4 ms·

Reflecting on the comments, I'm surprised - a little - that MS don't have backwards compatibility of GUI. Many older users like the interface not to change, or

Reflecting on the comments, I'm surprised - a little - that MS don't have backwards compatibility of GUI. Many older users like the interface not to change, or to change only superficially. It would, I think, be a usability improvement for many. As a "family admin" I'd want to update for security reasons, or if the new version is better optimised or lacks some bugs, but for many elders (IME) any significant changes to UI are devastating to their comfort in using the OS. MS just don't seem good at making windows (a DE), IMO.

LeoNatan25 3y ago
It's still possible to render similar kinds of controls in Windows. It's evident by old software that is still shipped in Windows. But judging by the abysmal state of Microsoft modern UI toolkits, and Microsoft's complete inability to adhere to any consistency between the different frameworks that render toolkits, I just don't see any way Microsoft could offer cross-OS theme support that would work in any meaningful way. This was possible up to and including Windows 7, but then Microsoft just derped in their UI development, and it has been more and more embarrassing with every Windows release.
tyingq 3y ago
It's still there in some places...try <WindowsKey>+r then run odbcad32.exe Click the "System DSN" tab, then "Add", Double-click the top entry ("Driver Da Microsoft..."), uncheck "Use Current Directory", then click the "Select Directory" button. Also try the "help" button.
- accrual 3y ago
  I love that some of these old UIs are still present in current Windows 11 22H2. I was surprised "control userpasswords2" still exists.
  - Dalewyn 3y ago
    With certain programs (in this case Paint Shop Pro 5), you can get Windows 11 to render Windows Aero.[1] [1]: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/747297210613498216/1091911648647860305/image.png https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/747297210613498216/10...
    - accrual 3y ago
      That's excellent. I wonder how deeply the UI elements go. Like can I produce a UI from Windows 3 or 2000 on Windows 11 if I make the right Win32 calls? Is the classic theme really gone, or just aggressively hidden? The new Windows 11 taskbar is definitely new code and doesn't behave like the old one, so I imagine you can't have a true classic taskbar on 11.
    - terinjokes 3y ago
      That's the officially deprecated for decades "Multiple Document Interface". Any app still using it will render that on modern versions of Windows. The open source Windows all I maintain still uses this paradigm, and there's not really a good migration path to anything else, and Microsoft refuses to fix the chrome.
    - userbinator 3y ago
      That's not "real" Aero (as in the GPU accelerated effects that came with Vista); it looks like the "Windows Basic" theme in Windows 7. Aero looks like this: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Aero_Example.png https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Aero_Example....
      - Dalewyn 3y ago
        Yes, it's Windows Aero minus most of the 3D accelerated special effects. It was also used on low performance systems or if you RDP'd in to save bandwidth.
overgard 3y ago
They did keep classic mode up till Windows 7. After that it must have just been too niche

LeoNatan25 3y ago

It's still possible to render similar kinds of controls in Windows. It's evident by old software that is still shipped in Windows. But judging by the abysmal state of Microsoft modern UI toolkits, and Microsoft's complete inability to adhere to any consistency between the different frameworks that render toolkits, I just don't see any way Microsoft could offer cross-OS theme support that would work in any meaningful way. This was possible up to and including Windows 7, but then Microsoft just derped in their UI development, and it has been more and more embarrassing with every Windows release.

tyingq 3y ago

It's still there in some places...try <WindowsKey>+r then run odbcad32.exe Click the "System DSN" tab, then "Add", Double-click the top entry ("Driver Da Microsoft..."), uncheck "Use Current Directory", then click the "Select Directory" button. Also try the "help" button.

accrual 3y ago
I love that some of these old UIs are still present in current Windows 11 22H2. I was surprised "control userpasswords2" still exists.
- Dalewyn 3y ago
  With certain programs (in this case Paint Shop Pro 5), you can get Windows 11 to render Windows Aero.[1] [1]: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/747297210613498216/1091911648647860305/image.png https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/747297210613498216/10...
  - accrual 3y ago
    That's excellent. I wonder how deeply the UI elements go. Like can I produce a UI from Windows 3 or 2000 on Windows 11 if I make the right Win32 calls? Is the classic theme really gone, or just aggressively hidden? The new Windows 11 taskbar is definitely new code and doesn't behave like the old one, so I imagine you can't have a true classic taskbar on 11.
  - terinjokes 3y ago
    That's the officially deprecated for decades "Multiple Document Interface". Any app still using it will render that on modern versions of Windows. The open source Windows all I maintain still uses this paradigm, and there's not really a good migration path to anything else, and Microsoft refuses to fix the chrome.
  - userbinator 3y ago
    That's not "real" Aero (as in the GPU accelerated effects that came with Vista); it looks like the "Windows Basic" theme in Windows 7. Aero looks like this: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Aero_Example.png https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/df/Aero_Example....
    - Dalewyn 3y ago
      Yes, it's Windows Aero minus most of the 3D accelerated special effects. It was also used on low performance systems or if you RDP'd in to save bandwidth.

overgard 3y ago

They did keep classic mode up till Windows 7. After that it must have just been too niche