what a pity....
Friday, October 24, 2008 by vogliadicane | Discussion: Stardock Support General
It´s a pity that the trial version of WB doesn´t support third (fourth, fifth or whatever) party skins completely. I mean the WB skins from skinners out there. Not everybody is impressed by a dragon spitting fire, although it is done extremely well and shows the potential of WB.
But there are many potential users/customers, which just want to test a skin that´s out there, which they love from the preview. But what they get is a broken version with no alpha blending and no support for e.g. color variations. And are - understandably - disappointed.
I am speaking for minimalists (as I am one) which never can understand the potential of WB also for this category*, if they haven´t bought WB (like me) ...
*: I have tested Visual Styles today and it was so disappointing compared to WB...
Reply #2 Friday, October 24, 2008 5:09 PM
yes, shure. Best solution is a time limit - with full function. An incomplete trial version gives a wrong impression of the final product, that´s it...
Reply #3 Friday, October 24, 2008 5:37 PM
How 'bout this: A trial version with all functions intact that goes to a cut back version after 30 days?
Reply #4 Friday, October 24, 2008 6:01 PM
I can see that if you are looking at what comes with the full version a streamlined trial version does have some drawbacks. It's been so long, back to Version 4.0 days, that I've used the trial.
The Stardock product page pretty much tells you what WB can do and the trial gives you a chance to try it. May not be what some folks want but it does serve the purpose.
No need to go past 30 days with the trial. You should be able to figure out if you want to buy it long before that.
Just my opinions so not worth more than 2 cents.
Reply #5 Friday, October 24, 2008 6:41 PM
I agree, I don't much see the point of cutting out features if it's already a time-limited trial to begin with.
Reply #6 Friday, October 24, 2008 7:25 PM
Seems like it would make more sense from a marketing standpoint - you want your prize to shine while people are window shopping, no dirty dishes in the display case.
Reply #7 Friday, October 24, 2008 7:27 PM
I agree as well.I think it would better demonstrate the capabilities of the software with full functionality on a time-limited basis.
Reply #8 Friday, October 24, 2008 7:59 PM
Having a full product on a 30 day trial is a bad idea. It only takes about 10 minutes to get round the 30 day limit...
Reply #9 Friday, October 24, 2008 8:32 PM
I remember the good old days of DOS, all you had to do was set system date back every thirty days... lol.... I had a trial version of McAfee for like 5 years...
oh yeah... and the price is right, Windowblinds is so cheap if you are considering buying it you should. It has great reviews for it, it's been very widely hyped up by everyone I've ever known to use it. And with every update it gets better. I've used it for somewhere around 10 years... I started with the trial version, I liked what it did, so I bought it, and have never regretted it.
Reply #10 Friday, October 24, 2008 8:53 PM
I agree Big time, when i get people on DA or other sites that ask how to load my themes (and there are a lot), i just reply www.windowblinds.net ...but... I always cringe knowing that quite a bit of it is going to look bad on my work..using the trial version.
Reply #11 Friday, October 24, 2008 9:30 PM
I didn't realize the trial version had limitations other than a time limit. Hmmm... 
Hey, smilies are back!!!! 
Reply #12 Saturday, October 25, 2008 5:02 AM
haha, yes I remember those days well, too. But I would never do it nowadays, just because a correct system time/date has become so important (e.g. for emails, to trace back file versions etc.). And as you mentioned WB is rather cheap...
Reply #13 Saturday, October 25, 2008 5:15 AM
that´s it. And I guess many people´s first contact with WB is this way, seeing some skin they love and testing it with the trial version. And many of them ARE definitely disappointed from what they see...
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Reply #1 Friday, October 24, 2008 3:18 PM
Normally trial versions of software don't have all functions or options available and have a time limit. Other wise folks would never buy the full version.