Finally, I’ve written a review of Google SketchUp Beta (Yes, my friends, this is always another beta application from Google). First, lets get some history.

SketchUp is an extremely easy-to-use, in fact the easiest-to-use, 3D modeling tool available in the market. Recently, it was acquired by Google, giving it instant reach and popularity. It was also immediately rebranded Google SketchUp.

The stated aim of Google SketchUp is to take 3D modeling to the masses. SketchUp provides the 3D part, while Google takes it to the masses. A very useful partnership for both, allowing Google to pursue its foray into the desktop and allowing SketchUp to reach a large number of users, via the extensive reach and influence of Google.

Now, as for the application itself, I must say that it is extremely easy to use. Previously, I had only heard about it, but now I’ve used it, and I’m mighty pleased.

The interface is intuitive and easy to use, and pretty quick, once you get used to it. You can quickly create 3D models of objects like your home, office, room, car, etc. The tutorial can get you started in this direction by teaching you how to use each feature provided in the package. The tutorial, for a change, is very useful and will certainly get you started on 3D modeling.

Once you’ve started making 3D models, you can either export them to Google Earth, save them as .skp files or export it as a 2D graphic. If you choose to export your model as a 2D graphic, you can choose between .png, .bmp, .tif and .jpg file extensions.

Although this is very easy to use, Google SketchUp is not for pros and not for users who want to do advanced 3D modeling. This is a statuary warning, because you’re going to be disappointed if you’re expecting the power and control of Maya in SketchUp. That’s not what it’s intended to be. It lives up to its own expectations of being the common man’s 3D modeler quite well.

Verdict: 8/10

All in all, SketchUp is a nifty little 3D modeler that your grandmother could use without trouble, and have quite a lot of fun in the process. Not for pros, however. An interesting product from the Google lineup.

Learning Curve: 30 minutes (The tutorial provided with SketchUp is simply awesome).

After going through a few articles on making Live CDs for various Linux distros, I found a rather interesting article on booting Damn Small Linux from a USB drive and tried it out.

Damn Small Linux, as the name implies, is damn small. It takes about 50 megs and is, obviously, totally free. The UI isnt great and might remind you of older versions of windows (like 3.0 and 3.1), but its size more than makes up for this. Plus, its extremely stable and has all features that any other linux distro would.
Click here.
Use the link above to follow the tutorial that I used - its extremely easy to follow - and boot linux from a USB drive. It's uber-geeky, having Linux in your pocket.
And the best part - as its like a live CD, it can run without any partitions/uninstallation.

Funny Microsoft/Atari ad for Basic II. Click on the title to check out the ad.

Check out Gregg Keizer's (of TechWeb.com) list of Windows sys reqs starting from Windows 3.0 upto Vista
Click Here
Talk about bloatware!

If you're currently using Windows, you probably envy users who get to use KDE, GNOME or even people who use Macs, and you arent too sure about Vista's Aero. Windows just can't keep up with them in terms of style and looks. You can change all that by getting yourself a replacement shell.
It's possible to easily change the way windows looks by replacing the default shell explorer.exe with something better-looking. The benefits are not just cosmetic, even the functionality and stability are improved.
Some users crave a better UI than windows has to offer, while some want a watered-down UI which consumes lesser memory. Both types of users can benefit by replacing their shells.

Most replacement shells are pretty customizable as well, and allow the user to utilize his creative instincts to the fullest.
Shells vs. Skins
Shells and Skins have a fundamental difference: while skins run on top of explorer.exe, shells replace explorer.exe and perform its task (in the same or different way).

Shells can change quite abit about the functionality as well, while skins can’t do anything at all to the functionality.

Skins can’t radically change the UI as they have to work within the limitations of the Windows Explorer framework. For example, skins can’t remove the Start Bar or Desktop icons. Shells, on the other hand, have much more scope and fewer limitations, and can thus totally change the UI as well. Shells can even place a dock in place of the start bar, or totally remove both and adopt a KDE-like menu system.

Skins tend to use up even more RAM as they run on top of the standard windows shell.

Applications like DesktopX and HoverDesktop are not shells, as they rely on explorer.exe

Limitations of Shell Replacement

A lot of shell replacement problems don’t behave as well as Explorer, and hence don’t install/run all programs perfectly.

Some windows replacement shells

The following are a list of relatively common and popular shells that can be used in place of explorer.exe:-

1. BlackBox
2. AstonShell
3. Emerge Desktop
4. Geoshell
5. LDE(X)
6. LiteStep
7. SharpE
8. Talisman

All of the above, except Talisman and AstonShell, come under the category of Freeware.
AstonShell can be obtained for $28, while Talisman costs $25.

AstonShell
AstonShell is a pretty-looking shell that can be used in place of explorer.exe. It's easy to customize and it also supports skins. Gladiators Software (the creators) also claims that it is extremely stable (which it truly is) and has a small memory footprint and low CPU usage. It can be configured through a GUI. Although it costs $28, AstonShell is one of the best shells avalaible in the market. Check out the screenshots on the AstonShell website.

Emerge Desktop
Emerge Desktop is an open source shell replacement utility for Windows 2000 and XP. The interesting this about Emerge Desktop is that it allows you to access the start menu by right-clicking anywhere on the screen. However, its main advantage over, say, AstonShell is that Emerge Desktop is free and Open Source. Check out the screenshots, which give an idea of how Emerge Desktop looks.

GeoShell
GeoShell is another good replacement shell. GeoShell is different from the other shells as it has a rather nifty feature, GeoBars. And GeoShell also claims to use less system resources that explorer.exe in its standard installation. Once again, a very good looking shell. See the screenshots

LiteStep
LiteStep is free. LiteStep is stable and good-looking. No wonder its also the most popular replacement shell for windows. Get LiteStep

SharpE
SharpE is also free and the code is available in parts under the LGPL license. The aim of the SharpE project was to create a "fast, stable and very graphical" shell which is easy to configure and highly customizable. These features seem to have been implemented quite well in SharpE. Check out the screenshots

Talisman
Although I haven't tried Talisman myself, I've heard good reviews and the description and screenshots featured on the website are quite impressive. Unfortunately, Talisman is free to try for 30 days, but costs $25 for proper usage.
This is what the Talisman website has to say:

"Talisman Desktop" (Talisman) is a desktop alternative and shell-replacement for Windows 9x/ME and NT/2000/XP, capable of transforming your desktop into an interface organized as you like. The program's basic purpose: Launch other applications in a new interface, instead of the standard Windows desktop. But the opportunities presented by "Talisman" are much broader. The program does not limit your computer fantasies - draw anything you like and arrange it as your imagination tells you to. When you get tired of looking at the same screen - change it all over again. If you are in a good mood - throw flowers and favorite photos on the screen. If you're not feeling so bright - leave the black screen with lonely Norton Commander or winking Bill Gates. Create invisible buttons - they will open those places and the pictures, known only to you. Construct galleries of the best pictures and photos. Simply create your own little world, created by and for you, instead of staring at the same lines of icons on your desktop, year after year.

With the help of "Talisman" you can create your own interface or use one of the hundreds ready themes that are available in our collections and in the internet. Interface (theme) is a set of screens, forms, "rooms" and objects. All these objects are interactive and respond to movements or clicks of the mouse.

Check out the site

Conclusion
Replacing the standard windows shell can be a very rewarding and fulfilling experience. You can quite easily get a good looking user interface, or better stability and speed, or reliability, or all of these and more. It's certainly worth trying, especially if you're not a big windows fan. And its eay to do as well, and is free in most cases, so you've got nothing to lose! So go ahead, take the plunge, and refresh your desktop!

Check out Shell-shocked magazine for more interesting stuff on shell replacement.