are a fan of Gears of Wars 3, perhaps you are excited to fill in your desktop with this free Gears of Wars 3 theme for Windows 7. This theme contains Marcus Fenix, Anya Stroud and Dominic Santiago from Gears of War 3.

Gears of War 3 - Wallpaper A

Gears of War 3 - Wallpaper B

Gears of War 3 - Wallpaper C

Download link: Gears of Wars theme for Windows 7
]]> http://eches.net/download-gears-of-war-3-delta-squad-theme-for-windows-7/feed/ 0 Download Chocolate Theme for Windows 7 http://eches.net/download-chocolate-theme-for-windows-7/ http://eches.net/download-chocolate-theme-for-windows-7/#comments Tue, 27 Sep 2011 12:25:54 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=9301 Mirosoft releases Chocolate theme for its current Windows 7 which include quite a variety of chocolates; chocolate bonbons, rich chocolaty desserts sculpted by a master chef, candied orange peels dipped in chocolate, dark chocolate, creamy chocolate,milk chocolate and another 4 wallpapers. You may find the download link for the Chocolate theme (Windows 7) after the screenshots.

Chocolate Windows 7 theme - A

Chocolate Windows 7 theme - B

Chocolate Windows 7 theme - C

Chocolate Windows 7 theme - D

Download link: Chocolate theme for Windows 7
]]> http://eches.net/download-chocolate-theme-for-windows-7/feed/ 0 How to install Windows 8 [dual boot] with Windows 7 http://eches.net/how-to-install-windows-8-dual-boot-with-windows-7/ http://eches.net/how-to-install-windows-8-dual-boot-with-windows-7/#comments Mon, 19 Sep 2011 18:36:51 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=8988 Microsoft has recently released the Pre Beta of Windows 8 and this Pre Beta version is available for public download. With the release, many don't have patience to wait until the official debut and they rather risk installing it and try to explore as much as possible the new features and capabilities of Windows 8.

As we can expect, Windows 8 Pre Beta gives a glimpse of what to ought to be in the official Windows 8 but this version is not stable to run your day-to-day PC routines. The best way to explore the new features of Windows 8 without compromising your daily work is by having both Windows 7 and Windows 8 run in the same machine [dual OS].

Here's a simple guideline on how to get Windows 8 Pre Beta installed together with Windows 7.

1. Download Windows 8 Pre Beta (Developer Preview)

Windows 8 Pre Beta which was released recently is available in 3 version; 32-bit (2.8 GB), 64-bit (3.6 GB) and Windows 8 Pre-Beta ISO with developer tools (4.8 GB). All files are available in ISO formats. You can find the download links (direct download) from the this post [Download Windows 8 Pre-Beta ISO 32 bit & 64 bit].

2. Burn the Windows 8 Pre Beta ISO on a DVD or a USB device

After downloading Windows 8 Pre Beta ISO image files, you can proceed with burning the ISO files onto a physical DVD or you can put it on a USB flash drive. You can learn how to do it by visiting this post [Create Bootable Windows 8 USB flash drive].

3. Create new hard disk partition

To fully enjoy the experience of exploring Windows 8, you need to have an empty hard disk partition of 25 GB or more. If you already have the partition then it's great but if you don't have it yet, no worries, I got it covered in this post [How to create a Partition in Windows 7]

4. Install Windows 8

After completing step 1 through step 3, now you need to plug in Windows 8 Pre Beta installer (DVD or USB flash drive). Select the “custom” option from the Windows 8 installation screen where you should see the new partition you created on step 3. Select the partition and click next.

By clicking the next button, Windows 8 installation commences and it will take roughly quarter to half an hour to complete. When the installation is completed and restarted, you should see the option to boot into either Windows 7 or Windows 8.

]]> http://eches.net/how-to-install-windows-8-dual-boot-with-windows-7/feed/ 0 Download Captain America Windows 7 Theme http://eches.net/captain-america-windows-7-theme/ http://eches.net/captain-america-windows-7-theme/#comments Wed, 10 Aug 2011 19:21:44 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=8191 Captain America: The First Avenger is the one of the interesting movies in July 2011. It is another marvel movie about Captain America who was given super strength to the country and to completely eradicate the new rising of evil power from Germany.

I believe there are a lot of fans that would love to collect Captain America wallpapers for their desktops. Here's your chance to grab the free wallpaper for Captain America the movie.

Download link: Captain America Windows 7 Theme
]]> http://eches.net/captain-america-windows-7-theme/feed/ 0 ShutdownGuard: Prevent applications from restart or shut down Windows http://eches.net/shutdownguard-prevent-applications-from-restart-or-shut-down-windows/ http://eches.net/shutdownguard-prevent-applications-from-restart-or-shut-down-windows/#comments Thu, 28 Jul 2011 06:58:28 +0000 eches http://eches.net/?p=7808 There are a lot of applications that can trigger your Windows to restart or shutdown, causing you lose unsaved work. This will definitely a sight you don't want to face. In order to prevent this from happening, there is a small freeware that can do the job.

ShutdownGuard is a tiny application that can prevent apps to restart or shutdown your computer. So every time an application attempts to reboot your computer, there will be a notification popup that informs you that the restart and shutdown process has been interrupted by ShutdownGuard (applies for Windows Vista and Windows 7 whilst for Windows XP users, the notification will be in the system tray).

Even though this is a handy application, it cannot prevent Windows from shutting down or restarting all the times especially when other applications directly tell Windows to force shutdown. ShutdownGuard does not need administrator privileges and it can be placed within the startup list so that it can monitor right away every time your PC is started.

Download link: ShutdownGuard
]]> http://eches.net/shutdownguard-prevent-applications-from-restart-or-shut-down-windows/feed/ 0 Enable “Windows 7 Basic” Theme with Aero Titlebar Buttons and Shadow Effects http://eches.net/enable-windows-7-basic-theme-with-aero-titlebar-buttons-and-shadow-effects/ http://eches.net/enable-windows-7-basic-theme-with-aero-titlebar-buttons-and-shadow-effects/#comments Tue, 21 Jun 2011 17:51:50 +0000 niazor http://eches.net/?p=7634 Minimizing your display setting may prove useful in reserving your computer resource while using you computer in performing various task. One of the most popular tweak to speed up Windows 7 is to disable default theme and so switching to basic theme in Windows 7. Performance proof? yes but enabling the Windows 7 basic theme mean disabling the beautiful glass effect of Windows 7. If you want to combine both of Glass effect theme and Windows 7 basic theme here's a theme choice for you.

As you can see, the theme is still Windows 7 basic theme but it has been added a little bit of aero effect with shadow and sharp aero theme title bar buttons.

Download link: Windows 7 basic theme with aero title bar and shadow effect
]]> http://eches.net/enable-windows-7-basic-theme-with-aero-titlebar-buttons-and-shadow-effects/feed/ 0 How to install third party Windows 7 theme http://eches.net/how-to-install-third-party-windows-7-theme/ http://eches.net/how-to-install-third-party-windows-7-theme/#comments Mon, 20 Jun 2011 08:35:47 +0000 niazor http://eches.net/?p=7574 Custom Windows 7 theme is not available in default to make change in Windows 7 theme which can change Windows Explorer, Windows Taskbar, Windows Start Orb etc. Trying to install third party Windows 7 Theme has to be done after patching Windows 7 system tools such as UxThemeand universal Patcher for the full customization of Windows 7 Theme to take effect.

This tutorial below is how to patch Windows 7 System file before installing new custom or third party Windows 7 Theme.


How to Patch Windows 7 System File with Universal Theme Patcher

1. Download the latest Universal Theme Patcher.

2. Select which system bit used in Windows 7 (32/64 bit).

3. Run the program and a window will appear telling how many files need to be patched.

4. Click Patch and let the program patch Windows system file.

5. Restart the Windows for the effect to take place.

What the patched file do is it allow Windows 7 Theme to be customize by various effect like custom Windows Explorer, Taskbar, Icons, Aero style etc. from the third party Windows 7 Theme.

There is also Windows Theme Installer which is portable and let you easily apply third party Windows 7 in computer.

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