Windows boot screens
#1
What are folks doing for their htpc Windows bootup? Right now I see my login screen, which auto logs-in thanks to netplwiz, but then I see a desktop with icons. I'm thinking about going Stardock Fences route because I think you can set it to never display any icons unless you double-click for when you need them. Then I could make the login screen and desktop background whatever I want. Is there something fancier I'm missing?
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#2
I use Unbranded Boot (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows...anded-boot), CustomLogin (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows...stom-logon) and shell launcher (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows...stom-logon)

This way my HTPC's boot with minimal GUI, you can turn more of the boot process off if you prefer, but I prefer the spinning circle

Quick video (sorry its blurry) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53YKjuUXQJU

Big disadvantage - you need Windows 10 enterprise or education to use these features
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#3
Why don't you just have no icons on the desktop and have kodi in your start up folder.

You really do not want to mess around with sheller your PC, it can be very dangerous for newbies. I done it once, and thankfully I managed to get my system back with some hassle but better than formatting as I was going to do.

You are not really going to notice much between load times a nice background will be just as good to display for the second or so it takes to launch.

I certainly would not recommend using windows 10 on anything, if you are using a htpc then stick to windows 7, a lot less spyware on your system.
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#4
(2019-12-02, 20:09)Video Titles Wrote: Why don't you just have no icons on the desktop and have kodi in your start up folder.

You really do not want to mess around with sheller your PC, it can be very dangerous for newbies. I done it once, and thankfully I managed to get my system back with some hassle but better than formatting as I was going to do.

You are not really going to notice much between load times a nice background will be just as good to display for the second or so it takes to launch.

I certainly would not recommend using windows 10 on anything, if you are using a htpc then stick to windows 7, a lot less spyware on your system.

I switched motherboards and went to an M2 harddrive on a chip on the motherboard - so much faster, very little desktop!
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#5
(2019-12-02, 20:09)Video Titles Wrote: Why don't you just have no icons on the desktop and have kodi in your start up folder.

You really do not want to mess around with sheller your PC, it can be very dangerous for newbies. I done it once, and thankfully I managed to get my system back with some hassle but better than formatting as I was going to do.

You are not really going to notice much between load times a nice background will be just as good to display for the second or so it takes to launch.

I certainly would not recommend using windows 10 on anything, if you are using a htpc then stick to windows 7, a lot less spyware on your system.

Hmm so I should trash my Windows 10 system and install an OS I've not used for 6 years because of 'spyware'.  Lose decent performance and proper support for HDR, for an OS going out of support in a month...Erm no thanks!

Yes you can just enable auto login, have a clean desktop and just stick Kodi in the startup folder, however I wanted to demo more advanced ways of doing this for more advanced/adventurous users.  Using the MS documented tools and processes for doing this, none of this is hacky and is all supported.

For something a little easier to setup and supported over more versions of Windows, you can use assigned access
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows...single-app
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#6
(2019-12-03, 22:41)jools5000 Wrote:
(2019-12-02, 20:09)Video Titles Wrote: Why don't you just have no icons on the desktop and have kodi in your start up folder.

You really do not want to mess around with sheller your PC, it can be very dangerous for newbies. I done it once, and thankfully I managed to get my system back with some hassle but better than formatting as I was going to do.

You are not really going to notice much between load times a nice background will be just as good to display for the second or so it takes to launch.

I certainly would not recommend using windows 10 on anything, if you are using a htpc then stick to windows 7, a lot less spyware on your system.

Hmm so I should trash my Windows 10 system and install an OS I've not used for 6 years because of 'spyware'.  Lose decent performance and proper support for HDR, for an OS going out of support in a month...Erm no thanks!

Yes you can just enable auto login, have a clean desktop and just stick Kodi in the startup folder, however I wanted to demo more advanced ways of doing this for more advanced/adventurous users.  Using the MS documented tools and processes for doing this, none of this is hacky and is all supported.

For something a little easier to setup and supported over more versions of Windows, you can use assigned access
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows...single-app 

I was a beta tester for Windows 10, prior to the pre release beta the operating system was very fast. However, when it went into public release Windows 10 then went to a snails pace. I ended up uninstalling and went back to Windows 7. After a couple of years, I decided to give it another go on my arcade PC, once more the operating system was very slow and within the space of 24 hours, I had formatted and back on Windows 7.

Windows 10 is the worse operating system that they have ever produced, even worse than Vista in my eyes. It is an operating system designed to give them a constant stream of revenue to match Android.

You get free games, where if you want to get anywhere, then you need to keep buying loot crates. It gives Microgreed a constant revenue service.

However, if you really need Windows 10, then it is a necessary evil such as if you want to use their xbox ultimate pass then you need a Windows 10 operating system for that.

I would also suggest that you check to make sure you are getting what is advertised and not some watered down version, such as fake 4K HDR if you look on youtube and type in hd screen tests, TV shows such as the Mandaloren from Disney + has a very low 4K output rate of less than 200 nits. A lot of 4K HDR content is not as advertised.

If you are using a PC just as a media server then Windows 7 is more than adequate and Windows 10 is over kill, unless you need specific new features that yes Windows 7 possibly will not be supported.

If you want a faster operating system then use Linux, I dare say that someone will port any thing that you need on Windows 10 across to Linux in the future. However, if you only have one PC then your options are a lot less.
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#7
Nobody should be doing a new install of Windows 7, from next month it goes out of support which means no more security updates. While you might not like it, the downsides of Windows 10 is better than risking security breaches, unless of course you have the Windows 7 machine completely isolated from the internet.
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#8
If you keep it offline there is no issue with installing Windows 7. It is a lot faster than installing 10 and then keeping that offline. A lot of retro gamers use older operating systems because they are better and just have their servers offline.

I for one have five PC's and none of them will be upgraded to 10 and they will be kept online as well. The only one that I might upgrade in the future is the gaming PC and that is only because I am forced to do so, if I want to use xbox ultimate on my PC.

Unless something major happens, which might change my mind, but if you are going to get hacked, the higher the security you have, the more it gives an incentive for a determined hacker to hack your network.

I run no firewalls, I have no anti virus installed, and I do my online banking on my office PC. I have never been hacked, yes you have script kiddies that ping for open ports, but most of them do not know what they are doing in the first place.

You are going to have a lot of redundant PC equipment if everyone is afraid of using Windows 7 after Jan 2020, older hardware is going to be useless running 10. I tried running 10 on an I5 processor on an SSD with a decent graphics card it was far too slow.

Honestly, if you saw how fast 10 was before launch compared to how slow it is now, you would understand about what I mean. It was like driving a Ferrari and then replacing the engine with a moped.
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#9
You seemed clued up, so you won't get any argument against what you're personally doing. My response is mainly aimed at someone who might not be very IT literate being tempted into following your lead and opening themselves up to security issues.
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#10
(2019-12-04, 19:17)Video Titles Wrote: Ferrari and then replacing the engine with a moped.
I have to admit your post was everything I wanted to say; but the same could be said of Linux which blows the doors off a Windows PC on the same equipment.
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#11
(2019-12-04, 19:17)Video Titles Wrote: If you keep it offline there is no issue with installing Windows 7. It is a lot faster than installing 10 and then keeping that offline. A lot of retro gamers use older operating systems because they are better and just have their servers offline.

I for one have five PC's and none of them will be upgraded to 10 and they will be kept online as well. The only one that I might upgrade in the future is the gaming PC and that is only because I am forced to do so, if I want to use xbox ultimate on my PC.

Unless something major happens, which might change my mind, but if you are going to get hacked, the higher the security you have, the more it gives an incentive for a determined hacker to hack your network.

I run no firewalls, I have no anti virus installed, and I do my online banking on my office PC. I have never been hacked, yes you have script kiddies that ping for open ports, but most of them do not know what they are doing in the first place.

You are going to have a lot of redundant PC equipment if everyone is afraid of using Windows 7 after Jan 2020, older hardware is going to be useless running 10. I tried running 10 on an I5 processor on an SSD with a decent graphics card it was far too slow.

Honestly, if you saw how fast 10 was before launch compared to how slow it is now, you would understand about what I mean. It was like driving a Ferrari and then replacing the engine with a moped.
Anyone that has an older PC and doesn't want W10 then they should seriously consider Linux.
HTPCs: 2 x Chromecast with Google TV
Audio: Pioneer VSX-819HK & S-HS 100 5.1 Speakers
Server: HP Compaq Pro 6300, 4GB RAM, 8.75TB, Bodhi Linux 5.x, NFS, MySQL
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