WB Not working...Please Help

Skins only work once.

from Stardock Forums
I have read over the posts so I know I am not the only person with this problem, but I was hoping that someone could help me understand where to look to solve it. I have used WindowBlinds for a couple of years and love it. I have been unable to get it to work correctly on my desktop since early last November. I am at work so I can't provide the system info, but I will submit it this afternoon. It has an Intel Pentium D 2.8GHz processor and an ATI x800 PCI-E video card with 256 MB. I have tried Catalyst 6.3 from ATI and from Omega.

When I install WB and reboot, it comes up ready for me to pick a skin. I do, apply it, and I am off. The problem comes when I reboot later. Any cursorXP setting and any wallpaper will be there, but the Start menu and Taskbar will revert back to Windows XP Blue. Any subsequent attempts to change the skin will only change the background...nothing else. I can uninstall WB and it will work again as before until I reboot. Another thing is that WB won't load at startup after a reboot either. I know WB5 works because I tried it on my laptop from work. It works fine...no problems. That PC has an Intel Mobile processor with an Intel 915GM video card.

Since I started having problems, I have uninstalled Norton's Internet Security. I have completely re-installed my hard drive...gone through numerous video driver releases from ATI (and yes, I always uninstall the previous one)...I am currently running Norton 2006 which was just upgraded last week. Here is the real funny part. After I uninstall a video driver to prepare to install another, WB loads and works fine immediately after that reboot. Then I can install the driver, reboot, and boom...broken again. Changing color bit depth and resolution has no effect either. Any suggestions.

Thanks...D
2,437 views 7 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

i read some posts a while back about some drivers working better with older catalysts.


don't know what that means, don't even know if i said it right.
Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top

Here is the system info that I said I would post...

WindowBlinds 5.0 System Information Report:


STATUS : WB+ SRV+ HLP+ UI- TRAY+


WindowBlinds is installed correctly on this PC.


WindowBlinds appears to be activated on this PC


Your machine supports per pixel borders on WindowBlinds skins.


You have one monitor in total.


(SyncMaster 997DF/927DF/997MB/927MB/927DFI/927MBI) 1 is attached to RADEON X800 Series (Omega 3.8.231)   


Wblind.dll      2006/03/21 14:33:46
Wbsrv.dll      2006/02/05 13:58:22
Wbconfig.exe      2006/03/19 15:33:44
Wbload.exe      2006/03/13 18:54:12
Wbhelp.dll      2004/09/18 17:37:00
Wbui.dll      
Tray.dll      2005/11/02 14:28:26
Ashes of the Singularity II
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top
some drivers working better with older catalysts

ATI named the drivers/software for it's video cards "Catalyst". For any video card, having the latest drivers does not always provide the best functionality for a given type of software on a given computer. It varies.
Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Here is the real funny part. After I uninstall a video driver to prepare to install another, WB loads and works fine immediately after that reboot. Then I can install the driver, reboot, and boom...broken again. Changing color bit depth and resolution has no effect either.



Since I started having problems

It soulnds like there was a time a time when WB worked correctly for you. Did it change when you updated drivers? Have you tried a driver roll-back?

Are you using a trial version of WB, or have you bought the program? The trial versions have some differences from the full versions.

Does WB work with some kinds of skins, but not others?
Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

what happened to Wbui.dll?


If I recall correctly, the dates don't seem to be the ones I remember on mine (latest released)
Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Here's mine for comparison:
WindowBlinds 5.0 System Information Report:

STATUS : WB+ SRV+ HLP+ UI+ TRAY+

WindowBlinds is installed correctly on this PC.

WindowBlinds appears to be activated on this PC

You have Stardock WindowFX running. Please be aware that WindowBlinds 5 is not compatible with WindowFX 2.11 or 2.19. WindowFX 2.5 beta which is compatible with WindowBlinds 5 will be released later this year

Your machine supports per pixel borders on WindowBlinds skins.

You have one monitor in total.

(ViewSonic VG150) 1 is attached to RADEON 9600 SERIES

Wblind.dll 2006/03/21 14:33:46
Wbsrv.dll 2006/02/05 13:58:22
Wbconfig.exe 2006/03/19 15:33:44
Wbload.exe 2006/03/13 18:54:12
Wbhelp.dll 2004/09/18 17:37:00
Wbui.dll 2005/12/06 22:29:06
Tray.dll 2005/11/02 14:28:26

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Same components except possibly the Wbui library file
Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top
Aye...WB worked prior to November of last year. I don't recall if that was version 4 or the beta for 5. I started updating the drivers in hopes of making City of Villains perform correctly...There were issues with ATI cards when it was released. Let's just say it got worse before it got better. Needless to say, for the sake of that game, which is the only game I play BTW, a rollback isn't the most appealing option.

I am not using a trial version...I've been a happy Stardock customer for a little over two years.

As for the Wbui.dll, it is still there...I just renamed it...There was a comment in another thread (or maybe in the FAQ's) about deleting it if you were having problems. I just renamed it and rebooted a couple of times...No change.

According to Stardock Central, I have the latest version. At least when I tell it to search for updates, it doesn't come back with any. I did notice a time difference for a couple of the files, but the dates are all the same.