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Microsoft Debuts New Personalization Gallery for Windows

Nov. 2, 2012 Paul Thurrott | Paul Thurrott's Supersite for Windows

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As part of the broader reimagining of Windows with Windows 8, Windows RT, and Windows Phone 8, Microsoft has redesigned its web-based Windows site to look more modern and visually attractive. And as part of that effort, Microsoft has also updated its Personalization Gallery, which offers Windows users free themes, desktop wallpapers, and language packs.

Microsoft discusses the improvements to the Personalization Gallery this week in a post to the Windows Experience Blog, noting that you’ll see larger thumbnail images on the Themes page, new panoramic themes and wallpapers for you multi-monitor users, and, for Windows 8, free new language packs which let you switch “the Windows interface, menus, help topics, and dialog boxes” back and forth between multiple languages.

(Language pack installs actually occur from within Windows 8 and RT, and if you want to switch the language of Office, you will need an Office Language Interface Pack (LIP) as well.)

Note that themes designed for Windows 7 will also work in Windows 8 (and RT). But themes designed specifically for Windows 8/RT will not work in Windows 7.

Enjoy!


Discuss this Article 3

Sir_Timbit
on Nov 4, 2012
Re: WLMM2011 for Win7, why not let people choose? Essentials 2012 is nice and all, but the updated Movie Maker is incompatible with a lot of lower end hardware (DirectX 10 vs DirectX 9). WMM 2011 works just fine on them and 2012 doesn't, so I'm glad they've kept both available. Ditto keeping Live Mail 2011 since the Windows 8 mail client is pretty bare-bones.
Waethorn
on Nov 2, 2012
I love how Microsoft added the service pack downloads for all (currently) supported operating systems on a single page: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-CA/windows/service-packs-download#sptabs... The utility section (accessible from the link at the top of the previous page) is also nice, but note to Microsoft: DROP BING TOOLBAR. You already killed it in Windows Essentials 2012, so why is it being offered for Windows 8 anymore, like you're trying to entice users to go back to using desktop IE and download crapware toolbars all over again?! You made a modern toolbar-less version of IE - nobody needs this! Also, clue in a bit on Windows 7. Why is Windows Live Movie Maker 2011 still being offered for Windows 7? All of this is a repeat of the joke that was the Windows 7 Value Pack that was provided to OEM's - it included IE9, but also included WL Essentials 2009 with a silent install that tried to install WL Toolbar, and it wasn't even compatible with IE9. Not only that, but by the time the DVD's were available to disty's with WL Essentials 2011, Essentials 2012 was already out. Every department within the company should know the release dates of this stuff.
RJasonW74
on Nov 3, 2012
Exactly! Microsoft really needs to jettison some of these boneheaded apps of the past such as the Bing Toolbar. Or ALL toolbars for that matter! They provide no additional functionalty that isn't now included native to the browser itself. It took me a long time to finally come back to Explorer as my browser of choice. Chrome had all but replaced it for me. My desire to get away from Google services finally led me back to Microsoft full time with Windows 7 & I have no regrets. But this continued reliance on old practices like these rdiculous toolbars that make Explorer a bloated pig to operate needs to end.

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