How to Unlock the Windows 7 Hidden Themes

There are hidden themes present in Windows 7. To unlock the Windows 7 hidden themes do the following:

• Open the Explorer (Windows + E) and go to C:\Windows\winsxs
• Enter *.theme into the search field. Alternately you can use the * sign on the number block.
• You’ll get the Click me prompt
• Double-click the themes ZA, US, GB, CA, AU to install them

Enjoy! and if you would like to know more tips please leave a comment.

How to Fix “Folder Options” Missing in Windows Explorer

A very annoying problem in Windows is disappearance and missing of Folder Options under Tools menu in Explorer. My Digital Life has given a solution for this problem which is as under:

Are your Folder Options not visible under Tool menu in Windows Explorer? It is quite common to see this problem and if you are one of the unfortunate one, don’t panic! You can restore it back by following a few simple steps.

There are 2 solutions provided as below, you can choose either one of them to get this problem resolved:

Solution 1: Edit registry

1. Go to Run, type regedit then press enter.
2. Navigate to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer].
3. At right panel, look for a value called NoFolderOptions. Right click on it then choose Delete.
4. Navigate to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer].
5. Repeat step 3 to delete NoFolderOptions entry.

Solution 2: Change setting in Group Policy

1. Go to Run, type gpedit.msc then press enter.
2. Navigate to User Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Windows Explorer.
3. At the right panel, look for “Removes the Folder Options menu item from the Tools menu”, right click on it then choose Properties.
4. Change the setting from Enabled to Not Configured or Disabled.

Hope this simple workaround will help you save some time for other value added tasks.

Via [My Digital Life]

Download Windows 7 Beta Hi-Resolution Icons Pack

Windows 7 Beta is rocking out everywhere and downloaded by millions of people all over. For users who haven’t switched to Windows 7 beta yet, can grab various Windows 7 utilities for their Windows.

You can get Free Windows 7 Beta Hi-Resolution Icons Pack. All the icons are extracted from Windows 7 Beta (Build 7000). The Windows 7 Icon Pack contains 214 Hi-Resolution icons extracted directly from Windows resource files. All the icons are in their original .ico format.

Download Windows 7 Beta – Icon Pack via  Redmond Pie and Webtrickz

General availability for the Windows 7 Beta to end

Microsoft is going to end general availability for Windows 7 Beta build 7025 in February so get your copy now if you are interested from Windows 7 website. It was of course leaked weeks before Microsoft officially released it so those links will still be around after general availability.

Meanwhile screenshots of build 7025 have leaked. There’s a great chance of this build’s download leaks. Keep searching!

First off: thank you for your interest in beta testing Windows 7! As we near January 24th, we wanted to update everyone again on the next steps for the Windows 7 Beta. The amount of feedback we have received has been amazing and continues to pour in. We are at a point where we have more than enough beta testers and feedback coming in to meet our engineering needs, so we are beginning to plan the end of general availability for Windows 7 Beta.

Because enthusiasm continues to be so high for the Windows 7 Beta and we don’t want anyone to miss out we will keep the Beta downloads open through February 10th. Customers who have started but not completed the download process will be able to do so through February 12th.

Read the rest of this entry

RSS-powered Windows 7 desktop slideshows – istartedsomething

This is very interesting!

Desktop themes are making a comeback in Windows 7 with many new styling options to make sure it’s easy to create, mix and share your unique themes. And many there are already, including Paul Thurrott’s collection and various OSX inspired theme packs.

One of the new tricks to make your desktop “pop” (not literally) is the ability to run a slideshow as your wallpaper. Many already know you can select a couple of pictures to cycle through, or even a whole directory of (cute cat) photos, but did you know you can also exploit the power of RSS feeds?

See the original post at: RSS-powered Windows 7 desktop slideshows – istartedsomething

Windows 7 Beta Hotkey Combinations

Brandon Paddock has made a chart of the new hot key combinations of Windows 7. Some are below while for full list please visit Brandon Paddock’s Blog.

General

Explorer

Taskbar modifiers