Will WindowBlinds work well on a laptop?

It will add .00000001 grams of weight but otherwise the only effects are good ones.

performance - yep, it will run faster than Luna

power usage - yep, it will make you a true power usager

Do you mean it will increase power usage? I know certain programs do. I'm new to the worlds of XP, laptops, and skinning, so pardon my noobism.

It will run just like it does on a desktop. It will HELP your performance if you use it instead of the default them. So use it already!

Check future builds of WB to include an antigrav feature for notebook users that will allow the unit to float (WB should run fine on a notebook)

Just a question then, why does everyone say Blinds is a "resource hog?" Even the CNET review stresses that resource usage issues aren't ironed out in the new version. Is this true? From what I've seen, I like the Blinds themes the best, so I ask these questions as my last hurdle to getting the program.

Also, what are the key advantages of the full version compared to the freeware?

COMPLETE LIES! Where did you read this. Maybe Desktop X a little, but not at all for Windowblinds. Refer to post 3.

Here is the full review:
http://reviews.cnet.com/WindowBlinds_3_1A/4505-3514_7-8669002-2.html?tag=review

Here is the excerpt in question:

"Some systems may experience a performance hit while running WindowBlinds. Stardock claims that WindowsBlinds 3.1A uses less memory than Windows XP's own equivalent visual styles. It's true that most 3.1A skins are small; many of the XP-specific skins we downloaded were less than 200K.

But even on our Pentium III-900 with 256MB of memory running XP Pro, WindowBlinds 3.1A put the dampers on some activities. Internet Explorer 6 crashed and locked up several times until we excluded it from using skins. And with numerous windows open, some skins slowed down screen redraws, scrolling, and window dragging. Slower systems equipped with memory-skimpy video cards will run even slower. Our advice: Try WindowBlinds and numerous skins before registering. Your $20 registration will give you color customization and skinnable scroll bars but meager tech support: just a short FAQ file, an almost worthless help file, a support e-mail address, and, best of the bunch, a newsgroup where you can ask questions of knowledgeable WindowBlinds users."

Try getting Windowblinds 4. It's a lot better. Windowblinds 3.1a was a lot slower. Well, not that much. And you have half a gH faster machine. It should run with no problems. And don't mention StyleXP around here on the boards.

And that's a pretty harsh review. Windowblinds 3.1 ALPHA wasn't that bad. Windowblinds 4.1 is MUCH better, though.

Oh yeah, okay; I do have 4.1 installed on my comp. When I buy the full version, does it replace the version I have or do I have to manually uninstall that?

You CAN install over the free one, but I would highly recommend copying your skins to a temporary folder and uninstalling the free one, then installing the pay one.

That's really an amazing review. My old PC is a PII 350/256 RAM with WB 3.5 and evidently it outperforms that reviewer's PIII 900/256 with XP. I used WB quite happily on my old W98 PC (where resources were very much an issue) so I can't imagine WB having that much of an effect on a newer PC with XP.

Yeah, I uninstalled the freeware and did a clean install of the enhanced version too. Just backup any skins you downloaded as noted.

Should I buy the whole Object Desktop Suite or do I just need WindowBlinds? I'd like to have my whole desktop skinned, can WindowBlinds do this or do I need the other programs too?

Once you start you want to go further so invest in Object Desktop, you can't lose!

I use it on my laptop. I also use it on my  Tablet PC.

OH MAN! I want a tablet PC! They're SOO cool. And definately get the whole Object Desktop. You will surely want Desktop X , Skinstudio, and Iconpackager. It will customize evrything on your desktop and more. I love Desktop X 2!

And Astro Lad, I had these same questions at first. Don't feel nooby.

Astro Lad...........go the whole hog........get Object Desktop and Cursor XP.........you will not regret it

XP Pro on 256 meg of ram is bad enough as it is.....talk about nobbling a horse...512 is more sensible...

Having windowblinds/cursorxp/iconpackager running at the same time will slow your computer down. For some people this isn't a problem because they can spare the speed because nobody is going to really notice a loss on a top end machine but if you have a 840MHz computer like mine you will notice the difference. I can notice the difference when I switch from Windows Xp to Classic Windows for my taskbar. It's worth it though to have a nice looking screen to look at.

Stupid Norton slowing me down. >

Sigh... Windowblinds/CursorXP/Iconpackager will not slow your system down. Windowblinds 4.1 is considerably faster then the standard XP gui, CursorXP eats up 2872k of ram - negligible - and Iconpackager just changes icons, it does nothing inbetween that.

Just the facts

Yes, I lied about it all. My computer runs faster with 3 other apps running. I even run Sysmetrix and Object Dock and see zero slowdown whatsoever. *where is that flip off icon when you need it*

wtf!? Why are you flat out lying to a person asking a simple question and wanting to join our community? ARGH! Some people...

I know, I think it's because I'm near sighted so I can't see very closely. Woah, a whole bunch of "eyes" there.