Servelius
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Posts posted by Servelius
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^^ Do you by chance have Windows Defender or MSE enabled? It is incompatible with AutoHotkey, causes CPU hangs.
No, and I wasn't aware of this incompatibility, thanks for telling. My only security is Eset Endpoint. Normally the shortcut works pretty fast. My guess lags can be due to overloaded system and also when certain active windows intercept key strokes.
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As we've noted many times in this thread, the problem stems from the growing popularity of tablets and Microsoft executives' desire to have a
horse in that race. Therefore they have consented to wrecking the UX for the
hundreds of millions of people in their
established base, for the sake of
speculative gains in the tablet segment.
But as we know, tablets are an inherently
limited and limiting environment.
I'm with you on those visual
enhancements like Aero and Flip3D.
IMHO, using Windows on the flattened
interface they've designed, is like
watching cartoons instead of movies with
real people.
Agree with every word said, very well and precisely put. I see why they came up with windows 8, but I don't understand at all why on earth would they decide to let it run on desktops without the beauty of windows 7, without those aero goodies which Microsoft themselves used to call "the best UI ever in the OS history".
Just how much extra effort would it have taken to simply keep all the good stuff so user decides: got a desktop then help yourself turn the eye candy on, got a tablet then leave it off by default. Especially given that all testers as one were literally imploring Microsoft to keep aero and flip.
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@CharlotteTheHarlot posted some cool pics, and I fear that's a step further with Windows 9, this time without a pixel of redundancy.
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Sure there is. Just create a Autohotkey script that sends the Win key and pin it as the first item on your taskbar. Someone made it already: http://www.howtogeek.com/108838/make-your-own-windows-8-start-button-with-zero-memory-usage/
A big fan of autohotkey here, me, and I've used that approach successfully. However, in a few circumstances there's a huge lag after clicking that shortcut before metro comes up, like several seconds which is quite annoying.
There must be a point in a system's dll to start metro instantly just as fast as from Charms menu.
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Looks beautiful if you keep in mind it resembles the style of metro.
Has anyone come up with Vista start skin for StartIsBack ?
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My deeper impression of Windowd 8 is it's cool and fast, feels like more resistent to blue screens, and with a few new features to like, yet it's so dorky without real aero and without Flip3d.
Sucks Bill Gates had quit keeping his eye on final concepts in Microsoft.
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Version 1.3 Release
http://www.startisback.com/#download-tab
Changes over RC:
Fixed: shortcuts created by Windows Installer didn't show 'Pin to Start Menu'License key no longer stored as a plain text in registry
AeroByDesign skin updated
Business license keys are now available:
http://www.startisback.com/#business-tab
Those who donated $10 or more during development have Business license. Congratulations!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Stay tuned for 2013. Version 1.4 will bring some Modern UI integration.
Improvements for enterprise and individual users are also planned.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone.
Version 1.3 is indeed awesome, in addition to those improvements listed the jumplists` opening animation is a lot smoother now.
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Hello, sorry for spam, this is not directly StartIsBack related, but someone could be interested in it.
Would somebody be interested in the development of the small utility which returns transparent titlebars in Win8? This is not regular Aero Glass but the utility (currently slow and buggy) which replaces windows titlebars with transparent images.
Interesting, but IMHO transparent borders without Aero Blur are not as good as solid. What I truly want added to Windows 8 is Flip3D as in Windows 7.
Yeah, blurring is my plan. But, starting from Vista (and Win7/8) it is not so easy to do. Technique which did work on XP simply does not work with DWM enabled. Although DWM renders windows into off-screen buffer, it is not possible to get pixels which are hidden under certain window - or better, it is possible to iterate over all windows in needed z-order, render them into my buffer and composite whole desktop (then get rectangle under window border and do a blur on it) on my own. It is very fast when you have two or three windows on your desktop. But performance will degrade with the amount of opened windows. Maybe there is another way but I have not found a solution yet...
I know that windows 8 DWM is in fact Aero but without transparency, and thanks for the clarifications. Indeed it's a hefty task to apply transparency over DWM that just thwarts the Aero blur feature. I wish you good luck with the project. Perhaps it'll be easier going this route: http://www.neowin.net/news/windows-8-may-get-aero-glass-back-via-modder.
I just find the lack of Flip3D greater annoyance than the lack of transparency, this was my point. Rebuilding missing Flip3D feature from scratch is quite a task too, but it's worth the effort..
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And here it is!
VERSION 1.2 RELEASE
http://www.startisback.com/StartIsBack_setup.exe
Changes over 1.2RC2:
- Fixed: hibernate shutdown option could fail to show in configurator
- Fixed: high contast themes start menu issues
- Fixed: popping combined start screen / button menu shifts cursor position
- New: Control Panel shortcut for Start menu configuration
- Updated AeroByDesign style
- Installing for all users no longer requires log off
Thanks so much @Tihiy, all works as charm in this release. AeroByDesign is awesome and now it's my favorite skin.
Although not new in this release, it's still worth to note another great feature: the shutdown button shows the yellow update mark once system updates are ready.
Control Panel shortcut is cool too.
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Hello, sorry for spam, this is not directly StartIsBack related, but someone could be interested in it.
Would somebody be interested in the development of the small utility which returns transparent titlebars in Win8? This is not regular Aero Glass but the utility (currently slow and buggy) which replaces windows titlebars with transparent images.
Interesting, but IMHO transparent borders without Aero Blur are not as good as solid. What I truly want added to Windows 8 is Flip3D as in Windows 7.
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Explorer.exe is not reloading back to the desktop so just blue screen no dumpfile
Only happens when using your silent switch, when you run normally installs and runs like it should.
Curious if anyone else has tried to do the silent install and had the same thing happen?
Tihiy, if you could use the /qn in future update that would make it totally silent as well instead of the basic auto-install
and seeing the install progress bar
I'm reluctant to try the silent method, but still might that be some driver bugging out, what does your bsod error say?
Every blue screen creates crash report in X:\Windows\Minidump, so a .dmp has to be there, of course if you haven't changed your system default setting.
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I only have one Win key. So, if I go to Start, press Shut Down and then I turn on the computer, everything is fine. Now, if I go to Start->Reboot, then Win button will start opening Start screen. I don't have to toggle on and off the Apps option, I just need to change it to opposite and press apply (if it was checked, I un-check it and press apply, if it was unchecked, I check it and press apply), and Win button will start working normally again.
This sounds abnormal, yet I can't reproduce that. If you hit Ctr-Esc, do you get the start menu pop up in this case?
Following on from your report, could such behavior be caused by:
- some software running alongside that makes use of Win key?
- the fact that windows explorer needs time to first load necessary libraries on startup for startisback's hotkeys to work?
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Add Only "Win" to hotkey Start Screen!
I would second this, if not user-defined input then the following keys would be good:
1. Start screen hotkey
- LWin/Ctr-Esc
- RWin
- LWin+Shift
- LWin+Ctr
- LWin+Alt
2. Start Menu hotkey
- LWin/Ctr-Esc
- RWin
- LWin+Shift
- LWin+Ctr
- LWin+Alt
I'd prefer to choose LWin for the Metro and RWin for the Start menu.
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What does it mean "Start button menu shows same menu items as in Win7"? If this are the items which should be shown after we press on All Programs, then I don't see it like on Win 7. Only IE10 is there and some others folders, there are no items like Windows Update, Windows Media Player, Windows Media Center, etc.
I haven't installed RC1.1 yet but I would guess that might refer to the context menu that pops up when you right click the start button.
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Is there any possible way you can make a screen capture video showing what exactly you do and the effect of the bug?Trial: http://mirillis.com/en/products/action.html
Free: http://camstudio.org/
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One very very minor issue I've encountered with a couple of games, sometimes when I start a game and click on the desktop (thus switching focus there) BEFORE the game has loaded and switched to fullscreen the start button orb stays as an overlay over the fullscreened game.
Clicking once while in the game switches the focus back to the game and the orb disappears.
I would hardly even consider it a bug as it has no appreciable effect but I thought I'd put it out there.
Right, a small anomality. On the other hand, we recently had people complain about the orb missing under certain rare circumstances, such as in some cases with virtual desktops, on exitting full-screen mode etc. Since the orb is correctly overlayed when the full screen window is active, it's not a bug. Thank you for reporting.
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Someone suggested earlier "to add custom frames to user picture" - sounds good but the destiny of this project is to recreate the original start menu as it is in Windows 7. It should be no huge effort to add a custom frame manually.
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Just purchased it and got the activation code. $3 for 2 PC license is a steal for original menu code compared to Start8 which is a clone and $5 per license. Hope you continue to fix bugs and that it continues to work (it will of course as long as MS doesn't update their code).
I never thought I would buy this. Classic Shell is my baby but this is like Start menu insurance. $3 2 licences is not that expensive, much cheaper than Start8. Send 1 to July Green, right?
Yes, it seems pining folders is missing.
Yes, not only folders, but other shortcut types as well, such as control panels, etc. Funny thing is, I had a "Program and Features" link from my Windows 7 install, that remained in StartIsBack, but it is impossible to readd it if I remove it or have to reinstall Windows.
Hi guys, a issue here.
In the original start menu at Win Vista / 7, I was able to put shortcuts of folders on it, but with Start Is Back 1.0 not anymore.
It's a bug or a feature missing?
Thanks in advance!
It is EXTREMELY simple to pin ANY item you want,
1. Pin any shortcut like "notepad"
2. Right-click that pinned item > Properties > Shortcut > Target, just change your target path.
e.g.
Control Panel path: control.exe
Recycle bin: explorer.exe shell:RecycleBinFolder
Windows update: explorer.exe shell:::{36eef7db-88ad-4e81-ad49-0e313f0c35f8}
Mouse Properties: rundll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL main.cpl,,0
etc.
To change the shortcut icon see%SystemRoot%\system32\imageres.dll.
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One more small error (I believe). Text inputted into the Start Menu's search box is the same color as the "Search programs and files" message string. I believe the text shouldn't be the same color. It should be black, not grey. Old eyes on an old man.
EDIT: Maybe this behavior is now default in Windows 8. Other search boxes also have this behavior. Ugh. MS made icons smaller and text harder to see...
This has been reported before and I guess fix is coming, but you are spot on the search texts are now by default grey in Windows 8:
It used to work like that for me too but not anymore. They open normally in the metro search, but not in the start menu. I have no idea what caused it so I don't know how to reproduce it. I have tried rebooting and uninstalling and reinstalling the menu and still it works like this. Other than that it works great so it's only a minor annoyance.
It would be great if you could outline the exact steps to get that bug - this way bugs are located and get fixed. You could create a new user account to try StartIsBack there, and see what's different in it.
Works fine with a new user. I tried killing all the processes that are open in the regular user account but not in the new one, but still does not work. I have no idea what else is different, sorry that I can't be of more help.
Still if you find ways to reproduce that behavior don't hesitate to report, plz.
BUG: I get the following Error window 'The specified program requires a newer version of Windows' message if
1. I try to uninstall StartIsBack
2. I right-click the start button and select Start Menu Properties,
Any solution?
I'm running Window 8 Pro with Media Centre. It was loaded from the MSDN DVD (build 9200), activated with a license, then the 'for a limited time only' free media centre bundle license applied and some Windows updates were applied too.
Otherwise am enjoying Start Is Back
EDIT: FIXED!! For some reason my \users\<user>\appdata\local\startisback\startisbackcfg file was running in Win7 compatibility mode. Removing that option gets rid of the above error.
Thanks for the edit.
VIRUS! AVG threw up a Cyptor Virus Warning on startisback32.dll -- Is this a false positive or is this thing infected??
It's a false positive, By design StartIsBack works without a single service or an .exe running, and therefore it entirely relies on its .dll files that can't work if they are not linked to in the registry. AVG sniffs registry modification.
My Eset Endpoint with the latest updates detects nothing at all.
Not sure whether anyone else has their User Profiles on a drive other than C. Mine is working fine with files under D:\Users\Username\Appdata\Local\StartIsBack.
Also, like the fact that pulling the mouse down from the top of the screen switches to MS App Mode if I really should want it.
Right, user profiles can be on any drive, not just C. And yes, it's great to have best of both worlds, traditional Start menu and Metro.
Great program!
Where and how to buy license?
/Rojac
The program is currently in beta testing so just stay tuned to the announcements in the first post of this thread.
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I posted my donation. So I think I can comment
Can you please restore the lower-left hand charm? Well it's not really a charm. To access this menu (with startisback not installed) I can move the mouse pointer to the lower left-hand corner and right click. This is very useful.
As far as I know, the lower left-hand corner is on to-do list, and likely it will be available soon.
Other than that I see an issue on a laptop when going to the Metro start menu. To produce:
1. control+windows key to go to Metro Start menu
2. Notice that the cursor is the windows "hand" icon.
3. I have to click anywhere to bring the Metro start menu to the forefront. This is the issue.
4. Click on a tile to select it.
My laptop was running a previous beta and this is also seen on Beta 4. My desktop does not display this behavior. Thanks again.
I cannot reproduce this bug, but other folks may be able to. Can anyone else confirm this bug?
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Windows ME, Vista and 8 are Microsoft's biggest OS failure, ME especially. 8 may have some potential but I'm not liking what I'm seeing.
IMHO Vista is better than 8, definitely nicer and cooler despite the fact it's a little slower on old hardware.
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It used to work like that for me too but not anymore. They open normally in the metro search, but not in the start menu. I have no idea what caused it so I don't know how to reproduce it. I have tried rebooting and uninstalling and reinstalling the menu and still it works like this. Other than that it works great so it's only a minor annoyance.
It would be great if you could outline the exact steps to get that bug - this way bugs are located and get fixed. You could create a new user account to try StartIsBack there, and see what's different in it.
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Wow, even IObit made a Start Menu program?
Classic Shell's All Programs menu does not open in-place/inline like the 7 Start Menu, which is what Andre doesn't like, because it covers more of the screen. But we consider that an advantage, honest so it will never change.Nothing wrong with having the option. That way every user gets what they want..
'Send Feedback' and the sky crawling tallness of this menu are amazing. Has anyonne tried beta 2, any improvements?
www.iobit.com/iobitstartmenu8.php
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1 question. Does StartIsBack work with multiple Desktops (Dexpot or Desktops from Sysinternals)?
No problem with Desktops from Sysinternals either.
P.S. One issue with Sysinternals though, if you switch to another desktop and then hit startisback's metro hotkey, it launches metro and automatically switches you to the first desktop. Apparently, such behaviour is by Sysinternals' design.
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1 question. Does StartIsBack work with multiple Desktops (Dexpot or Desktops from Sysinternals)?
It does. I use Dexpot and DeskSpace, I often switch between my desks and I see no problem at all.
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This used to work great, but today I encountered a bug that stays even after a reboot. If I try to open control panel objects like "Sound" or "Task Scheduler" through the start menu search, or pinned to start menu, it just quickly flashes the metro screen but does not open anything.
Does it open normally after the first time it fails?
No, I can't open them from the start menu. Only from control panel or the metro screen. It's weird because at first it worked, I'm using beta 4. And by the right click menu I meant the one that is default in win8 desktop, with many tools in it in in the lower left corner.
Alright, why don't you outline the steps too reproduce it.
Of what I've tried:
1. Open the startisback menu and search for 'Sound'. From the search results I choose 'Sound' and the sound menu appears as it should. All's perfect.
2. Goto charms or metro, hit Win-Q and search something, then launch it, and it starts up fine.
I see no problem.
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This used to work great, but today I encountered a bug that stays even after a reboot. If I try to open control panel objects like "Sound" or "Task Scheduler" through the start menu search, or pinned to start menu, it just quickly flashes the metro screen but does not open anything.
Does it open normally after the first time it fails?
Also with pricing my concern is with donations I donate what I can afford at the time, it maybe 5 euros it may be 20 euros it depends what I can afford, but I always donate to free apps I use with any kind of regularity, eg. I donated to 7 taskbar tweaker. I am very hesitant to forcefully pay for apps that add features that really should be in the OS that I have already paid for, so all I ask is that you do price it reasonably and to allow use on multiple machines with one purchase instead of forcing activation per machine because then it can quickly become very expensive.
The keys will be cheap enough. Just stay tuned.
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1. great app but cant find way to donate.
2. my concern is tho (not tried to do yet) how does this app play with classic shell as I use classic shell on windows 7 for various reasons and would on win8 for the same reasons but since that messes with the start menu on windows 8 would it cause problems?
3. Also is the start menu fully featured, on windows 7 if I run an app it appears on the start menu on this apps don't seem to be appearing unless I pin.
1. StartIsBack is not freeware. RC version is due soon. Then you can purchase a key. Stay tuned for the first 2 posts in the first page of this thread.
2. You can use classic shell software along with StartIsBack menu without any conflicts. I use both too. In this case StartIsBack will override the start button, but you can invoke classic shell's menu with its hotkey.
3. Just right-click on the start button, start menu properties, and set the desired number of recently opened programs to display. That's it, just like the start menu in 7, nice, fast, and reliable.
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I don't think it's possible without modding of each individual metro app. Why would you need different languages in your metro apps, is there really much use in such approach?
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Yes. But he says taskbar didn't switch between tasks, which is weird and if it reproduceable, then it's a bug.It is a normal behavior for a windowed 3D game to stay on top of others, even in XP/Vista/7.
The taskbar does switch between tasks, no anomalies at all.
Let's test 2 modes,
1. Full-screen: hit LWin, it takes me to the desktop with the start menu open and the game minimized in tray. The taskbar is OK.
2. Windowed 3d game mode: hit LWin, the start menu panel opens on top over the windowed game. The taskbar is OK, nothing unusual, the apps runninng in it, previews functional. TO SWITCH TO ANOTHER APP, you need to first minimize the windowed game because JUST LIKE IN XP/7/VISTA windowed games are topmost, such behavior is normal.
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Yes. But he says taskbar didn't switch between tasks, which is weird and if it reproduceable, then it's a bug.It is a normal behavior for a windowed 3D game to stay on top of others, even in XP/Vista/7.
The taskbar does switch between tasks, no anomalies at all.
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I never thought I would buy this. Classic Shell is my baby but this is like Start menu insurance. 
Is Steve Ballmer a hero?
in Windows 8
Posted
The Robin Hood for the new millennium, that's right, a true hero of America. Galvanic as Dr.Phil he is!
The future is near and it starts with Ballmer.