BAD APPLICATION BACJGROUND COLOR CHOICES!!! NO CUSTOMIZATION, DISREGARD OF WIN SYSTEMWIDE SETTINGS!!

Complaint for: WinLive PhotoGallery + Office PictureManager + other recent
Microsoft products which exhibit similar nerve-breaking behavior + one Color
problem with existing/older Windows features:

WHY DOES IT (e.g. WL PhotoGallery) DISREGARD SYSTEM-WIDE COLOR SCHEME!?!
I've been doing computers for @least 20 years, my permanent colorscheme is
dark or totally Black, black background (desktop/app. window/etc), etc. I
am a degreed (MSEE) engineer so not stupid, there's a reason many
professionals, unlike home/children users set as many Windows elements to
Black as possible.
What is this fad with Microsoft in recent applications who refuse to read
System color settings and instead insist on White background. I am so hurt
by WinLive PhotoGallery's persistent white background, that annoys my eyes
to the point, it will be uninstalled. Same deal with MS Office Picture
manager which I hoped to use instead - white background & no way to
customize. Look Microsoft, is it logical for
you to make 2 products one of which defies another, it'd be no surprise for
2 different companies, but you also make Windows; so what are Windows
CLASSIC color controls for? To be overidden by some
"dominator" applications like PhotoGallery?

So may we ask to please add an option to either set background color (BEST),
or add a "Black" theme (but why bother, it's easier to give customers an
option for manually setting backgroudn color), or just adhere to Windows
colorscheme for God's sake Windows is also made by Microsoft.
Who is watching images or movies with intensely white background? MORONS
WHO DON"T REALIZE THEY WILL NEED an EYE DOCTOR IN !) YEARS.
I am an engineer and also a former developer, I spend enormous time with
computers, and may I claim the fact that I know what I am doing in terms of
display settings & colors. Been doing it long enough and
my 28-year old eyes are in perfect shape despite so much compyters, that
most Developers get glasses by 40!

I've been holding "steam" for years but I am fed up. I will now post this
complaint all over MS Newsgroups and email to your offices. The deal with
applications disregarding system wide color scheme is puzzling system that
color scheme is user-defined in Windows - which is also made by Microsoft.
SO your right hand doesn't know what left does??
Many professional people sit in dark rooms, with stealth black LCD's, and
blue lighting, in my case in neighboring a UNIX lab (but I control Windows
PC's) and an application like WindowsLive Photogallery
which likes ot open images by default in a crazy aspect ratio, filling the
rest of display with disgusting white filler.
Do you ever get headaches at work? maybe too much white on your display,
ever wondered?

***********************************
THIS BUG's BEEN BUGGING US SINCE 2003!!!

If a Black color scheme is selected in Windows-->Classic-->Advanced, then a
very disstressing behavior occurs
Set desktop & window backrgound to Black, font to Silver - my favorite,
allowing to spend countless hours on the computer, yet maintaining eye
HEALTH. Do the same with White background, white other... a headache will
develop.
Now goto Win Explorer or Win Mail, and sort files/emails/items by any column
(e.g. by date). Instead of clear view (you'd expect in Classic Windows),
you will see Whitish background + light text on it,
totally unreadable & horrible. Impossible to focus on work. The only way
to never see that mess, is it is to NEVER have "details" view turned on in
WinExplorer, as of Winmail I am forced to narrow Date
column to zero as that is the column by which usually emails are arranged.
As you can guess it appears mutilated if you arrange by date.

COLOR BUG CONTINUED from previous msg:
It's one bug, but everything else is gorgeous in Windows Black color scheme,
I've been tolerating this since 2003, but only now decided to message
Microsoft.
Many people know it & simply avoid "Details" view in WinExplorer, but it's
not a solution. I used to use Details view all the time in WindowsME & NT,
not anymore, can't..
What happened here is that sorted-by column background color is "hardwired",
not customizable in Appearance-->Advanced. It uses some sort of algorithm
which fails when user selects Black background.

And in case you wonder, Black is what you shoudl select unless you want
brain cancer due to 10-hour work day on a computer.

By the way, please keep Windows-->Appearance-->Advanced-->Classic option
forever, WinXP/Vista (and Windows7?) do not have nearly as much color
control as Classic, and if one day these customization options are gone, I
will also be gone... to another OperatingSystem (we all kno what it is).
Colors customization is critical to me, as I spend hours on computers):

For once I agree with Frank on this one.

"Mark Levitski" <> wrote in
news::

> Complaint for: WinLive PhotoGallery + Office PictureManager + other
> recent Microsoft products which exhibit similar nerve-breaking
> behavior + one Color problem with existing/older Windows features:
>
> WHY DOES IT (e.g. WL PhotoGallery) DISREGARD SYSTEM-WIDE COLOR
> SCHEME!?!

The answer from Shane, an MSFT engineer, on this page:
http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-
US/vistamedia/thread/4ad7cd2b-1367-47d9-a8f3-f198450b7cff

says:

"Unfortunately the only way to change the background color in Windows
Live Photo Gallery is to change the color scheme for all windows that you
open. I have provided steps for doing so below. This is assuming that
you are running Windows Vista.

* Right-click your desktop and select Personalize
* Click Windows Color and Appearance
* Click the Advanced button
* In the drop down menu underneath Item: select Window
* In the drop down menu for Color 1: change the color to black
* Press the OK button, and then the apply button
* If you want to keep things this way you can press OK again"

This is for Windows Live Photo Gallery version 2009 (Build 14.0.8064.206)

So that version, according the the MSFT Engineer, DOES take into account
the system-wide setting for background color.

> I've been doing computers for @least 20 years, my permanent
> colorscheme is dark or totally Black, black background (desktop/app.
> window/etc), etc. I am a degreed (MSEE) engineer so not stupid,

No, not stupid, you just think your **opinions** are right and everyone
else is wrong.

> there's a reason many professionals, unlike home/children users set as
> many Windows elements to Black as possible.
> What is this fad with Microsoft in recent applications who refuse to
> read System color settings and instead insist on White background. I
> am so hurt by WinLive PhotoGallery's persistent white background, that
> annoys my eyes to the point, it will be uninstalled. Same deal with
> MS Office Picture manager which I hoped to use instead - white
> background & no way to customize. Look Microsoft, is it logical for
> you to make 2 products one of which defies another, it'd be no
> surprise for 2 different companies, but you also make Windows; so what
> are Windows CLASSIC color controls for? To be overidden by some
> "dominator" applications like PhotoGallery?

Actually, a developer, even within MS, is just that, a developer. They
can choose to do anything they damn well please with what they are doing.
Just as a car company can design and produce any car they want. That
doesn't mean it will be successful, or will be well-accepted, but they do
have the right.

It's up to you, as a consumer, to choose not to use/buy those things you
don't like. That's how a free market works.

> So may we ask to please add an option to either set background color
> (BEST), or add a "Black" theme (but why bother, it's easier to give
> customers an option for manually setting backgroudn color), or just
> adhere to Windows colorscheme for God's sake Windows is also made by
> Microsoft. Who is watching images or movies with intensely white
> background? MORONS WHO DON"T REALIZE THEY WILL NEED an EYE DOCTOR IN
> !) YEARS. I am an engineer and also a former developer, I spend
> enormous time with computers, and may I claim the fact that I know
> what I am doing in terms of display settings & colors. Been doing it
> long enough and my 28-year old eyes are in perfect shape despite so
> much compyters, that most Developers get glasses by 40!

If you do a little Googling on this subject, you'll find that most people
that have an opinion, favor dark text on a light background.

And, as a matter of fact, light text on a black background, for me, like
on a webpage, will cause me to see 'spots' for several minutes while not
looking at it. These 'spots' are actually one large black'ish rectangle
filled with white'ish horizontal lines. Hmmmmmm. I don't get that while
viewing pages with a white background.

Glasses by 40 may just be a natural progression in the aging process. How
would you then explain all the other millions of 40+ year old's that
don't use PC's 8 hours a day for and *still* require glasses.

> I've been holding "steam" for years but I am fed up. I will now post
> this complaint all over MS Newsgroups and email to your offices. The
> deal with applications disregarding system wide color scheme is
> puzzling system that color scheme is user-defined in Windows - which
> is also made by Microsoft. SO your right hand doesn't know what left
> does?? Many professional people sit in dark rooms, with stealth black
> LCD's, and blue lighting, in my case in neighboring a UNIX lab (but I
> control Windows PC's) and an application like WindowsLive Photogallery
> which likes ot open images by default in a crazy aspect ratio, filling
> the rest of display with disgusting white filler.
> Do you ever get headaches at work? maybe too much white on your
> display, ever wondered?

From what I've read, it's not a white on black or black on white issue,
its a matter of overall brightness with regards to the level of ambient
light.

<SNIP>

>
> And in case you wonder, Black is what you shoudl select unless you
> want brain cancer due to 10-hour work day on a computer.

That's all conjecture at this point, and even less of a concern with the
rapid adoption of LCD display technology.

I'd be more concerned about the RF energy we are bombarded with on a
daily basis......from the sun, broadcast TV and radio, cell phone towers,
etc.......but I'm not.

Hell, I grew up and lived for 20 years the second house from a run of 60
high tension power lines. If I didn't get leukemia or brain cancer from
that, it won't happen from looking at a monitor using dark text on a
light background.

Mark Levitski wrote:
> This application still ingores System-wide color scheme when WinVista is
> in Classic Mode. period.
>
> It's a fact. I am NO Tblind!
> Maybe your Microsoft person is working in Vista's Aero interface, but we
> busienss people don't play Aero Trick, tips, peaks, etc.
> I am in Classic mode, ALL MY WINDOWS have black background.
>
> Yet WLPG insists on whit ebackground.
>
> Have a nice day


Your spelling is atrocious, your grammar awful so one wonders if you
also use a black foreground? Might explain why for the last 20 years you
have been so frustrated. No?

This application still ingores System-wide color scheme when WinVista is in
Classic Mode. period.

It's a fact. I am NO Tblind!
Maybe your Microsoft person is working in Vista's Aero interface, but we
busienss people don't play Aero Trick, tips, peaks, etc.
I am in Classic mode, ALL MY WINDOWS have black background.

Yet WLPG insists on whit ebackground.

Have a nice day

Mark, one person that wants black backgrounds is not going to make Microsoft
go the way of General Motors.

The others here have assailed your spelling and grammar, however, your being
here is not to get help.

Lastly, you don't understand that the folks here are not necessarily
Microsoft employees. Your barb just went into the air.

"Mark Levitski" <> wrote in message
news:%...
> >It's up to you, as a consumer, to choose not to use/buy those things you
>> don't like. That's how a free market works.
>
> You're going the way of General Motors, or you're going to fix colors, etc
> issues
> And remember the reason for WIndows7 - it's a patch to alleviate your
> sales pains with Vista crapware

>It's up to you, as a consumer, to choose not to use/buy those things you
> don't like. That's how a free market works.

You're going the way of General Motors, or you're going to fix colors, etc
issues
And remember the reason for WIndows7 - it's a patch to alleviate your sales
pains with Vista crapware

Dan,

No offense meant but you're one of MS-crazed people who fail to read the
original post carefully, because you're driven to promote MS.

Did I say I've been doing it long enough?
The Window item color1 is set to Black, has been for 7 years. All
applications & their windows show upo with Black background, OK????
I thought I made i tclear it's a bug.
Your MS people insist on making us look stupid, when faced with deficiencies
in their products.

I HAVE HAD IT SET IN APPEARANCE-->ADVANCED->CLASSIC WHATEVER .... IT'S SET O
BLACK, EVERYONE OBEYS THIS SCHEME EXCEPT WINDOWS LIVE PROHOT GALLERY.

Is that difficult to accept that WLPG white background does.t care for user,
but is hardwaired permanently?
Add a button to change its color OR make it obey system-wide settings after
you actually verify it obeys. Because it doesn't.

Dan,

You referred me to this link which by the way is not an answer because that
MSFT Enigneer is wrong, WLPG still ingores system-wide colors for SINGLE
PHOTO, it sets background to Black only in Slideshow mode which indicates
one of the developers had a similar taste to mine. BTW, that blackness is
not even due to WLPG respecting system-wide colors in thi scase, no, it's
just how it was programmed - black for Slideshow, White for single photo,
nobody knows why there's no option to change this insanity. This is a
candidate for UNINSTALLATIOn now, I hate white too much to keep it on
system.
Here's the link:
http://social.answers.microsoft.com/...3-f198450b7cff

But you know what's funny?

That same link you gave us, contains several posts where people express
their love for Black schemes contradicting your preference for White
background. SO thanks for providing a link which now works against you:
here's an excerpt from that webpage you referenced:

***********************
I am a Photographer, and very few pictures look their best on a large white
background, especially on a LCD Display. The light output causes the iris
closes down so the picture looks too dark - it is survivable with light and
colourful pictures (even if it's not optimal) but with Darker Pictures and
Black and White pictures it's a problem.
I can use Adobe Bridge instead, but I am disappointed that Microsoft haven't
fixed this problem following Vista.
If you want to test the theory, just try looking at a darker picture on a
dark background, then look at it in photo viewer, you will see what I mean.

Posted by:
Bryan Wallbridge

So you defy Microsoft themselves?
They subliminally touted it as a fix for Vista.

The spelkling and grammar indicate my utter disgust for spending a Saturday
on the computer posting allover to explain somethign that bugged us for many
years, I am too busy to even see keybaord on thsi blackberry MOBIKE device,
I am in a car, abou tto crash.... arrghhhm try typing on a cellphone -al,
see what spellin gt=you get!