Once you’ve installed a new program or application, you might find that every time you run that application, it’ll ask you for registration details, even though you’ve already registered. This is because of UAC, and I’ll explain why.

The registry key that contains your registration details isn’t being applied to the actual registry because UAC (User Account Controls) is running the virtual registry, to stop any kind of damage being done. This means that the actual registry doesn’t contain the registration details that the application requires.

The way to resolve this is either disable UAC, or run the application that has the registration problem as an administrator. Most users are “standard users” (to make Windows more secure, and virtualising things which might cause problems, like system files and the registry), but running a program as an administrator removes this protection.

You can usually do this by:

1. Find the application you wish to run as the administrator (thus enabling registry entries for program registration) in the Start menu.
2. Right click the icon, and select Run as administrator.
3. You will most likely be given a username and password field. Type “administrator” as the username (if it’s not already there), and then type in the administrators password.

After this, it’ll run as if the administrator user is running the application, even though a standard user might be logged on.

It’s very easy for you to run applications and create documents on your Windows Vista PC, but when other people need to get involved, life becomes more difficult. If your group wants to work together on a particular program, for example, they’ll normally have to crowd around your PC, fighting over the keyboard and mouse whenever they want to take control. And having several people work on one document becomes even more of a nightmare when they all try editing the same information at the same time. Fortunately, Windows Vista has the ideal solution, and it’s much easier to use than you might think.

Quick Setup
Launch Windows Meeting Space from Start then All Programs, and you’ll be asked if you’re ready to set up the program. Click Yes, continue setting up Windows Meeting Space and Windows will turn on the necessary networking features for you.

Name Change
By default Windows Vista assumes you want to be known by your user account name during the meeting. Alternatively, you can type in anything you want as a display name here. Leave the other default settings as they are for now, and click OK.

Create a Meeting
If someone else has started a meeting near you, Windows Vista will detect and display it. Otherwise, click Start a new meeting, enter a password (anyone you invite will have to use this) and click the arrow button to move to the next step.

Get to Work
Anyone nearby can now start their copy of Meeting Space and join you, or you can invite others. Click Share to share programs, Add a handout to share files, double-click someone’s name to send them a text note, and enjoy quick, easy meetings.

Thanks to Windows Vista Magazine.

Windows Easy Transfer Companion enables you to automatically transfer your most important programs from your Windows XP-based PC to your new Windows Vista-based PC. The software will move more than 100 of the most popular programs, as well as many others that you may have installed. You have complete control over selecting which programs to transfer, so only the programs you care about will move. The software will alert you if some programs may not be able to transfer, or may not transfer with high confidence. Most security software is not able to transfer due to technical reasons.

Easy Transfer Companion is designed to be used in addition to Windows Easy Transfer—which is part of Windows Vista and automatically transfers your data and settings. Connecting your two computers can be done with either an Easy Transfer Cable (available online, from retailers, and from PC manufacturers), or a home or small business network. If using an Easy Transfer Cable, you must first install Windows Easy Transfer on your Windows XP-based PC. By using Easy Transfer and Easy Transfer Companion you will be able to quickly and easily setup your new PC with all the data, settings, and programs that matter to you, so you can be productive on your new PC right away.

Easy Transfer Companion only transfers programs from a Windows XP-based PC to a Windows Vista-based PC. Easy Transfer Companion is currently in Beta, and only available for the US market.

Download the Widnows Easy Transfer Companion (Beta)

This is a tricky one as devices or applications may not be fully compatible with Windows Vista. If they work with Windows XP then there is a good chance they’ll still work, but sometimes with specialist devices like Bluetooth and networking devices, the drivers don’t fully work.

1. Try Windows Update to update your drivers - make sure your Internet connection is active, then go to  Start, All Programs, Windows Update, and in the left hand pane select Turn on Windows Update. A list of compatible software and drivers will be downloaded and installed onto your computer. Make sure you check your device or application manufacturer’s website for patches and information.
2. If you’re running 64-bit Windows Vista, then 16-bit applications will not work, and some 32-bit programs might have trouble working as well. However if not, then find the application that doesn’t work, right click it and select Properties. On the Compatibility tab, select an earlier version of Windows (such as XP SP2) and see if that makes the program run correctly.

Don’t panic. If you want to reinstall Vista and you can’t find your original license key or your packaging, simply download the Magic Jellybean Keyfinder v2.0. This will display your product key for you on-screen.

The simple answer is that there is no Windows Messenger in Windows Vista. Instead you’ll have to download another instant messaging program, but recommended (as it works with your existing Hotmail/MSN accounts) is Windows Live Messenger.

With Windows Live Messenger, you can:

• Get up close and personal with free full-screen video and voice calling to 240 million Messenger users worldwide.
• You can also make cheap phone calls to landlines and mobiles.
• Share all your stuff easily and safely by just dragging files onto a Sharing Folder.
• Use Photo Swap to share photos and more during a conversation or even when you’re offline.
• Even listen to music together with Music Mix.
• Send messages to friends and family even when they’re offline.
• Also text to a mobile phone.

Download Windows Live Messenger now

Download now (Alternative link if above doesn’t work - some router’s/firewall’s don’t like subdomains)
Compatible with: Windows 2000 Professional, All versions of Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Windows Vista (32-bit only)

The Report Abuse Desktop Client is an application written by myself and provided by MSBLOG enabling younger users of the Internet to report online abuse or suspicious activity of online sexual predators. It’s free to mirror and distribute, and recommended for those who have a family computer or for families with children who use the Internet. It has an auto-update feature in it as well so it’ll still update easily.

   
(Click to enlarge)

The Virtual Global Taskforce (VGT) and the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) are online organisations set up and moderated by the world’s policing authorities from the USA, England, Australia and Interpol. It provides the ability for users who feel they are being targeted by online sexual predators to report information to make sure that the online community is safer. Already, Microsoft have incorporated the VGT as a tab in Windows Live Messenger, and they’ve shutdown the MSN Chatrooms but this isn’t enough for outside Microsoft and their products.

When you use Remote Desktop to access a machine running Windows Vista, it won’t show Windows Aero as the theme, rather Windows Aero Basic. This isn’t a bug, rather something to save processing time, memory and a major bandwidth issue.

However, if you are using a Windows Vista machine which has Windows Aero working, and you remote into a machine which is Windows Vista with Windows Aero working - you’ll get to see Windows Aero in your remote window rather than Windows Aero Basic.

You have three themes in Windows Vista - Classic, Windows Aero Basic and Windows Aero. Windows Aero Basic is the default theme if you do not have a compatible video card to display Windows Aero, and if you do have a compatible graphics card, then Windows Aero will be displayed. Classic theme is when no themes are turned on at all.

The reason why the borders are thick on Windows Aero basically because it’s exactly the same theme as Windows Aero minus the transparency and the Glass refraction effects (the lighter diagonal lines that appear in the title bar and borders when you move the window around.) They are thicker (5 pixels by default) so that the window becomes “elevated” and more obvious, and the borders also display transparency and the glass refraction.

When Windows Aero is enabled, you get a pixel-shaded shadow around the window (as seen below on the right) which also gives it a more 3-dimensional, elevated effect.

 There is a demonstration relating to this article. Click here to view it.

There are so many tools and software development kits for Windows Vista at the moment, however some of them are on the beta-tester only pages, and cannot publish them on here as I’m not allowed to. However here is a guide to some of the links which are available.

Windows Vista Developer Center - Tools and Code Samples (the text below sourced from the link)

• Access WinFX code samples from the WinFX SDK.
• Find a collection of Windows Vista-related user code samples on GotDotNet.com.
• Submit Windows Vista-related user code samples to GotDotNet.com.
• The WinFX SDK Beta contains the tools, documentation and sample code for building WinFX based applications. You will also need to download and install the WinFX Runtime Components Beta 1 prior to installation.
• Microsoft has provided a version of the WinFX Runtime Components Beta 1 (which includes the Windows Presentation Foundation (formerly code name “Avalon”) and the Windows Communication Foundation (formerly code name “Indigo”)) for the general public. Please be sure to read the Release Notes.
• Learn about the Microsoft build engine (MSBuild) and how to write your own project file, and how it integrates with Visual Studio 2005.
• In Part 1 of a three-part series of articles about MSBuild, Christophe Nasarre presents the new Microsoft build engine (MSBuild), shows you how to write your own project file, and digs into how it integrates with Visual Studio 2005.
• The MSBuild team was kind enough to provide several tutorials on MSBuild, each of which includes sample projects and documentation. If you’re looking to get up-to-speed on MSBuild, the next generation .NET build engine, there’s no better way.
• If you’re spelunking .NET, there’s no better tool than Lutz Roeder’s Reflector tool. Reflector is a class browser for .NET components that supports assembly and namespace views, type and member search, the C# XML documentation viewer, call and callee graphs, IL disassembler, Visual Basic and C# decompilers, dependency trees, and base type and derived type hierarchies and resource viewers, plus it’s just been updated to support the .NET Framework 2.0 and Windows Vista (formerly code name “Longhorn”).
• Understand the tools provided in the WinFX SDK.

The Windows Vista and WinFX Beta Pages (the text below is sourced from the link to the left)

• WinFX redistributables (runtime binaries) for running WinFX applications.
• Includes the header files, libraries and help documentation for developing the next generation of Windows applications. Note that this release (and all future releases of the Windows SDK includes the WinFX SDK).
• Visual Studio Codename “Orcas” CTP WinFX Development Tools provides developers with support for building WinFX applications using the final released version of Visual Studio 2005. This support includes XAML Intellisense support through schema extensions for the editor, project templates for the Windows Presentation Foundation and the Windows Communication Foundation, and WinFX SDK documentation integration.
• Compatibility and Version Issues

Microsoft Windows Vista Developer Center

•   Windows Vista Documentation
•   Windows Vista User Experience (guidelines on how to make your applications look seamless and professional)
•   Windows Presentation Foundation (Avalon)
•   RSS in Windows Vista (formerly code name “Longhorn”)
•   InfoCard (.NET Framework 3.0, formerly WinFX, that provides consistent user experiences throughout)
•   Building Drivers
•   Windows Vista Advances for Developers
•   Top 10 Ways to Light Up Your Windows Vista Applications
•   Create the Experience (using the UX Guidelines that show you how to build graphically rich applications)
•   Secure It (how to make your applications secure)
•   Make It Reliable (stop crashing applications and error trapping)
•   Get Connected (using the Windows Communications Foundation, formerly codenamed “Indigo”)
•   Integrate Data
•   Be Discoverable
•   Make It Deployable
•   Go Mobile

With Vista, if you do not wish to install it on a full computer or even as a dual boot partition, you can run it in virtualisation software which creates a nice sandbox environment on your current computer with a separate operating system running. Below is a list of software which fully supports virtualisation with Windows Vista running as a guest operating system.

 Microsoft Virtual PC 2007
 Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 SP1
 Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2 Standard/Enterprise
 VMware Server
 VMware Workstation 5+
 Microsoft Virtual PC 2004
 Microsoft Virtual PC Express
 VMware Player

Please note, some features still may not be available in a virtual environment, such as Windows Aero and other visual features. The core security and kernel functionality such as UAC, WinFX and Aero Standard should remain intact.

This is directly to guide to help start-up Vista on Virtual Server 2005 R2

1) Open up your Virtual Server Web Console from the Start menu of your host operating system (the system you’re running Virtual Server on)
2) In the left menu pane, under Virtual Machines, click Create.
3) Create the name in the Virtual Machine name, then in the memory box, enter in 512 or more. If you have a 2GB system, enter 1024 in here. 

 Note: It is recommended that you use as much virtual RAM as possible. If you have 1GB or less physical RAM, virtualisation might not be the best idea. Try and have three-quarters of your physical RAM specified.
 
4) In the Virtual hard disk settings, ensure that the disk is 20GB or more as this is the recommended minimum disk size for installation.
5) If you wish to add the Vista installation to a network, in the virtual network adapter section, click and select a network to automatically connect to from the drop down list. These networks depend on which networks the host operating system have access to.
6) After burning your bootable copy of Vista to DVD (check here), insert it into your DVD drive, run the newly made virtual machine, and install Vista onto your virtual machine.

 Note: If your copy of Vista will not boot (regardless of whether you selected the right options or not - it’s still beta don’t forget!) then install Windows XP onto your virtual machine because XP is definitely bootable. If you’re wanting to run a x64 version of Vista but don’t have a 64-bit version of XP to upgrade from, register here for a trial version of Windows XP x64. Remember, you can’t upgrade from a 32-bit operating system to a 64-bit operating system!
 
7) After your virtual copy of Vista is installed, you will need the Virtual Machine Additions for the guest operating system to run properly. Click under Virtual machines in the left pane, and select Configure then click Install Virtual Machine Additions near the bottom of the status list.
8) Depending on the version of Virtual Server you have, you may be selected with an information list regarding the additions. Click the tick box to install the additions.
9) Follow the installation wizard through, and you should have your copy of Vista installed on your virtual machine, as well as having better optimisation for your guest operating system to interact with your host operating system.
 
As a rough guide, it’s recommended that you have at least this hardware to run Virtual Server on your host system:

• PS/2 or USB keyboard
• PS/2 or USB mouse
• 768MB-1GB RAM minimum
• 2.4Ghz x86 processor minimum
• 15″ monitor
• 40GB free hard drive space
• On-board graphics

It’s important - the guest operating system cannot have a better set of system specifications as the host operating system, because the guest system shares from the host system. The RAM for the host system has to be enough to run the background services for the existing operating system, as well as Virtual Server, and the guest operating system, which is why ideally you need plenty of RAM to support Vista, which is memory intensive as it is.

A number of people have asked which anti-virus works with Windows Vista, and it’s difficult because anti-virus software (of which usually have spyware catchers, spam filters and firewalls in-built as standard) needs to know how an operating system fully works before it can do it’s job to the full potential. A lot of new technologies have been introduced into Vista, including a possible new storage engine which will be available after the release of Vista; however anti-virus companies are working on new products that will fully work with Vista.

These should work for Windows Vista RC2 and RTM (the final version)
 CA Anti-Virus 2007
 F-Secure Anti-Virus for Windows Vista 7.00
 AVG Anti-Virus Free
 PC-cillin Internet Security 14.57 for Windows Vista
 Windows Live OneCare 1.5 (32-bit only)
 Symantec AntiVirus Corporate Edition for Windows Vista
 avast! Antivirus and Windows Vista

These should work for Windows Vista Beta 2 and above
 ClamWin
 NOD32 (x86) (may have to be run as Administrator only)
 eTrust AntiVirus for Vista
 eTrust EZ Antivirus
 Avast 4.7 (x86)
 SAV 10.2.0.244
 Symantec AntiVirus 10.0.2
 Windows Live Safety Center (via Windows Internet Explorer 7)
 Avast! Home Edition 4.6 (may have to turn off the Internet Shield to get the Internet to work though)
 Avast 4.0 Free (take a Custom install, and select “Standard Shield” for the best performance)
 eTrust Enterprise 8.0 Public Beta Trial
 McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.5i
 Windows Live OneCare
 SAV 10.02

These should work for builds 5308 up to 5381:
 ClamWin
 NOD32 (x86) (may have to be run as Administrator only)
 Symantec Beta (must have Symantec license though)
 McAfee VirusScan Enterprise 8.5i
 Avast! Home Edition 4.6 (may have to turn off the Internet Shield to get the Internet to work though)
 eTrust Enterprise 8.0 Public Beta Trial
 Windows Live OneCare
 McAfee 9

These should work for builds 5231 up to 5270:
 Avast Home Edition (x86, x64) (with Web Shield off)
 Symantec Corporate 9 (Security Center won’t detect it)
 NOD32
 TrendMicro Small Business (x86)
 AVG Free Edition (might not install for all users)
 SAV10 
 AVG Antivirus 7.0 Professional
 Norman Virus Control 5.81
 Windows Live OneCare
 McAfee 9
 McAfee VirusScan 8.0
 Grisoft AVG

The following works for build 5112 up to 5219:
 KAV
 Nod32 (x86)
 SAV9 (x86)
 SAV8.1 (x86)
 AVG 7.0 Pro
 TrendMicro Small Business (x86)
 TrendMicro Client/Server Suite (x86)
 Mcafee Enterprise 8.0i (x86)
 Sophos Enterprise (x86)
 VirusBuster Personal Home 2005 (x86)
 Bitdefender Pro Client 8 (x86, x64)
 Panda Titanium Antivirus 2005 (x86)
 Avast Home 4.6
 AVG 7.0 Free (updating may not work properly)
 CA’s eTrust AV 7.1 (under XP Compatibility, x64)
 Norton AV 2003 (works except for Auto Protect)
 Norton Antivirus
 SAV10 (x86)
 AVG 7.0 (only for a few users)
 McAfee 9.0
 McAfee Virus scan 9.1
 Windows Live OneCare (it only works for XP SP2)
 Nod32 (x64)
 Norman Virus Control 5.8 (x86)
 Trend Micro Internet Security 2005 (x86)
 PC-Cillin 2006 (and previous versions)
 F-Secure 2006 beta
 Panda AV 7.x

If anyone can add to these, please comment in this post and state clearly about which anti-virus’ work and which don’t, any workarounds for software which works with a bit of tweaking, and for which version of Windows Vista it runs/doesn’t run on.

Take these examples:

Windows Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP
Windows Internet Explorer 7 for Windows Vista
Windows Media Player 11 for Windows XP
Windows Media Player 11 for Windows Vista

Basically they’re the same program, but the Windows XP version of it will be “the finished product”. The Windows Vista version of the product will have elements which actually tie in with Vista. The Protected Mode in IE7 for Vista for example - it can only run on Windows Vista because of all the other security gadgetry that Windows XP doesn’t have. Windows XP users aren’t really missing out, so don’t worry about it.

Windows Mail is the new Vista version of Outlook Express. It has a search feature, better junk mail filtering, it’s much faster and it’s got Microsoft Help and Support Newsgroups installed by default. However, the first splash screen looks naff. Here’s how you disable it and enable Windows Mail to load up much faster:

1) Go to Start , Run (or just press Windows Key + R) and type in regedit, then hit OK.
2) Navigate your way to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Mail.
3) In the right hand pane, right click and select New then DWORD (32-bit).
4) Call this new entry NoSplash and then press Enter.
5) Double click on the new entry and set the value to 1 then hit OK.

You may have to logoff the machine and log back on to refresh the Registry, but after that you shouldn’t get a Windows Mail introductory screen in future.

I’ve done a demonstration below to show you how applications that are written or designed for Windows XP machines, but are being used on Windows Vista. Nothing really much changes, and there is nothing special you have to include into your application code, but you see the Windows Aero being displayed in the title bar of the application. Although the application seen in Vista may look bigger and bulkier, there is only a difference of a few pixels between the two images. Vista thickens the edges of the application so that you can see transparency through it, and does the same with the title bar, but the menu bar and the content in the middle with the text is exactly the same size.

Writing applications in Windows Vista using Visual Studio 2005 for example and the appropriate SDK (software development kits) add-ins, you can create areas within your application that display transparency or a blurred effect that Aero Glass provides. Such examples include the new version of Windows Media Player 11, as that has the whole bottom control bar which is blurred with Aero Glass.

After trawling through the Internet, I found this screensaver that had been adapted to display “Windows Vista” instead of the default one “Windows XP”. So give your Vista machine that extra feel to it and download this free screensaver instead. External links are not guaranteed to work, so if the first mirror fails, use my server.

Download mirror 1: Paul Gunnels Website

Updated for Vista 5308
Microsoft have released the new build, 5308 which has many more screensavers than just the plain Windows logo. Now they have, 3D Text, Aurora, Blank, Bubbles, Mystify, Photos, Ribbons and Windows Logo.

Something I found which is quite cool, you can use the WinSAT Testing tool get an instant “screensaver” - simply by going to Run and typing winsat aurora. Press Esc to exit. You’ll first see this when you install Windows Vista for the first time.