Giveaway of the Day Forums

1. 

   Hobi
   Member

   Hello all,
   yesterday I updated my GAOTD version of Aston Shell to 1.9.4.
   Now the registration is gone.. *sad*
   Is there any way to get the registration info back or is this a wink that I should by this program? ;)

   Thanks.

   Posted 17 years ago #
2. 

   BuBBy
   Teh adnim

   Hobi,

   None of the giveaways support updates (unless otherwise stated). If you like the program and want the new & future features and bug fixes - your best option is to buy the program. (You would also be able to reinstall the program if you setup your PC again).

   Considering that Aston Shell is a desktop replacement - I'd be wanting it to be as error free as possible (I'm not terribly keen on crashing desktops).

   Posted 17 years ago #
3. 

   Wolven
   Member

   Oops, too bad! I'll bet you don't ever do that again...

   Terms and conditions

   Please note that the software you download and install during the
   Giveaway period comes with the following important limitations:

   1. No free technical support
   2. No free upgrades to future versions
   3. Strictly non-commercial usage

   Hobi, if you like the Aston shell and are interested in virtual desktops, buy Aston with AltDesk as a package - Cheap,...cheap!

   1.9.4 has feature benefits over 1.9.3 as well as being more stable. I've noticed that it runs sweeter than 1.9.3. Still a few minor bugs, but bearable.

   Posted 17 years ago #
4. 

   Hobi
   Member

   Thanks für the quick answers. That happens when you don't read the T&Cs ;) I really consider to buy this program, because I like it very much.

   Posted 17 years ago #
5. 

   AlexSJ
   Member

   jejejej, regarding the disappearing wallpaper. In the beginning I changed it back to the theme wallpaper with the Aston Options, but now only through AltDesk preferences since I have 3 different wallpapers and it is faster. Since it does happen over and over again, I have them easily accesible now, making it a 3 click thing ....
   About the Tidy Start Menu: Under Windows I periodically categorized apps anyway, so my Start Menu always looked more like the 2nd screenshot. Additionally I categorize everything when installing.
   Perhaps we can rally for the update of the Aston here ....
   by the way, anybody interested in referring me for the Mojopack. I want to buy it and have it on the USB before that Aston update ...
   Pura vida!

   Posted 17 years ago #
6. 

   BillW50
   Member

   Hi AlexSJ! Wow Mojopac looks very good. And only about 50 bucks. LOL I wish I could help you with a referral, but I don't think I would get any use out of it. I take laptops with me a lot.

   I haven't seen AltDesk lose wallpapers in 3 days now I think. So I don't know what trips it yet. Still using it though. It is a keeper.

   I think after running Aston Shell for over 30 days, the newness sort of worn off. So I have been running under Explorer Shell all day. I did miss my True Launch and my USR iBand networking traffic indicator in the taskbar. Explorer Shell does seem faster for some tasks. Like the Control Panel stuff, Start -> Programs, and a few other things.

   Don't know what to say Wolven, about Tidy Start Menu? Like AlexSJ, I too tidy up my program shortcuts. But I will take a look at it anyway. It might really be slick for all I know. TIA.

   Posted 17 years ago #
7. 

   BillW50
   Member

   Back in Aston… that didn't take long, eh? And Vista Start Menu isn't that bad. Kind of heavy on RAM use though.

   Posted 17 years ago #
8. 

   Wolven
   Member

   BillWD40,
   Funny thing is, I'm finding less reason to return to explorer with each passing day. Probably 99% converted to Aston at present...Which is a good thing.

   I haven't noticed a drag on resources with Vista Start Menu. I guess it depends on individual setups.

   Tidy Start Menu is really for those who left the start menu cleanup far too long. It saves a lot of time and the results are great. Once done, keeping it organized is a 'piece of cake'. My menu was mostly in disarray - The day I decided to clean it up, I thought, "OMG, here's an all-day procedure", so I went looking for a free tool to shortcut the process,...glad I found it!

   Btw, I tinker manually in the registry from time-to-time, but mostly do the cleanup with Registry Mechanic ver5. It generally finds 15-35 'non-critical problems' on any given day. Yesterday, I downloaded the 30 day trial of TuneUp Utilities and took it for a test spin. After setting it up, I ran Reg. Mech. and found 12 problems. I then ran TuneUp's registry cleaner and found 172 problems!!!!!! (too much tinkering, I guess lol!)...So I went through and made the changes I felt necessary, and voila,..the minor irritations I was having with Aston Shell and Webroot Spysweeper (those I couldn't manually find and repair) are now gone. All systems AOK and cooking with gas.
   Registry Mechanic,.."pooooh" out you go.

   AlexSJ,
   sorry but I have no use for mojopack at the moment, so I can't help either of us there. Actually, I'm trying to catch up on lost shut-eye to get my own mojo back in sync. lol!

   Posted 17 years ago #
9. 

   Kat
   Member

   Hi Guys!
   The only thing I really missed about explorer was the favorites menu in the start menu, it was such an easy internet shortcut. But I finally figured out how to replicate it exactly in Aston. The other day I used explorer shell for some reason and I felt sort of lost-once you customize Aston to suit your needs its hard to part with. BillW50 you are making me wish I had downloaded Altdesk, didn't think I would ever use it at the time. Sounds like a lot of fun!

   Posted 17 years ago #
10. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Well Kat... They have a deal of registering both Aston and AltDesk at the same time for $34.95.

    http://www.astonshell.com/registration.htm

    I am seriously considering it. ;)

    Posted 17 years ago #
11. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Oh before I forget Kat... Aston normally has the Favorites at:

    Start -> Settings -> Service Folders -> Favorites

    Although you can create another one just about anywhere. ;)

    Posted 17 years ago #
12. 

    Kat
    Member

    Thanks for the link, Bill. After reading carefully I think it might be best to wait until Aston 2.0 is out, or pay again for the upgrade... I hadn't explored Service Folders-so thanks for that! I created Favorites on the Start Menu as a pop-up that allows me to go immediately to any one of the sixty or so bookmarked web sites with very little effort. The ones I use constantly I put on the top panels. Hope you've solved your wallpaper problems! I usually only lose mine when I rearrange wallpapers into new folders & lose the pathway. (As you can imagine, an image fiend such as myself is constantly trying to fit stuff in everywhere!)
    Kat

    Posted 17 years ago #
13. 

    AlexSJ
    Member

    Hello Kat: I just discovered http://www.septimiu.ro/ offering Microdesk if you want to experiment with various desktops. First I tought Altdesk wouldn't be much of a hit with me because I tend to close all the apps I don't use at the moment, but it turns out, it is. Wouldn't really want to miss it anymore.
    This Microdesk offers password protection of individual desktops, which ain't a bad feature at all.
    Pura vida!

    Posted 17 years ago #
14. 

    Kat
    Member

    Hi AlexSJ, I did a quick check of your link and it looks interesting! I'll have another look after work and play around a bit. Thanks! Kat

    Posted 17 years ago #
15. 

    Wolven
    Member

    !!! HEY WILD BILLW50 !!!

    There ya go,..an early Easter present for ya.
    http://wallpapers.diq.ru/en/12__Injured_Wolf.html

    Now that she has it out there and up for grabs, go get it!

    Posted 17 years ago #
16. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Oh wow Wolven! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

    Posted 17 years ago #
17. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Well Wolven... I spent over 30 days just in Aston on 4 computers. So I wasn't switching back and forth. Vista Start Menu uses 25MB in Explorer Shell and about 10MB under Aston. No it doesn't slow me down, as I still have enough free memory anyway. I usually have about 200MB free with 512MB installed. TweakRAM helps if I do get low on real RAM. As it swaps out memory leaks and stuff. I also installed Tidy Start Menu, but I already had everything sorted beforehand. So there was really nothing for it too do. Some of my other computers aren't though. So it will definitely help there. Thanks again. And guess what? I became a *real* Aston registered user! Running Aston 1.9.4 now! ;)

    Posted 17 years ago #
18. 

    Earth911
    Member

    Has anyone not firgured it out these are only trial programs and not yours too keep..

    Posted 17 years ago #
19. 

    BillW50
    Member

    I never got a trial version yet from GAOTD Earth911. And I have been here since early November.

    Posted 17 years ago #
20. 

    Wolven
    Member

    Earth911,

    The user's computing knowledge will generally determine whether these programs are fully functional (and for how long that remains the case), or simply trial versions (either from the beginning, or reverting to trial versions at a later time).

    GOTD do not need to explain the How To's. They only offer software with activation keys and readme files, so the average user will be able to setup a fully working version and run the program for as long as their luck holds out (providing of course the user adheres to the Terms & Conditions of installation and use).

    I get your point though, but I doubt giveawayforthemeantime.com, loaneroftheday.com or fullyworkingtrialversionoftheday.com would attract the traffic.

    This system may not be ideal for members, and it will always prove a controversial subject on the forum, but from a software developer's POV, it is possibly the best 'Developer<>GOTD<>Member' solution. So we as members need to compromise, rather than feel compromised. In the meantime we get to sample/use a good range of FREE, fully working software.

    If we like the programs enough to want the updates, we pay for a non-restricted license (as BillW50 and I have done with Aston Desktop [the topic of this thread, incidentally]).
    If not, then we use 'em 'til we lose 'em (if we ever lose 'em,...lol!).

    ---------------------------------------------------

    BuBBy,
    Just copy & paste 'the above' each time a free-radical approaches the nucleus - lol!

    Posted 17 years ago #
21. 

    Wolven
    Member

    BillW50,

    WOOHOO! Welcome to the inner sanctum (the dark side).

    Posted 17 years ago #
22. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Hi AlexSJ! So did you ever get your son's Aston working yet? Also I have been using AltDesk v1.6 and Aston v1.9.4 all of this past time. And I have tons of examples of AltDesk losing the background wallpaper. So it isn't just you. But it sounds like they fixed this in AltDesk v1.8. And version 1.7 fixed the incorrect path.

    http://www.astonshell.com/news/110/

    Here is what was new in AltDesk v1.7 if you are interested.

    http://www.astonshell.com/news/93/

    Posted 17 years ago #
23. 

    AlexSJ
    Member

    Hello BillW50: Not yet, never enough time, but I downloaded the MojoPac yesterday and put it on one of the external drives. I haven't bought it yet, but will most likely after the trial runs out. Since they recommended to run the external in NTFS I had to do some cleaning and changing backup locations ... Next step will be to get the Mojo loaded with all the goodies. And it would be soooo nice if GAOTD offers the updates to Alton and AltDesk ...
    I guess pretty soon I am gonne look you up in their forum

    Pura Vida

    Posted 17 years ago #
24. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Okay AlexSJ. :)

    Posted 17 years ago #
25. 

    NolafromNZ
    Member

    Hi Kat,
    Hope this doesn't appear twice, I have already tried posting this same question. I have been reading this thread because I have, and love, Aston Desktop. I had a look at your screenshot at I posted 2 screenshots: http://img156.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot001qf0.png http://img174.imageshack.us/my.php?image=screenshot002ty0.png
    and I just have to have that desktop for my own! So, I followed your instructions on where to find it: Here's a link to "Official Vista Wallpapers" http://neosmart.net/gallery/v/wallpapers/Vista/official/?g2_page=1 The site I found this image at is http://www.winmatrix.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=8330
    however, try as I might, I cannot find that particular beautiful shot. Can you please send me a copy of that wallpaper to [snipped], or give me other directions? I have spent the last month going through every wallpaper site I can google looking for it without success. It has become an obsession now, lol. Thank you in advance for any help you can give me Kat.

    edit - email/personal details removed. Please respond via forum post.

    Posted 17 years ago #
26. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Hi NolafromNZ! Yes I too *love* Aston. And yes that is a great wallpaper that Kat uses too. But I never found that one yet either. :(

    Posted 17 years ago #
27. 

    Kat
    Member

    Well, Hello NolafromNZ! (And Hi to you BillW50!) I'm glad you liked the desktop. I checked the link I had originally posted and wasn't able to download the image any more. But thank god for Google... found the image in 10 min! Here goes- http://static.flickr.com/92/211126372_c8632daf35_o.jpg Have fun! It is a beautiful shot and I never tire of it. Here is a new desktop I've been working on. The fabulous shot is of Santorini. http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/6774/santoriniuy6.jpg BTW, Bill YES I did fall off the face of the planet for a while, but now I'm back! I was surprised to see this thread still alive.. (PS Please post screenshots!) Thanks, Kat

    Posted 17 years ago #
28. 

    BillW50
    Member

    Hi Kat! Wow thanks for the link! You are so cool Kat! Your old link still works, it is just slow right now. And wow! What a great desktop! I was mostly using "Aston Vista 2007 by krstatzar" for many weeks. But I changed to another one which I had used before just a few hours ago, although I use a beta version of the desktop (also by krstatzar). Here is what it looks like:

    http://img79.imageshack.us/img79/213/20070622135754hn2.jpg

    This snapshot also shows the beta version of a Aston AltDesk plugin. You can get it at:

    http://www.astonshell.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=31467#31467

    Btw, what is weird... I rarely drop by here anymore. And we both pop in here the same day. And I don't think this thread will ever die. Aston is just so great! LOL

    Posted 17 years ago #
29. 

    Kat
    Member

    Oh Bill, I love the bird! Where did you get that great wallpaper? Have you tried customizing Aston with your own icons and such yet?

    I've been using the giveaway Icon Constructor and freeware IcoFx 1.5 as well as Paint and PaintDotNet (terrific freeware paint program) to create icons and alter images to suit my theme. Using quite a few bits of Vista Extreme theme (I changed the color from black to blue) and some lovely .png images found on the web I cobbled my blue theme together. Actually most of what I did is not visible! All new Start Menu, top panels and new icons for r&l toolbars. Quite time-consuming (or should I say all-consuming!).

    Just purchased a graphics tablet and now I can't stop. Like Nola I find myself truly obsessed,LOL...

    Anyhow, on to the good stuff! Here are screenshots of the wallpapers I use with the blue theme: http://img551.imageshack.us/img551/7526/sydneyoperast7.jpg
    http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/8505/parislasvegaset9.jpg a shot I took in Vegas,
    and for a tropical feel http://img337.imageshack.us/img337/8774/tropicalbeachjc0.jpg

    Working on a teal theme and steel-colored one to go with some wonderful wallpapers. That should keep me busy for the next hundred years! At least it gives me impetus to learn graphics programs, a whole new world and I'm happy as a pig in you-know-what!

    You're right Bill, Aston will never die - it's too much fun!

    (As Wolven says "Imagine a smiley here") Bye-Bye. Hope to chat again soon. Kat

    Posted 17 years ago #
30. 

    Kat
    Member

    OOPS! First screenshot is actually http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/7526/sydneyoperast7.jpg
    Kat

    Posted 17 years ago #

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