Kill Security Center Notifications

The new Windows Security Center in Windows Vista can be just as annoying as the security centers in previous versions of Windows. I am an advanced of a computer user to know that I do not have anti-virus software installed. I don't need the Windows Security Center to remind me that all the time.

Thankfully there is a new easy way to disable the security center messages.

1. Click on the Security Center/Windows Security Alerts logo in the system tray.
2. Click Change the way Security Center alerts me.
3. Select I do not want notification messages from Security Center.

It is now that easy.

Change Vista's Visual Style with hacked system files

Changing the visual style of Windows is something that has become very popular over the years with Windows XP. In Windows Vista, this is just starting to gain momentum with the release of a few cool hacked visual styles. These alternative visual styles are replacements for the default Aero glass style and offer slight tweaks on the design. Over time there will be more and more higher quality visual styles released for Windows Vista.

If you want to get started, you will need to download the hacked visual style skinning engine files from Rafael Rivera’s site. Rafael has both x86 and x64 versions available. These modified system files remove the requirement for visual style files to be digitally signed by Microsoft. If you need help replacing the system files with the modified files, check out my article on working with system files in Windows Vista.

UPDATE: There is now an automated utility that allows you to patch your visual style skinning engine files with just one click. Click here to check it out.

Make sure you replace all three hacked system files:

• uxtheme.dll
• themeui.dll
• shsvcs.dll

After the skinning engine’s files have been replaced and you have rebooted, you are ready to get started installing third-party visual styles.

Check out these sites for Windows Vista Visual Styles:

• JoeJoe.org
• Neowin
• AeroXP
• deviantArt

Make sure that you download visual styles that are for Windows Vista. XP visual styles will not work in Vista!

Make Maximized Windows & Taskbar Transparent + Automated UXtheme Patcher

Throughout the beta process Microsoft received a lot of feedback on how the taskbar and the window border changes to black when you maximize a window. Before the final release they altered the behavior slightly so the window and taskbar would still turn opaque and black, but with a very slight tint of color that matches the color of your glass. This change satisfied some users but left others still in the dark. Many users wanted a maximized window to remain transparent as well as the taskbar. Once the final build of Windows Vista shipped, all hope was gone that we would have transparent maximized windows, until today.

Using a very cool and free utility called VistaGlazz by CodeGazer.com you can easily make your maximized windows and taskbar transparent. Additionally, this utility allows you to easily patch your uxtheme system files so that you can use hacked visual styles with just the click of a button, instead of the multiple step manual procedure.

Let's get started:

1. Visit CodeGazer.com (http://www.codegazer.com/vistaglazz.htm) and download the latest version of VistaGlazz.
2. Start up your copy of VistaGlazz.
3. Click I agree on the first screen.
4. Click the icon on the left and then hit Patch files.
5. Reboot.
6. Start up VistaGlazz again, this time click on the middle icon and hit Patch Style. The DWM will restart and everything will finally be transparent.

How to delete / replace a system file

In many of the tweaks on this site I have directed you to delete or replace a system file. In Windows Vista this is not always as easy as it sounds since the system files are protected better by the file system than in XP. There are two steps that you need to do in order to be able to replace or delete a system file:

1. First you need to take ownership of the file. Run takeown /f "path and file name" to take ownership from a command prompt.
   
2. Next, you need to give your account full control permissions on the file. Run cacls "path and file name" /G :F to get full control from a command prompt.

Change the registered owner of your PC

Would you like the change the registered owner and organization for your Windows Vista installation? Follow these steps below to make the registry changes necessary:

1. Click on the Start Button and type in regedit and hit Enter.
2. Navigate through HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, SOFTWARE, Microsoft, Windows NT and CurrentVersion.
3. Right click on RegisteredOwner and select Properties.
4. Enter in the new RegisteredOwner value.
5. Right click on RegisteredOrganization and select Properties.
6. Enter in the new RegisteredOrganization value.
7. Close Registry Editor.

Change Boot Screen (32-bit only for now)

There is finally an easy way (easier than before) to change your Windows Vista boot screen and use any high resolution photo as your boot screen. Using a great tool written by Dan Smith it is now possible to automatically generate the replacement language MUI file that contains your boot image files. All you need is two photos at 800x600 and 1024x768 saved as 24-bit windows bitmaps. Then follow these steps:

1. Download Dan Smith's Vista Boot Logo Generator.
2. Install and then run from the link in the Start Menu.
3. Hit Browse for image and select both the 800x600 and 1024x768 resolution bitmap files for your boot screen.
4. Click on File and select Save Boot Screen File as and save your file.
5. Next, you will need to replace the winload.exe.mui file in c:\Windows\System32\en-us with the one you just created. Before you copy in your new file, make a backup of the original. You will need to take ownership of all files in en-us as well as give your account file permissions to replace the file as well in order to copy the new winload.exe.mui file in.
6. The last step is to enable the alternative boot screen setting as shown in this tweak.

The next time you reboot you should see your new boot screen. If you have problems with Windows not booting properly, boot up with the Windows Vista install CD and replace the winload.exe.mui file with your backup.

Enable hidden Boot Screen

Tired of the pathetic boot screen in Windows Vista? There is a cool trick that will allow you to see what may have been a new boot screen for Windows Vista.

Enable New Boot Screen:

1. Click on the start orb and type in "MSCONFIG" in the textbox.

2. Once the System Configuration tool loads, click on the Boot tab.

3. Under Boot Options check "No GUI Boot".

4. Hit OK and reboot to see the new screen.

Enjoy!