I'm not short of asking for a refund

First question, did you uninstall the trial version before installing purchased version, this is a must do.

No it does not do this.

Impulse is a download/update manager for Stardock apps and games.

If ObjectDesktop, it is a yearly subscription for updates, the software will always be yours to use. If purchased just WindowBlinds you are good for updates until the next full version release, so all 7.x updates free, even if more than a year, 8.x would need to be purchased at a reduced upgrade cost.

Did you uninstall the shareware version first then reboot before installing full version via impulse. as instructed in the email sent at purchase?

On https://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/ it is stated Impulse must be installed in order to download and update the software, the link from there for the guide and help points to https://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/help/ and a guided tour is available on https://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/guidedtour.asp

Details on official support is at https://www.stardock.com/support/ if you still cannot understand the guides above to work out the problem yourself.

The software is yours to keep but to upgrade to any new version say 7 to 8 after 12 months you need to subscribe again, similar as Vista to Win 7 costs again but you always get to keep Vista to use.

You do joke that a Mag would be interested in your hissy considering you not even waiting for a problem to be discussed intelligently.

Bet he didn't uninstall the trial version.

Stardock should consider allowing a fully functional version that lasts 30 days which would allow full activation on purchase....just my opinion.

Stardock should also put a full README file in the software which explains known bugs/problems....or make it a must on any site where the software is available.

This is not meant as a criticism, rather as a suggestion to improve customer satisfaction.

This^^^^^^

we have all been doing this for years now so it seem easy to us.... but for the new commers there is no info realy.....  

Robbie_Boy.... not sure I understood (and I want to understand) you. Were you disagreeing with me?

I absolutely agree that if you want happy customers, and you're selling a complex product, you need to provide simple explanations and good, accurate tutorials.

It's no accident that the same situations and problems crop up repeatedly in these Forums: It doesn't require a nuclear physicist/rocket scientist/brain surgeon to understand the software....so why create by inaction the situation where it does?

Love the.. if you dont help me I'll do something bad to you approach... nice.

WTH is everyone talking to????

Got to love the approach to get the replies, yes I uninstalled the demo before the full install. After the purchase I got an email confirming the purchase but no serial key. Had to root around in the software to get it to send me a key. After the key was entered then jump to stage 3 on my above list (the bit where I was informed it was registered but windowblinds still claimed it was demo. It was only after verifying the package that I updated it and that stopped the demo stuff).

Incidentally, the "unload windowblinds" dialog popped up top right about an hour ago, couldn't move it, just stuck there, and then PC went busy for 20 minutes couldn't use it. Couldn't even end the task, had to restart and my registry was corrupted in the process. I'm back now, to say I'm sore about this stuff is an understatement. 

Love the comparison with Vista upgrades, it's a desktop changer not an o/s ! lol.. so no, paying for upgrades on this s/w is silly imo. Why would you want to keep different versions of this software btw ?

Followed all instructions and it still loused up. What happened to a good old fashioned install, and mail me the key? Why do I have to install another piece of software to register? So I can get ads for all kinds of mush I'm not interested in ? Thats what I meant by all that gaming garbage that comes up when impulse is run, and skins for that as well?My fault for not checking to see if I had to install another product to register another though there I guess. I was expecting the purchase installation thing to be simple.

IMO software should uninstall any previous versions, quite common these days, put that on the to do list. Mail out keys for people who don't want impulse on their PC's. Did it add itself to my startup without confirmation? Sorry guys, you want opinion this is it. I still haven't worked out how to get rid of that stupid wood background to all my windows when I run WB. Only thing I can see is texture, which is set to none, and it puts it as a window background for all downloaded skins. So WB is off and uninstalled and I'm back to my basic XP layout.

Some good points there Robbie and DRJBHL

Here's how it should go..

Try out version 30 days

If you like it buy it, get an activation code emailed.

Enter code, full product now available for use.

EASY ! QUICK !

Alternatively get a full version sent / linked to that auto removes trial version before installation.

Sorry if it's not what you want to hear, but a forum is just that, and there's my opinion on the Windowblind experience so far. Will I be writing a bad review of it for a magazine. Maybe, but if you're gonna charge for a product you got to allow for opinion to be expressed now don't you

Opinions are expected and in most cases appreciated, threats typically aren't.

Open the WindowBlinds COnfiguration screen and click on the 'About WindowBlinds' tab.  Copy that information and paste it here.

After you clicked default on the explorer backgrounds tab did you click apply settings at the top?

I am sorry you encountered issues with the software.

WindowBlinds 1 worked with serials which would turn a trial into the full version, but unfortunately software piracy ruined that for everyone.  It became obvious that the best route was to offer additional features that were physically not built into the trial and so a new installer was needed and the trial version cannot be converted into a full version.

Until WB 7 we provided a standalone installer for WindowBlinds as well as offering it via Impulse, but the decision was made to provide it via Impulse only as it reduces the software testing time required as there is only one installer to be built and tested.  Personally I would prefer there to be a standalone install as before.

From the description of your problems, it sounds like you have at some point accidentally reinstalled the trial version.  I don't know if your reinstall was from the trial exe (which would naturally reinstall the trial), or via Impulse but somehow you ended up with the trial version back on your PC which is why you encountered the trial messages.  The full version isn't capable of showing those messages.

The background you seem to have set is the explorer background, not the textures tab.  You need to reset that back to the original settings too.  It would typically have a tick on the tab to indicate that something has been set.  This is saved on a per skin basis.

As for the startup app, you can disable this via settings in Impulse I believe, or via msconfig.

In all the purchases I have ever made with Stardock, I have always gotten the serial key in the confirmation email.

Open Windowblinds

Click 'About Windowblinds' in the top menu bar.

Copy and paste what you get in the window that opens here.

Oh one other point.

If you purchased WindowBlinds itself there is no yearly fee for it.  You purchased the software and can continue to use the software as long as you like and will receive updates for all the 7.x series.  Should WB 8 be released at any point in the future you would qualify for a discount on it.  This has usually been ~ $10. 

If you purchased it as part of ObjectDesktop ($49.95) then you have a one year period to get updates to the software.  This would include major version changes too, so if WB 8 came out 11 months after you purchased ObjectDesktop then you would get the upgrade to WB8 for free.

Major version changes are kept for major changes to the software such as with WB5 which introduced per pixel transparency for XP, or WB6 which added in Vista support, or WB7 which added Windows 7 support, a massively updated user interface and the new textures feature.  Updates in the 6.x series then added in things like layers and layer blend modes which allow skins to be much more advanced.

Just using the Windows uninstaller isn't enough, typically.

You need to download (free) CCleaner and run it on Windowblinds (save your Aero Theme somewhere first).

Using the included uninstaller should always be enough.  A reboot after uninstalling is recommended though in case any files were locked as it makes things cleaner when you install the full version.

To be honest guys, I'm not really interested in this s/w at the moment after the problems I've had. Thanks for the offers of help though, I did check to see if my explorer background was set to default. Guess what?

It was ! (and given I didn't alter any settings, ie actually wanting a wood background to explorer windows not surprising) *sigh*. If the explorer background is set on a per skin basis, how come it stuck regardless of what skin I tried?

You're right about re-installing the trial version, after I'd uninstalled it when it was only showing the one skin, the only download I could get was the trial version, all the other options were to purchase and I didn't bother with those obviously. DrJbhl is right about the uninstaller, I don't think it did get rid of all traces. I did reboot (several times) and after each of the upgrades it downloaded. Looks to me like the updates were trying to patch a trial version, they didn't report as such, both went through successfully. Methinks you need to explain the download/trial thing a bit better, or make it more prominent.

Understand about not sending out reg keys because of piracy, but surely the full version should remove any trial versions automatically, a point not addressed here. Neither is the bit about a windows skinner being unlike paying for an o/s upgrade.Is WB8 going to be radically different from WB7? I think not, again, we're talking about a skinning app not re-writing an O/S. So no, I still don't think annual upgrade charges are appropriate.

I may come back to it when I have more time to copy/paste you the details as a bug fix, but currently I don't want to see the software for a while yet. I don't consider my statement about posting for a magazine a threat, just a statement of intent based on dissatisfaction, although I did think it may get some response.

Whatever the case with all of this, it's not been a good experience. Thanks again for the help.

I can't share the issues with WB here (haven't had a demo since ver 1.0), but one point I really dislike also is that everytime Impulse updates itself the autostart for the Impulse Starter is there again...

You're very welcome. I can understand your unhappiness at this point, and do agree with you about more prominent explanations about the software and I've posted that on other threads.

Hope to see you back. Also hope the CCleaner worked for you. Your only other choice is the Revo uninstaller...which is a bit tricky to use and you have to be careful not to clean too deeply...Level three is the deepest you should go, and no guarantees about it hurting Impulse...you may have to uninstall/reinstall Impulse....sorry for your trouble, bud.

No i'm with you mate.....

They need give a lot more info for all of us realy...

Despite your initial post and implied 'threat' or whatever...a lot of folks reached out pretty quick. Now, it's just doubly confusing that you would make such a statement and not want to fix the software or work with anyone on it considering you shelled out your hard earned money for it and now what...it's just useless on your system???

It would take les time to c&p the info requested than it did to make your last post. And I am confused as to the actual purchase...

And the 'one skin showing issue'...even the trial version comes with more than one skin.

None of this makes sense and seems a little more than just off.

Your situation is very frustrating. It might look like amateur hour to you in the circumstances, but the software has been around for a long time, and is being used successfully by a few hundred thousand people (at least).

Having only one skin showing in WindowBlinds is basically unheard of. These kind of strange problems always get sorted out in the end, as far as I've been able to tell, so stick with it, because it's worth it.

You have the designer of the software (Neil Banfield) here trying to help you out, among others.

Impulse ends up being very handy once you become familiar with it. For instance, any time there is an update to any software you own, it informs you. It archives your software if you choose to do so, as well.

As others have said, you get a serial number in your e-mail.

Anyway, good luck--WindowBlinds and the other skinning products are amazing, well worth the trouble you are having.

The figure is likely to be closer to the region of eight figures [order of magnitude].

Yes, so you can take anything stated [by him] as Gospel...;)

Amen to that brother

Ok first of all I think I better clear my name, seems as if PoSmedley has some suspicions so I'll deal with him first of all.

"Despite your initial post and implied 'threat' or whatever...a lot of folks reached out pretty quick. Now, it's just doubly confusing that you would make such a statement and not want to fix the software or work with anyone on it considering you shelled out your hard earned money for it and now what...it's just useless on your system???"

Now then, if you'd read carefully you'd see that I considered coming back to solve the problem later. Given that I'm a busy guy, and don't really have much spare time to mess about with software to get it to do what it's supposed to. I posted my disappointment at the software primarily, I'd already tried various things before I'd posted. So yes, shelling out and fixing later isn't that unusual given my circumstances, and yes it does take a lot longer to try and fix software than post a forum message.

"It would take les time to c&p the info requested than it did to make your last post. And I am confused as to the actual purchase..."

Don't be confused, it's all very simple, I'm a busy guy, I didn't have the time to clip and paste and follow through a bunch of suggestions.

Don't know why you've emboldened "I didn't bother with those obviously." Because any fool would see that purchasing software twice is a silly thing to do. That's the reason I didn't click the purchase options the second time round. Because I'd already purchased it

 

"And the 'one skin showing issue'...even the trial version comes with more than one skin.

None of this makes sense and seems a little more than just off."

 

Yes the trial version had more than one skin initially, but when it started showing one skin I thought it was a demo restriction or something. There's been others in this forum who had the same problem, the solution offered to them was to re-install which is the route I went down to fix it. There's nothing off here except your comments. What's up? Did I dis your software nirvana ? lol.

Ok guys, this is my last post. I got WB working again thanks to DrJBHL's suggestion of running Ccleaner, and re-installing. However the last few days my PC has been locking up randomly, eventually freeing itself off after about 20 mins. Tried many things to fix it, and it looks like it's WB at fault. Since I've uninstalled it, I've had no further lock ups, so I can reasonably conclude it was that causing the problem. So it's staying off my system for good now (it now runs noticeably faster).

DrJBHL was absolutely right, Stardock s/w DOES NOT uninstall correctly, even using Ccleaner to uninstall. I noticed today when doing a junk file clean that there were Stardock folders left in the "All users" section and an avi file, even after a full uninstall/reboot etc. I'll run total uninstaller to make sure there's still nothing left after that.

Thanks again to all those who tried to help.