Jody Thornton

Two years onward, I'm glad I went with Precise Puppy on that old notebook. It still works great!

Wait a minute. Where are all the KernelEx threads that were here in the last couple of weeks? What happened and what did I miss?

I still use Windows Server 2003 as a file server and an audio distribution server. For the most part, I just connect with a crossover cable, and Internet is usually turned off (except for nightly MSE updates)

Thank you Harkaz. That is very helpful. Boy I might have to just give this a whirl.

Thank you, as that was quite informative. Now can any of those options be defeated? So if I didn't want any PowerShell or .NET files on my system, can I prevent that from being installed? A lot of great additions though. EDIT: I soooooo wish a similar Unofficial SP3 could be developed for Windows XP x64 Edition. It really is a worthwhile OS, but I know there are no update sources still around for it. Sniff!

So I asked in another thread, what exactly is in the SP4. I know there's an extensive thread, but it's just too confusing to go through ...lol So suppose I have Windows XP SP3 installed and all of the post-SP3 updates put in up to April 2014. Now I go install SP4. What changes? (I know it puts in the POSReady 2009 hack. Does it also install .NET Frameworks by default or can I defeat that?) What else does it do to your system?

In truth, I am running Windows Calendar on Windows 8, but since it's natively a Windows Vista application, I should probably post this question here. Are there any web based calendars that will allow 2-way sync with Windows Calendar? I want to be able to synchronize (not import/export but synchronize) my Lightning calendar on my Puppy Linux machine with my Vista Calendar (it is running in Windows 8, but it should be all the same, no?). I use CalDAV on Zoho to sync in Lightning, and that works with aplomb. But there seems to be no way to get the same functionality working on Windows Calendar. The latter supports WebDAV, but I need CalDAV support (and that appears to be the more standardized way of doing things)

Naw! It's all good

So just that I'm clear on its use, basically SP4 contains all patches post SP1 to SP3, plus it implements the POSReady hack. Is that correct? Can you make sure that NO .NET Frameworks are installed at all, or do you have to remove them afterwards? I've read through the SP4 thread, but there are some debates that become difficult to follow ... lol

I miss some of the looks of Vista, especially having customized the captions and start menu colours in the Basic theme. However, Windows 8 is MUCH MUCH faster. Even Windows Mail (a Vista-specific application) is faster still. Windows 8 as it now stands (provided that updates continue) gives these advantages. (a) Since I only use the Explorer-based portions of the OS with Classic Shell (all Metro items are blocked), my OS essentially works like Windows 7, only faster and more modern looking. And since Windows 8.1 improvements don't affect Explorer based portions of the product, I already have what I like about Windows 8.1, but in Windows 8. (b) Since I ungroup the taskbar and restore Quick Launch, it's actually more like a modern-looking Vista. © Now that I have working updates to apply, I have unofficial support, but also no telemetry updates, nor do I have Windows 10 nags. The only disadvantage would be that the loading of the desktop by default is a tad cludgy, only because Classic Shell forces it to happen. But that's a small issue.

Well I'm happy even as it is. Plus this also gives Vista users added hope (since they're in a similar situation). They'll likely be able to do the same with patches from the original Server 2008.

Nope! Won't even bring up a download page. Just says that the Windows 7 version of IE 11 is not compatible with your system. Keep in mind that the original Server 2012 is only supporting IE 10 as well.

And I guess you're covered till Jan 10, 2023 !!! Yes it's what it seems. Now I'll use this thread for month to month results, and see how it goes from there. Even the IE updates go through. And v10, also not as good as 11, still browses most sites (should I need to use it ever)

Well would you look at that. Looks good to me So I guess Server 2012 Updates do install.

Well I got home later than I anticipated, but ran System Restore to create a Restore Point. Then I downloaded six updates (five for Windows Server 2012, and one for Internet Explorer 10). I had shut off the Windows Update service and had cleared the \Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder on a previous occasion, so I started the service and let the folder populate. Then I manually installed all of the updates one by one. (KB3115858, KB3123294, KB3126593, KB3126587 and KB3124280, plus KB3134814 for IE10) Now I had removed IE10 from my system (and even deleted the disk payload for the feature using the DISM command), but I thought perhaps that the IE update would improve security in the IE engine files that may still reside on the system. All updates installed without incident. Now to reboot. Be right back ...

I have noticed, for whatever it may be worth, that WSUS Offline Downloader has dispensed with any inclusion of updates for Windows NT 6.2, as of v10.4. So neither Windows 8 no Server 2012 has been included. How do they expect downloading of Server 2012 patches? Patch Tuesday is tomorrow, so I'll keep you posted.

Speaking of months of trouble free run time, always wondered (even back in the Windows 2000 Server days) how other admins planned to employ patches and updates. I always waited for a weekend to perform the installations and restarts, but what was common for other sys admins to do?

Are there any screenshots with Windows 10 in Classic Mode? Just curious if it were at all possible.

What do you need to customize in Server 2012? I remember with Server 2003, I had to enable Media Player and Internet connectivity if I wanted to even browse.. I adjusted RAM for programs vs cache. Does it come with the main Windows 8 desktop, or is it like "Classic"?

I'll certainly let you know what happens.

I believe you! Who or what, then, accounts for these unwelcome changes? Another thing to note is, if XUL and XPCOM were to be removed, Thunderbird, SeaMonkey, and ChatZilla would instantly be killed. The only way to save them would to be to rewrite the entire thing, and that will be a lot of work for the limited set of developers on each of these applications. (I contribute to SeaMonkey, and we have been discussing this on IRC over the past few months) By the way, when will an x64 official build of Seamonkey be in the works? The ability to run on Vista and XP x64 edition would be nice.

Here are my themes that I used on Windows XP x64 Edition. I'm not sure if all of the wallpapers or icons are there, but the visual styles are. https://www.dropbox.com/s/z02xmt6ngt70cng/Theme%20Backups.7z?dl=0

What about Windows Mail?

Kinda like these too: http://www.deviantart.com/art/Royale-2006-Final-26055364 http://www.deviantart.com/art/Windows-Royale-183605865 http://www.deviantart.com/art/Windows-7-SP1-Normal-Taskbar-147247940 http://www.deviantart.com/art/Aero-Ultimate-141818893 http://www.deviantart.com/art/Royal-Five-Color-Mod-8908279

As in Visual Styles? I used a slightly modified version of Royale Noir (with an orb and small Trubechet MS font in the title bars). For wall paper, I used the wallpaper from a Corona theme. Here's the wallpaper.