Vista Transformation Pack & Vista Upgrade

i have vtp right now, and im pretty sure that when you install it it changes some system files on xp. so my question is: if i just get a vista upgrade, will it be kinda messed up cause some xp system files may have been changed during the installation of vtp? i wonder this because 1) it is a lot cheaper to just upgrade and 2) its easier than having to basically reformat my computer if i get the actual vista thing (non-upgrade)

 

I would ask this question too seeing as I also use VTP, but I am going to consider a dual boot option instead. I suggest you go this route too if possible, so if you do not like the way Vista runs on your machine (should perform very well though), you can just collapse the partition with Vista on it and go back to using XP.

 

Can I do a clean installation using Express Vista Upgrade?

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsvista/getready/upgradeinfo.mspx
just found this webpage, it helped me a lot

 

AFAIK VTP only patches XP system files (meaning that it doesn't use/copy any Vista System files), therefore I don’t see why it should cause any problems. An upgrade will replace all necessary files regardless of whether they have been patched or not.

however I always opt for a clean installation over an upgrade, especially when it is a new OS version.

 

VTP messed up my system and I had to reformat.

 

how did it mess up your system? i hear lots of ppl say that but they dont say how

 

I believe that VISTA upgrade only checks that you have a valid MS Operating System to upgrade. If it passes the test, it would move the old windows to another folder and install VISTA from scratch. It won't patch XP files.

 

so will it cause problems??

 

I don't think it will...but you may never know lol

 

well all i know is that it keeps your files and applications, so if it installs over xp, and overwites xp files, then that is great, exactly what i want, but if it doesnt then...i dont know

 

Ok here is how VTP messed up my system (I cant remember the exact version but it was a while ago)

I installed it but it didn’t look like advertised screen shots, there were few minor issues with fonts, sizes and alignment of screen elements (buttons, scrollbars etc..), as I said they were minor details but it kind of irritated me.

So I tried uninstalling it , that is when everything went wrong!. It didn’t uninstall properly with the uninstall option, the uninstaller ran but XP was not not restored to the previous state. There were lots of visual errors, the whole Windows UI looked all messed up. It messed up Java Netbeans IDE and few other applications; they started giving weird errors until I stopped theme service and switched to Windows classic style. So basically it messed up the whole XP theming system.

 

well i now have vtp 6.0, i upgraded from vtp 5.5. when i was upgrading, i had to uninstall 5.5, and after i uninstalled it i noticed that everything was fine except for maybe some icons and/or the fonts (maybe i cant rly remember). so maybe this was just your computer phoenix; could we get other responses to this so we can compare

 

I used VTP 5 or something, maybe it was just my PC; but if you go through the change log of various new VTP versions you will notice that they have fixed quite a lot of bugs including number of un install issues. So I’m quite convinced that it was VTP.

Still I don’t think it is a stable and mature product, anyways I’m not going to install it never again. Partially because I don’t like it and partially because I’ll be getting the actual thing soon . Besides, without VTP you can still make XP look like Vista by only using Windows theming and few resource patches.

 

VTP combined with WindowBlinds slowed down my system quite a bit, but I couldn't figure out why.

Startup took a bit longer, even with the basic changes. Not being able to preview each option in VTP wasn't appealing either.

I ditched both programs for CrystalXP's Vista Inspirat.

 

How strange, I was going to start a thread about VTP but I saw there was already one. I'm thinking of trying out VTP 6.0 but was wondering if it slows down your system a lot, in every usage and playing games. Also I heard that once you install it, some of the XP system files are changed and you can't change it back even if you uninstall VTP. Does anyone have more details on this?

 

It prompts you to change the system files, or not during installation. I chose not to.

Remember to create a restore point before any usage of this software.

 

So what's the general consensus on VTP 6.0? If it's mostly bug free and not a big resource hog then it seems like a pretty cool program.

 

i got a question, if you did make it change your files (cant remember if i did or not) but you made a restore point, will it restore it to have the files unchanged? because if so, i might just do that

 

Yes, it should.

I went straight back to the restore point after the uninstall just in case.

 

I remember, when installing VTP, that there was something to the effect of "if you install this, you might have problems uninstalling it and it might mess up your system. Use at your own risk".

So unless you're ready to reformat if you want to remove it, don't install it.

As far as resources go, I haven't noticed much impact, but I have a pretty good computer. On low end machines, you might see a sizable impact.

I use it cause I like things "pretty". I read of these people that turn off the themes and make it look like win98 cause they say they have better performance..... unless your computer is a p1 90MHz, I don't think you'll notice the difference with regular XP themes on.

 

Once I combined WindowBlinds with VTP, startup was a pain.

The Vista startup screen didn't take the place of XP's. My HP background would load first, and the Vista one would show up about 5-10 seconds later. The screen stayed blank for 30 seconds, or so, then the cursor loaded.

Everything else loaded just under a minute later.

And I like to think that I have a decently-powered machine.

 

Do you need to use Windowsblind in order to have the full effects? And how much resources does it use?

 

Mine didn't come with windowsblinds and I think I have the full effects. I have a program called glass2k or something that loads up and adds the transparency effect, but you can remove that one and just have the pretty fonts/etc of vista.

 

You have to pay for WindowBlinds so that you can get the Aero effect. The freeware version doesn't come with that option.

I'm happy with Vista Inspirat right now, though.

 

Does gaming performance take a hit when you have VTP?

 

In my opinion, dont use VTP at all
Really, I used it 'cause I like it pretty like Vista, but the the startup time is longer. plus some program wont run with VTP (just like yahoo messenger dont run with Windowblind)
Plus, uninstall VTP mean reformat, this is something I hated the most. Now im stuck with VTP 5.5, I dont even want to update to 6.0 because Im so scare right now it will mess with my system.
Use windowblind if you want to change your window look.

 

You don't have to reformat; whatever happened to using Restore Points? Just turn on the service and create a restore point before you install the VTP. It'll save you a lot of grief.

 

i havent rly noticed any difference in gaming performance

 

VTP actually messed up my ToshibaM45 so bad that restore points didn't even work! I should maybe have used the restore point first instead of trying to uninstall VTP.

 

well, while upgrading to vtp 6.0 from 5.5, i had to uninstall 5.5 first, so after i did that and i restarted, i didnt rly notice anything wrong

 

I was a noob when I installed VTP, after that I got a major Spyware war that I have to deleted all my restore point. So the final word is if I dont want to use VTP anymore mean reformat which I will do in near future.
My point is that this software, the VTP, is a good software, made your window look pretty at 1st, but after sometime it just feel the same, Vista is Vista and Xp is Xp. I will start saving for Vista.
As for the trouble with VTP I have some like some game I play dont run with VTP, just crash. Startup is longer, maybe 30 sec to 1' (my startup time is now nearly 2').

 

well ya i guess like you said, at first its rly nice, but now the feeling is starting to wear off and i think i wanna go back to regular xp, but now im scared to uninstall my vtp...what should i do? i made a restore point to before but ive never used system restore before...so....

EDIT: actually nvm about changing it back, i just changed it to see how it looks and i dont like it, so ill stick with vtp until i get vista where i hope it will make everything ok again, like a regular computer without vtp on it

 

Yeah VTP6 slows down startup by about a minute. Right before XP's boot screen comes up, my PC lags for about 5 seconds.

How do you get the transparency/Glass effect enabled with WB?

 

im thinking i dont rly want vtp anymore so i think i will reformat my comp because i have uninstalled vtp6.0 (no problems...yet), and i tried to restore it to before i had 5.5, but as the dummy i am i forgot to make a restore poiint before 5.5, i made one before 6.0 but not 5.5, so now i think i have to reformat my computer and reinstall eeeeverything now... >.< >.< >.<

 

well try unistalling it any way... with luck it will work, if not reformat, hey it's worth a try.

 

well like i said, yes i have just uninstalled it today and so far no problems

 

since uninstalling my vtp 6.0, i have noticed a big speed increase for everything, and so far i have had no problems (knock on wood )

 

Are there any alternatives to VTP that looks just as good but better performance?

 

not sure, maybe WindowsBlinds?

 

http://www.crystalxp.net/bricopack/en.htm

I have experienced zero slowdown with their program, which even creates a restore point for you upon install.

XP is XP, and Vista is Vista, so this look is good enough for me.