re8

I would not totally dismiss speakers if they had only 3" woofers, though I'd more likely want to test them out in person. Honestly, I'd think a 2.1 system would be much better sound for the money & space once you're paying in the $75-125USD range. These mega-review sites could help: http://alatest.com/ (I like the McDonald's counter ) http://www.consumersearch.com/

yeah man...Couldn't that be removed by a service configuration or in the Win7 uninstall dialog?

I do not understand? Are you saying:1) VLite works well = removes most of SXS but you can still update normally? 2) RT Seven Lite - Beta build 1.0.9 does NOT remove the SXS well; RE7lite breaks updates? Yes! I loved the old X-Setup for that very reason; it gave a good enough explanation & warning to help you make decisions on what in your OS to tweak. I would like to help out here, but I'm not a sys admin expert enough to really be much use. :/ I really only want to set up my computer once very well & be done with it.

Ben, do you think it is possible to remove or even reduce the size of winsxs but keep windows update functionality in the future? I thought I saw somewhere here on the boards a thread that they would do a post install method of reducing the size of winsxs but keep windows update compatibility.The thread is titled "Windows 7 Safe WinSxS Removal With Vlite". Seems that Method 2 may be the best approach, since it rebuilds the WinSxS directory using hotfix kb947821. There is a .bat with Method 4, but for x86 builds only right now. That entire thread has some good ideas & links to bypass WinSxS usage.. I'm looking forward to the new updates soon please!

Do you need a sample-by-sample comparison of the 2? Or just a general characteristics? I could build you something in SynthMaker if you want.

Thanks Now I won't accidentally d/l them.

OK, thanks cluberti; I wasn't sure if the 64bit patches depended on the other patches.

Shouldn't the file be named in French, or be labeled "GettingStarted.FR.txt" so we non-FR speakers don't get confused by the d/l please?

I'm so happy that I found the Classic Shell GUI utility thanks to AskVG. I was hating on some of the changes (Start Menu, though I like breadcrumbs I need the typeable folder path since I copy/paste there so often). Also includes: + may change parent folder structure instead of the history in the folder path drop-down + add back the "Up" button in Explorer + Cut, Copy, Paste, Delete Explorer buttons + skinnable Start Menu(s), including Glass support + Ctrl+Shift+Click in the start menu runs the program as administrator + middle mouse button can be used to open the start menu + free, open-source + actively developed - seems to add an extra process; more CPU/memory usage - may interfere with other GUI enhancements, but many of those bugs are worked out The pics & capabilities: http://classicshell.sourceforge.net/gallery.html FAQ to tweak to run faster: http://classicshell.sourceforge.net/faq.html#perf Some programming-geek-speak: http://www.codeproject.com/KB/shell/classicshell.aspx 2.0.0 was released yesterday; new beta due out in a few weeks/months it seems. d/l here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/classicshell/files/ I'm still learning how to build my reduced 7 install, but I'll let you know later (or you can let us know) how it works out.

Thanks for the options guys! Sorry, I didn't explain myself well. I was referring if I had to choose 64 bit vs 32bit, not Home vs Ultimate. I see that some of the downloaders have a check box for both x86 & 64bit, & wondered if I needed to check both.

"Brain gasket" I prefer "not the sharpest knife in the drawer", since even a butter knife has its useful uses. I was just suggesting to remove 1diot, to help save 0.000000001 seconds of server time to filter out that word.

Thanks for the reply.Yes, they are "best" at finding viri, but not best for me since I just want to scan on demand, & not have my system taken over. So my question is still unanswered.

I just would make two DVDs, one for each version. It will cost 1 extra DVD to burn, but then you'll have a backup of sorts.

Is filtering out id*** really needed? I know it can be a "bad" word in some countries, but then you're blanking out a tech-term! One can use foolproof, but I would think you should filter out fool along with id***... I'm fine with filtering out certain 4-letter words, but I don't think id*** rises to that level.

I've been trying to figure out the best approach also, & I'm still slightly confused. RT7lite seems good, has Black Viper services tweaks presets which I really like, but seems he has a few bugs to fix yet? 7Customizer seems stable but I want to pre-treak the services, turn off Areo, etc like RT7lite does. CalBoy , your step-by-step instructions seem complete, but I'd be afraid I'd mess something up. What I really want is a configuration program that is id1ot-proof like X-Setup was for utilities. Something that has good info for what each action does, & warns if hazardous. I don't care if it is pre-install or post-install. Something that can install all the MS patches & 3rd party drivers & delete all the old DLLs. A mini-configurer for when I about to install with my new optimized installer to turn on/off extra application installers (eg install MSOffice & other major apps). Any advice here is appreciated. x509, I own a reg for WinRAR but actually use 7-zip. Easier to use for me, & 7z files seem smaller. Also, unless I'm deploying alot of computers at once, I tend not to put smaller utilities like that or web browsers, etc on install CDs anymore. There is a new version every few weeks/months so I'll end up uninstalling, downloading, & reinstalling anyway. A big program like Adobe Creative Suite would be useful; they only patch 1-2 times per year per app, unless you're going to upgrade (from CS4 to CS5) by the time you install next.