Q: I like the Themes on your site, but I
download files and don't know what to do with them.
A: In order to use Themes you should first get a
copy of Aston. You can download it here.
Q: How can I install a new Theme?
A: Extract the Theme's archive into %aston%\themes\your_theme's_name. Run Aston and launch the Theme
Wizard from the Start Menu. Select the desired Theme
from the list, check its options and click Preview. If you
wish to use the Theme, click OK, otherwise, press
Cancel. Alternatively you can double click the
TFA file of a theme in %aston%\themes\your_theme's_name folder, but your current Theme's
settings might be lost.
Q: I've
installed a Theme but it doesn't look like the one on the screenshot.
A: Here're some most common suggestions:
Q: Aston says, that plug-in ***** is missing.
A: Try to look for it in the plug-in section of
Aston website.
Q: I've lost my serial numer. How can I restore
it?
A: Please, follow this link.
Q: I've applied my serial number and restarted the
computer, but Aston is still unregistered.
A: Please, make sure you're using a valid serial number. If
you have a legal registration key and still have troubles with its application, please,
send us the description of your problem as well as the name and e-mail
address you used to purchase Aston.
Q: I've been using Aston for only two days,
but the trial period seems to be expired. What has happened?
A: The protection system has been activated. Even if you
don't use illegal keys for Aston, this could happen due to the system time tweaking.
We're currently working on the solution of this problem.
! Please, do not adjust system date and
time while using the trial version of Aston.
Q: I purchased Aston yesterday, but still
haven't got my registration key.
A: Please, be patient as in some cases the company managing
registrations requires some time to process your order. If you haven't got your key in
a reasonable period of time, feel free to write us.
Q: Can I get Aston for free?
A: Yes, you can. But it might turn out to be not that easy.
Please, read this information for
details.
Q: Can I register Aston on my laptop/my
computer at work with the same key I've used for its registration on my home PC?
A: Yes. But only for your own accounts.
Q: Can my brother (grandmother, favorite golden
fish, etc..) use Aston on my computer?
A: Yes, as long as you share the same PC. In
order to use Aston on their own computers they must purchase a separate copy.
Q: A message like this appeared after
Windows9x/ME restart: "Windows cannot find ...\aston.exe. You must reinstall Windows".
What is to be done?
A: Do not reinstall anything. Just set the correct path to
the shell in system.ini file (while booting in MS-DOS mode).
You can do it like this:
or
Edit %windowsdir%\system.ini file, find [boot] section. In the line shell= write the correct path to the existing shell, for example: shell=explorer.exe. Save the file and reboot. Do not remove Aston while using Aston as a shell! Switch back to Explorer, then use Add/Remove Programs option of Control Panel.
Q: I've removed Aston from my computer and
now on each boot I get an empty Desktop without any icons. Please, help
me to fix this.
A: You must not uninstall Aston by removing its folder
manually. Instead, use Shell Swapper item from the
Start Menu, set Explorer as a shell, logoff and use
Add/Remove Programs Control Panel component to
uninstall Aston. In the case described above we recommend you to install Aston and then
properly uninstall it.
Q: I want to switch back to the default
Windows shell.
A: Run Shell Swapper from Aston
Start Menu and set Explorer as a shell.
Alternatively run %Aston%\Shswdos.exe in MS-DOS mode.
Q: When I return to Explorer after using
Aston shell, the cursor sometimes remains the same as the one used in Aston. How can I
change it back?
A: When switching to Explorer make sure that
you've marked in the check-box Restore system colors, cursors,
icons, etc in Shell Swapper (Start>Shell Swapper). In case the problem remains, go to
Start>Settings>Control Panel>Mouse>Printers
and set the needful cursor scheme in the Scheme field.
Q: When starting Explorer I get a message:
"My Computer or Windows Explorer has not been properly initialized yet. Try again
later". Or the second IE4-6 copy (process) doesn't start.
A: Start Shell Swapper from the
Start Menu and mark in the check-box Create new process
for each Explorer window. If using Internet
Explorer version 4 to 6, leave the check-box Don't open IE
windows in the Aston process void. This allows to run multiple instances of
Explorer.
Q: Why does cursor blink when it points to
an animated icon?
A: This might be a problem with your video card. Try updating
its drivers and if that doesn't help, use two-color (black and white)
cursors.
Q: My video player (TV tuner, game) doesn't
seem to work correctly when running Aston but everything is OK when I switch back to
Explorer.
A: Most probably this has been caused by transparent elements
of Aston. Try using a simple Theme without transparent elements, like Aston Desktop
(installed by default). Moreover, from Aston 1.9.2 you can disable transparency for all
elements by means of enabling the corresponding option in Aston
Options dialog. Alternatively go to Start>Aston
Options and disable (set to 0) transparency for the Taskbar,
Toolbars and plug-ins manually.
Q: I have a problem ****, help me!!!!
A: Please, read this forum post
about sending proper request to support.
Q: Some program or driver works incorrectly
with Aston.
A: First, look if this program should not work with Aston. As
a rule this concerns Windows Explorer enhancements like wallpaper changers, Systray
clocks, etc. Necessarily check if this program works with Explorer Shell. So, if the
problem does not disappear, contact that program's author. Otherwise, contact support.
Q: How to implement multi-user support on
Windows 9X?
A: Try doing it like this:
===============Config.sys===============
[MENU]
MENUITEM=User1,User-Nick
MENUITEM=User2,User-Oleg
MENUITEM=User3,User-Bill
[User1]
[User2]
[User3]
[Common]
...
=======================================
==============Autoexec.bat==============
...
goto %config%
:User1
C:\Aston\SHSWDOS.EXE -fc:\Aston\Aston.exe
goto end
:User2
C:\Aston\SHSWDOS.EXE -fc:\Aston1\Aston.exe
goto end
:User3
C:\Aston\SHSWDOS.EXE -e
:end
=======================================
Now user Bill will run Explorer.
Q: Aston doesn't work on Windows 2003!!!!! What
can I do?
A: It works. Just do the following: press Start>Shell Swapper and set Explorer
as a shell. Then go to Start>Settings>Control
Panel>System>Advanced>Performance Options>Data Execution Prevention
and choose Turn on DEP for all programs and services except
those I select and mark in "Aston" check-box in the list. Then reboot.
Q: Is Aston compatible with a 64bit
system?
A: The compatibility with the existing version of Aston is
quite problematic. But Aston 2 will
support it for sure.
Q: I can't place files or folders on Aston
Desktop. Please, fix this bug.
A: "It's not a bug, it's a feature" ⌐. Actually, Aston offers
a better way of organizing data than Windows Desktop. You can't put files on Aston
Desktop, but you won't lose these files in case you have to reinstall your
system and your Desktop won't turn into a file garbage. If you need a temporary
place to keep your files, use any folder you wish, and if you need a fast access to
certain files or folders you can create links to them on the Desktop or any
launch panel. In quite a short period of time you'll realize, that this approach is
really effective.
Q: Why can't I remove Aston Desktop icons to
the Recycle Bin?
A: This time the Recycle Bin is for files only.
Q: How do I access my old Windows
Desktop?
A: Use Start>Desktop Folder
menu or create a link to the Desktop folder manually. You can also place icons
from Explorer Desktop to Aston's one by doing the following: Start>Aston Options>Desktop>Settings and click Get Explorer icons.
Q: How can I install a new plug-in?
A: For Desktop plug-ins (*.PLG) go to
Start>Aston Options (or press Ctrl+Alt+F12), then to Plug-ins>Add and
select the necessary plug-in (you might need to extract it from the archive
first). Toolbar Plug-ins (*.TBP) can be
installed by adding a new plug-in item to Toolbars.
Q: I want Flash animation on Aston
Desktop.
A: Flash is quite a resource heavy application, which doesn't
fit the principle of Aston being lightweight. In most cases ANK files give you as much power for creating complex animation effects
as Flash.
Q: Why doesn't the "Show Desktop" feature work
the same way it works with Explorer?
A: You are able to create something that will work very
similar to the Explorer version of Show Desktop:
Q: Does Aston work with multiple
monitors?
A: Aston 1.9.2 has a build-in support for multimonitor set.
For Aston 1.9.1 check this link for the solution.
Aston 2 will have native support for
multiple displays.
Q: How do I stop task buttons on the Taskbar from
stretching?
A: There is no way to change this behavior for a
horizontal taskbar. It's just the way it's made. We hope you'll get used to their
slightly different appearance (many people actually think it's more natural). You can
still control the taskbar item width if you switch to one of the vertical taskbar
themes - and you can even have a picture on the taskbar.
Q: How do I uninstall Aston?
A: Do the following: while running Aston go to Start>Shell Swapper>Explorer>%Username%, tick Restore... and Logoff... fields, then
press OK. After you have logged off in Explorer go to
Start>Settings>Control Panel>Add/Remove Programs
and uninstall Aston. If you don't have Aston in the list, then feel free to remove its
folder manually.
! Do not remove Aston folder while
running it or while it is set as a default shell.
Q: Will Aston ever become freeware/opensource?
A: No. We believe, that the only way to keep Aston the way it
is now is to keep it being developed by a certain group of professional programmers. If
you want a free opensource shell, try using Litestep. If you just want to add more features to Aston, try using
our open plug-in SDK, which has sources of
some plug-ins. In certain cases we may consider making sourcecode of other
plug-ins available to the third party developers.
Q: Would you make me a Theme **** ?
A: The short answer is "No". Most professional Theme
designers are too busy to spend their time on side projects, but you could try to
contact them with commercial offers or to look for volunteers in forums. But we suggest
that you should make a Theme yourself: it's really not that hard.
Q: Would you make me a plug-in **** ?
A: You can post a request to forums and maybe you'll find a
volunteer for it. Some frequently requested plug-ins are also made by Gladiators
Software members and included into Aston releases.
Q: How can I make a Theme?
A: Please, read this tutorial. It's comprehensive enough to give you all the necessary
information.
Q: How do I write a plug-in?
A: Feel free to download and use Aston
plug-in SDK.
Q: What language is Aston written in?
A: Aston code is written in Delphi
using pure WIN32 API with some plug-ins rewritten in C++.
Q: Is Aston really that fast?
A: Aston is known to run on old Pentium I computers with 32 Mb RAM without any speed penalty
(in this case you might need to switch to some basic Themes like Aston Desktop, as
modern ones require more computing power). No similar program of that kind shows such
results. You can enable or disable certain shell functions in order to reach balance
between speed and appearance/additional functionality, but in any case Aston won't slow
your computer down.
Q: What languages does Aston support?
A: There are two versions of Aston nowadays: English and
Russian. But in the coming Aston 2 there will be an opportunity to translate its
interface into any language you wish.
Q: Will there be Aston
2?
A: Instead of keeping on the line of Aston 1.9X we have
launched a completely new project, codenamed "Aston 2". It's based on a completely new
core, written in C++ and will have
numerous unique features. More information will be given when the project reaches beta
stage. Before that don't even ask for any details.
Q: When do you plan to release a new
version? I want it now!
A: Be patient. A new version will appear as soon as we
complete and polish it. We may also release public beta versions which would
demonstrate some features of the new product.
Q: Will there be a Linux version?
A: Most probably, not. Linux users already have a large
number of good free shells to choose
from. Support for other non-Windows operating systems in not planned either.