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We purchased a new laptop for our 73 year old father who was just getting used to Win XP. He has asked if there is any way to make the interface look and work like XP? So my question is: is there any way to make the interface look and work like XP?
Brian
Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.
If you want that same classic mode (the gray toolbars and such), that does exist in Windows 7. Just right-click your desktop, choose Personalize, then scroll down and click "Windows Classic".
If this solves your issue, click the 'Propose as Answer' link below, and vote as helpful by clicking the green triangle to the lelft. Thanks!
For the most part it already does, because it was built from Windows XP. For example, all windows still have the familiar _ and X buttons to minimize and close them. You can also change the taskbar to show the words rather than just icons, or make other changes as you need. While there's no "XP button", changes like this can get close.
If you are simply wanting the visual style to look like XP without changing any function, you can use a skinning program such as WindowBlinds by StarDock.
If this solves your issue, click the 'Propose as Answer' link below, and vote as helpful by clicking the green triangle to the lelft. Thanks!
In XP, I used to select windows classic and everything was just like before. Now, it gives the appearance that it is XP (everything looks grey and square, so what?), but it still is not just like before because I don't have the functionality like before. For instance, it always makes me sort the folders by name instead of by date, and XP would let me make all folders the same so I could customize one and never have to bother with it again! So now every folder I go into, I have to click on sort by date, sort by date, sort by date. Another folder, sort by date. Sure, at home I may want to sort by name, but at work, I'm looking for the most recent files, all the time.
Or how about making the folders appear in a tree like before instead of having to look at it all in one line at the top of the page?! I used to could navigate without even having to think. Now, it is a challenge to find what I want.
I know I'm being persnickety, but I don't want to have to spend days wasted trying to learn how to navigate all over again. It's like being an expert for years and having to become a beginner all over again. Why? I just want to slap someone.
And this is exactly why I go kicking and screaming into each new version of whatever that Microsoft puts out. They always make EVERYTHING new instead of just putting in some new cool features and more security, they make it all different so you are lost for a few days until you adapt. Why not just keep things the same? Add some new stuff for the young crowd, or those who get bored with anything old, but leave us old fogeys alone!
I think the issue is the lost functionality - for example the lack of a functioning Start Menu. In all previous versions, the user could add desired programs and removed unneeded items.
Another example, you can't press the left arrow - backup key to back up a step when browsing files and folders- you never get to your list of drives.
Another example is this website where there is a Yes button to click if the answer is helpful but no "No" button.
Why would you take away the My Computer explorer icon and puposely make it difficult for us to find our files or know where they are stored?
Imagine if your banker pulled that on you? "Don't worry we know where your money is and we'll make sure it is safe but we can't tell you what bank (drive) we put it in."
We don't want the cloud shoved down our throat.
There is a whole cottage industry developing to provide hacks and utilities to make Win 7 work and look like XP
Get classic shell (open source, sourceforge), it will make the taskbar, explorer and the start button work like XP.
Go online to how to geek and there are all sorts of tutorials to change the desktop, file manager, folders etc. to look and work like XP.
Go to thoosje (?) these people have a utility that will allow you to change the boot and login screens to look like XP and much more, you can have almost any look you want.
You can get the alt tab functionality back, you can get the "up" button back and many other things, you just have to rummage around on the Internet using creative queries to unearth the changes you want.
I guess there are many users that don't like the new GUI, I can understand why they just want to get their work done and all this re-modeling is getting in the way of the work.
I hope this helps, yes there is a way to get what you want even though Microsoft has made it hard. I am also looking into using autohotkey (a free scripting utility) to add other things. But, programming and scripting may not be your thing.
