Enabling Aero transparency effects under Windows XP

[Alexxx]

You find the transparency effects of Aero in Windows Vista or Windows 7 sympathetic? If you use Windows XP, you have not right ... until now. With the free software Border Skin, you can actually customize the windows of Windows XP to make their borders transparent, like Vista or 7.

The software includes many skins to customize the following effect and your favorite color for your desktop wallpaper. Not very resource hungry, you can also disable some effects such as blur in the title bars to ease a little program. You can also define exceptions for software that have problems with transparent borders: the borders are then used for conventional windows software.

Finally, if you are not satisfied with Border Skin, you can easily uninstall it and remove all traces back to the original appearance of the windows of Windows.

Download and install Border Skin:

Border Skin comes in the form of an archive that you need to decompress. Here is the step by step process of Border Skin Installation:

• Click here to download Border Skin.
  
• Save the file to your computer, in the Downloads folder in My Documents for example.
  
• Once the download completes, click Open.
  
• Click the File menu and then click Extract All.
  
• The Compressed Folders Extraction Wizard opens. Double-click the Next button.
  
• Click Finish.
  
• The directory where you unzipped Border Skin is open. Double click the Border Skin 0.2.3.exe.
  
• Click the Run button.
  
• Then click the button ....
  
• Pull down the My Computer folder, C: \ Program files and click OK.
  
• Then click the Extract button. The program is then decompressed Border Skin and placed on file for Windows software.

[Alexxx]

Enable transparency:

Now that Border Skin is installed, you must run to enjoy the effects of transparency in your windows in Windows XP. You can also ensure transparency as to activate the Windows startup.

• Open Windows Explorer by double-clicking the My Computer icon, for example.
  
  
• Open the C: \ Program Files, Border Skin 0.2.3.
  
  
• Double click the Border Skin.exe.
  
  
• Border Skin is executed. Its icon is housed in the notification area to the left of the clock and a transparency effect decorates the windows open.
  
  
• If you restart your computer, the effect is lost. To avoid this, simply schedule automatic Border Skin on Windows startup. Just click the right mouse button on the icon of Border Skin in the notification area to the left of the clock.
  
  
• In the menu that appears, select Run at startup.
  
  
• Use it to disable the splash screen that appears when you launch Border Skin (and therefore appear every time you start Windows). Click again on the icon of the Border Skin with right mouse button and disable the splash screen.

[Alexxx]

Customize the transparency effect:

By default, Border Skin reproduces the effect of Aero on Vista Basic. You can also replicate the basic effect of Aero on Windows 7 and customize the color of the transparency using skins included in the software.

• Click the right mouse button on the icon of Border Skin in the notification area to the left of the clock.
  
  
• In the menu that appears, select Skins. In the list that appears, choose the color to apply.
  
  
• The color is immediately applied to windows. Repeat until you choose a color that fits.
  
  
• If you find that the effect slows down your computer, you can disable the blur that is applied. Just click on the icon of Border Skin with the right mouse button, click Blur then uncheck Enabled.
  
  
• The effect of transparency is then simplified.

[Alexxx]

Define exceptions:

Some software display poorly made transparent borders by Border Skin. This applies, for example Windows Live Messenger that uses their own skins. Border Skin allows you to define exceptions for these programs: the traditional borders are then used for their windows.

• Open the folder where you installed Border Skin C: \ Program Files \ Border Skin 0.2.3 by default.
  
  
• Double click the file ExcludeList.ini.
  
  
• Some exceptions are already defined. Rate structure:
  

  [Apple Safari]
  Process = safari
  Class =
  Skin =
  Skined = 0

• Just use the same structure for the software that you do not want the transparent borders. So add the following file (in red, the information to change):
  

  [Software Name]
  Process = process
  Class =
  Skin =
  Skined = 0

• For the process of software, run it. Click the right mouse button on the taskbar and choose Task Manager.
  
  
• In the window that appears, open the Applications tab. Click the right mouse button on the task of the software in question and click Go To Process.
  
  
• Then note the name of the process selected in the Image Name column. Remove the extension. EXE. Here, the process is WINWORD.
  
  
• Close Border Skin by clicking on its icon in the taskbar with the right mouse button and choose Exit.
  
  
• Return the file ExcludeList.ini. Add to end of file parameters for the software to add exceptions.
  
  
• Click the File menu, click Save and then close the window.
  
  
• Border Skin restart then double clicking the file Border Skin.exe in the C: \ Program Files \ Border Skin 0.2.3.
  
  
• Transparency effects are no longer applied to this software.