I do not want money, I do not want glory, I just want this program to exist if it does not already exist, and preferably as freeware/open source.

There is a procedure for copying one Windows XP Pro user profile to another. There are articles about how to do it on the Microsoft site, and the internets are chock-a-block with echoes and paraphrases of those articles, and all of them are just as incomprehensible as the original one on the Microsoft site.

The goal of the Magical XP User Copy Machine is to allow us to copy the current user, that is fixed just like we like it, and then change our desktop icons and wallpaper, thus giving us a choice of outfits when we start Windows, just like when we open our closets and decide what we would like to wear that day.

What should be a simple and straightforward matter of a click or two to accomplish what is in my view, a most reasonable thing people would want to do, is a multi-step, confusing and complicated process, with lots of chances for a clueless person, or even a clueful one who is distracted or in a hurry, to mess things up.

The Intended End User is a person of my own formidable level of cluelessness or greater, and also Authentic Power-Usin' Nerds who are just very busy with important and ponderous tasks, but who are also human and might like a costume change now and then, without having to commit a complete valve and ring job to get it.

Another thing about the Intended End User - we may be clueless, but we are not so clueless that we do not realize that putting stuff like WindowBlinds on our machines is going to mean paying out a lot of system resources for what is a purely cosmetic function - even if it does not mess our computers up, which, if you google around, you will see that this is not a rare occurrence.

And we probably don't have a lot of icons on our desktop.

For instance, I have just a few broad category folder icons, and inside each one is a whole mess of subfolders and stuff. So if we get a copy of our current user, we are not going to have to spend all day just changing those icons and wallpaper.

But even if we do have a lot of icons, this program would still save a lot of time. Because while we the Clueless Intended End Users may want the program to achieve a cosmetic goal, the business of copying users is not about cosmetics at all, but about stuff we do not begin to understand. All those settings and things.

So here is how the Magical XP User Copy Machine would work, in an ideal world.

You would simply click "copy current profile to" and make up a name for the new user, type that in the blank, and sit back.

Then a thing would pop up telling you that you were successfully logged into your new user, and from there you could change your wallpaper and your handful of icons. Now you have a whole new look, and next time you start windows, you can log in to whichever user you want, depending on what colors, etc, you are in the mood for, and all of those mysterious settings that we the Clueless Intended End Users don't understand, or probably even know about, have been magically and safely copied, including all our Firefox stuff, which we had finally gotten just like we wanted it. At least for today.

The program would also have a sync feature, so that if, while wearing our pink clothes, we install something or change some preference or setting somewhere or other, at the end of the day, when we do things like update and run our antivirus and Malware Bytes, we can also click our Magical XP User Copy Machine, and click Sync with, and check off all the users we want whatever we did that day to sync with.

This would also give us the option of keeping one or more like they were yesterday, in case it turns out we don't like whatever I changed today, but being Clueless Intended End Users, we will of course, either have forgotten what that was or not be able to find it.

Is this something that someone here could whip up in a minute or two? Or is it all more complicated than I ever dreamed or imagined, like an idea I had in the past about context menus?

Or does it already exist but I just didn't find it, either because I did a sucky job of googling, or google did a sucky job of finding it for me even though I googled just fine?

Posted: May 17, 2008, 6:31 pm

On May 17, 2008, 6:31 pm salila said:
The program would also have a sync feature, so that if, while wearing our pink clothes, we install something or change some preference or setting somewhere or other, at the end of the day, when we do things like update and run our antivirus and Malware Bytes, we can also click our Magical XP User Copy Machine, and click Sync with, and check off all the users we want whatever we did that day to sync with.

If you have installed your programs in the right way [select "use one profile for all users on this computer" while installing the program] the program files will already be automaticly updated because they are in the same folder as they are on your other account.
Example:
If you open AVG Free on account X you open it from "C:Program FilesGrisoftAVG8" if you update files, the files in this folder will be changed.
When you open AVG Free on account Y you also open it from "C:Program FilesGrisoftAVG8" (unless if you've chosen to make different profiles for every user on the computer) so you have exact the same files and preferences.
So no need to worry about this part. (This is the same for internetbrowsers [Opera, FireFox, etc.] except from IE, because (if I'm correct) IE automaticly makes a new bookmarks collection for another user)


However; when I just use Windows (XP Pro SP3) to make a new account [with administartor rights] the new account already loads the same programs on startup (even if I don't want it...) and if you just use the same My Documents folder to save your documents ("C:Mijn documenten" in my case) you also can acces your files.
The only thing that's different from the original account is the background, the Windows appearance and the desktop icons.

So it's already possible to do it easily with Windows. This way is a pretty fast way to do it, but a program which will do it will probably work faster. [And I don't know how the Windows way works for non administrator accounts]


However, I think you can better make a program which starts when you log on to your account and then gives you a menu in which you can choose how your account will look like today. [This way you don't need to copy your account, but you just change -temporarly- the apperence by choosing one]

Posted: May 18, 2008, 3:07 am

On May 18, 2008, 3:07 am JelmerBV said:...If you have installed your programs in the right way...the program files will already be automaticly updated...So no need to worry about this part.

Thank you for explaining that. I thought there would be a lot of complicated and secret things.

On May 18, 2008, 3:07 am JelmerBV said:...except from IE...

Oh, no, I only use FireFox, never IE. Ew.

On May 18, 2008, 3:07 am JelmerBV said:... I think you can better make a program which starts when you log on to your account and then gives you a menu in which you can choose how your account will look like today. [This way you don't need to copy your account, but you just change -temporarly- the apperence by choosing one]...

Oh, I would love that! I have administrator rights, I am the only person that uses my computer, but a little program that would work like a closet, and let me choose new outfits without having to mess with users and things would do just what I want.

But *I* can't make it or any program. I was hoping somebody here might have secretly always wanted to, and my part can be to function in the capacity of the Clueless End User, because that is the best fit for my skill set.

Posted: May 18, 2008, 8:45 am

On May 18, 2008, 8:45 am salila said:
Oh, no, I only use FireFox, never IE. Ew.

If you make software you need to adapt to all users and still most Windows users are using IE (bad IE users, shame on you!) I use Opera myself.

On May 18, 2008, 8:45 am salila also said:
Oh, I would love that! I have administrator rights, I am the only person that uses my computer, but a little program that would work like a closet, and let me choose new outfits without having to mess with users and things would do just what I want.
But *I* can't make it or any program. I was hoping somebody here might have secretly always wanted to, and my part can be to function in the capacity of the Clueless End User, because that is the best fit for my skill set.

You don't have to have administrator rights to change your Windows layout (that will make it a little bit easier to make a program like this.) I can program in VB [Visual Basic] a little bit, I'll take a look if I maybe can some sort of program like this (I won't promise anything, but it would be an intresting project if I can find how to create it.)

Posted: May 18, 2008, 8:56 am

Thank you so much for contemplating it!

If it seems like it would have an auspicious fun/braincrunch quotient, maybe you can submit it as an idea? If that is the custom of the tribe, I am still reading about all of that.

And you know I would be honored to help you make sure that it is Cluelessness-Resistant. (I think that sounds much more polite than idiot-proof). Even without cute cartoon helpmice. That would be Feature Creep.

I am excited to think that a conversation could turn into a real live program!

Posted: May 19, 2008, 3:41 am

Have been searching, no usufull code(-parts) found yet; will continue my search.

Posted: May 21, 2008, 8:30 am

This might help..

http://www.migosoftware.com/store/index.html

Mobile. Migo seamlessly synchronizes with Windows 2000 and XP to bring your entire desktop onto your notebook, including your email (Migo supports MS Outlook for email.) You can work on any computer as if it were your own.

http://software.u3.com/Product_Details.aspx?ProductId=76&Selection=1&Lang=en-US

You could have multi U3 usb drives

Posted: May 21, 2008, 10:28 am