How to use third party themes on Windows 7

Firstly, for those of you who like a video tutorial - the title of this blog post should link to one on Youtube.

Now, for those of you who don't know, a third party theme is one which is made by somebody other than the makers of the OS (operating system) so for Windows 7, it's a theme made by somebody other than Microsoft.

To use these themes, you have to do some relatively easy (and legal) things.

1. Download the Universal Theme Patcher: http://www.freewaregeeks.com/?page=detail&get_id=1898&category=11
2. Then pick the version of the theme patcher that is correct for your system version. There are two versions; x64 and x86, if you have a 32 bit OS then pick x86, if you have a 64 bit OS then pick x64. Run the selected program.
3. It should come up with a box telling you your system information and how many files you need to patch to use third party themes. Click yes to patch the files.
4. A box will then pop up showing this:

      5. Click patch on each one, it should show a message saying "Patch Success" or something similar. 

      6. Restart your computer.

      7. Once your computer has restarted find a theme you want to use.               

      8. If it's a zip file, unzip it and find these things: "en-US" folder, "shell" folder, a "Wallpaper" folder (if there is one) and the Windows Visual Style File. Put the folders in another folder with the theme's name as its name, and put the Windows Visual Style File and that folder in here Computer/C:/Windows/Resources/Themes

      9. Now if it's not a zip file, then things get more tricky - the only other format I've encountered for themes is a .RAR file (If it's not a .rar file then search how to extract that file format). In basic, you need to extract the files and then once you've extracted them, find these files and put them in a folder with the theme's name: Windows Visual Style File, any .mui files, any .dll files. Then find the Windows theme file and put it, along with the folder you just made in Computer/C:/Windows/Resources/Themes. 

      10. Then just double click on the theme file and there you go, your theme is installed. 

Finally, if you're unsure where to find a third party theme then have a look at places like Deviantart and other similar websites.     

NANOWRIMO Ideas

I've came up with the theme and genre for my novel for NANOWRIMO which will be (drumroll please):
A Steampunk horror set in the Italian Renasissance.
The reasoning for my choice?
I like history, I like technology, when do these things meet best? In the renaissance. Where did the Renasissance start? In Italy.
As for the steampunk horror aspect - I always liked steampunk and the horror genre goes hand in hand with it so why not?

Here's a taster of some of what's to come (this isn't going in the novel, it's just practice and getting some ideas written down)

He took the host, gave thanks, broke it, and said, “This is my body, broken for you. Take it and eat it, and when you do, do it in memory of me.” Then he took the wine, gave thanks, and said “This is my blood, poured out for you, take it and drink it, and when you do, do it in memory of me.”

As it is written, so shall it be.

Darkness fell on Italy. It was late into the evening, and the candles in the crypts of the church flickered, making the shadows dance across the walls. Sounds of a struggle and raised voices approached from above. The sounds of footsteps on the steps leading down into the crypt became louder and louder, and the source of the noise emerged; a man, in ragged clothes, chained at the wrists was led down the steps by two muscled men in uniform, wearing plate armour and carrying halberds. Their halberds had various machines wired to them, and their plate armour was covered with all manner of devices and machinations. Behind them, a man in long, black, flowing robes carried a staff with a cross at its head; wires and archaic machinery wrapped round it. The chained man struggled, but his captors did not let go. They took him down the last few steps, into the crypt and tied him to a surgeon’s slab in the centre of the crypt. The robed figure followed, chanting in a language that sounded vaguely like Latin. The surgeon’s slab was made of metal; it was fixed to the floor by metal supports and wiring. The two guards stripped the chained man of his clothes and the robed man stepped forward. He made the sign of the cross with his staff over the tied down man and drew out a device from a pocket in his robes. The device was made of metal and had a glass panel, as well as various runes, carved into the front. The robed figure touched one of the runes on the device and began to speak again, saying, “My lord god, we have sinned, may you forgive us for what we have done, and bring new, perfect life into this, this most wretched of your subjects, let him be reborn to serve you anew, in your name!” “His body shall be broken, his blood poured out and he shall be cleansed, in memory of you.” At that point he pressed another rune on the device, and various machines folded out from underneath the surgical slab, covered in a myriad of devices, saws, drills, injectors, and, most importantly, a gun-like device, engraved in runes and shaped like the head of a dragon. The man tied to the slab struggled and screamed as he saw the device with the dragon’s head. As he screamed, the dragon’s head spewed forth a cloud of steam, engulfing him in the scalding vapours from head to foot. The cloud engulfed the man entirely, and he stopped screaming.

Well, there you go, comments in the comments section please (if you have any).

Thanks, Simon

NANOWRIMO

NANOWRIMO stands for National Novel Writing Month ( I think). I will be taking part this year - writing a 50,000 word (175 page) novel between the 1st of November and Midnight on the 30th of November. At the moment I can't write anything for the novel, but I can come up with ideas, and that's where my small fan base comes in.

If you're reading this, do you have any ideas for a novel? Post in the comments section if you do.

Thanks, Simon