Classic, Basic or Aero?

[mattbiernat]

I was using Aero for a long time, but now I switched back to classic and my computer feels so much faster. Which theme do you guys use?

[moontan]

my computer is fast enough for Aero (5 years old duo-core)

i find Classic or Basic even uglier than Aero.
this is one area where Microsoft should take a hint or two from some Linux distros.

[Dark Shadow]

Aero for me,I like a little bling. I really dont feel much of a performance loss or gain either way.

[Noob]

Even with my already obsolete specs by today's gaming standards it still runs smoothly so theres no need to disable it IMO.

[Wroll]

I switch between aero & basic. Classic on Windows 7 is very ugly.

[mattbiernat]

Originally Posted by Wroll

I switch between aero & basic. Classic on Windows 7 is very ugly.

I used to feel the same way, however Classic has grown on me. I actually like the big fat squarish start button.

[noone_particular]

A classic desktop suits me just fine on all my PCs, from 98 to XP. For me, the desktop is a workspace. The start menu, toolbars, etc are quick and easy ways to access the apps, files, folders, etc I need. Visual effects, themes, and other eye candy contribute nothing useful. I don't need a transparent desktop any more than I need a glass workbench.

[ProTruckDriver]

Originally Posted by mattbiernat

however Classic has grown on me.

Same here.

[Osaban]

Aero here, I like visuals and not much difference in speed.

[Kerodo]

I use Aero here because I think it looks a lot nicer. No impact on performance at all...

[mattbiernat]

I don't know, I feel like there is something classic about the old windows look. Kind of reminds me of Windows 2000. Im surprised so few people like this theme.

[safeguy]

Aero on my primary laptop while Basic on an older machine. I use custom settings for visual effects though.

[SirDrexl]

I like Aero as long as you give it a color (blue being my favorite). The basic schemes just don't look right to me, although there is a black custom style I like that I've used on my netbook.

[Dundertaker]

Aero most of the time(BAsic sometimes)

[arsenaloyal]

Aero here. not used classic for a long time now.

[mattbiernat]

anybody knows if windows 8 has classic theme? if it doesn't then it might be a deal breaker for me.

[SirDrexl]

Originally Posted by mattbiernat

anybody knows if windows 8 has classic theme? if it doesn't then it might be a deal breaker for me.

It does not, and my understanding is that you can't even disable the Desktop Window Manager. So it's using a similar compositing window manager, just without the glassy look.

[new2security]

I use aero-themes without the aero-part.

Aero-themes will take advantage of your graphic card's acceleration abilities, thus your cpu is less burdened and it can go on doing other important stuff such as scanning malware. :-)

If you use Classic Theme, your cpu does the rendering.

[chrisretusn]

The default desktop interface.

[ddot]

Aero

Even back in my XP days, I preferred Luna over classic. Once I discovered theme patching, I moved on to a modified version of the Zune theme. In an attempt to fix a couple of annoyances with that theme, I got into customizing the theme myself. That kind of snowballed and I ended up with a fairly heavily modified custom version of the Zune theme that I used for a couple years before I switched to Windows 7.

[mattbiernat]

Originally Posted by new2security

I use aero-themes without the aero-part.

Aero-themes will take advantage of your graphic card's acceleration abilities, thus your cpu is less burdened and it can go on doing other important stuff such as scanning malware. :-)


If you use Classic Theme, your cpu does the rendering.

I found completely opposite effect for me. I have integrated grapic card, AMD 1.5GHz single core and after switching into classic theme my computer is always more responsive and feels more snappy. Perhaps computers with dedicated graphic cards would see a different effect.

[niki]

Tried Aero, didn't like it, changed to Basic and found computer feels snappier to me.

[new2security]

Originally Posted by mattbiernat

I found completely opposite effect for me. I have integrated grapic card, AMD 1.5GHz single core and after switching into classic theme my computer is always more responsive and feels more snappy. Perhaps computers with dedicated graphic cards would see a different effect.

Yes the performance degradration probably is linked to the built-in graphic chip (on older systems). I use a Nvidia 7300GS, a very low-end card but it's good enough for decent 2D performance.

[mattbiernat]

It's a new laptop, I just decided to go with slower CPU because it was much cheaper. As for the graphics card, I get 400mb out off it.

[RSpanky]

Aero for me