Today we are excited to announce that 3 new Windows Ultimate Extras are now available for installation via Windows Update! This is the 6th wave of Ultimate Extras released by Microsoft exclusively for Windows Vista Ultimate users. Users will find the following Ultimate Extras waiting to be installed: 

 

Despite no announcement being made on UltimatePC.com, Microsoft have released a new sound scheme and a content pack for Windows DreamScene as part of its Windows Vista Ultimate Extras offerings for customers who purchased the Ultimate edition of Vista.

After installing the sound pack customers get Ultimate Extras Pearl and Glass sound schemes and additional Windows DreamScene Content.

For those who have been waiting for Ultimate Extras perhaps this is a sign that more is to come from the software giant.


Via [Neowin]

If you're running Windows Vista Ultimate and noticed two new Ultimate Extras have shown up on Windows Update - don't worry, your eyes do not deceive! Today we released two new Ultimate Extras: Windows Sound Schemes and Windows DreamScene Content Pack #3.

Windows Sound Schemes is a pack of 2 new sound schemes for Windows Vista: Glass and Pearl. For more details on the Windows Sound Schemes - click here. Brandon tells me his favorite sound scheme is the Glass scheme.  

Windows DreamScene Content Pack #3 brings you 3 new DreamScenes for your Windows Vista desktop. For more information on Windows DreamScene - click here. Here is a small preview of the new DreamScenes in Content Pack #3:

And be sure you keep your eyes on UltimatePC.com for more Ultimate Extra news in future as well as hot Ultimate Exclusives for Windows Vista Ultimate users.

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Microsoft is finalizing testing of Windows DreamScene through a Technical Preview phase. We have made the preview release available on Windows Update. A final release will follow. We have also released additional content, described at the bottom of this post. Stay tuned for more updates.

Your desktop background comes to life with Windows DreamScene™. When you download this Ultimate Extra, you can select a video for your desktop background the same way you select a stationary picture. You can choose one of the high-quality looping videos that we’ve included, or use a video from a company that produces content for DreamScene. You can even use your own video as a background.

If you’re wondering what effect a video background might have on your battery life, don’t worry. Windows DreamScene respects your power settings and pauses the video to conserve battery power.

Some things that you should know before you start using Windows DreamScene:

• Windows DreamScene supports only .mpeg and .wmv video file formats.
• Windows DreamScene video support requires a graphics card that supports Windows Aeroâ„¢.

For computers that do not support the Windows Aero desktop experience, this Extra still has something to offer: Windows DreamScene adds new positioning options for backgrounds, including stationary pictures.

To date, we

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Windows DreamScene is currently available only as a preview version, but many of you have chosen to install it. In recognition of your interest, we accelerated our schedule to release a Content Pack that contains four video backgrounds, which are now available on Windows Update.

The four videos are:

• A field of thistle, with a bee gathering pollen
• The rushing water of a forest stream
• A streetlamp reflected in a puddle, with softly falling rain
• Orange wisps flowing in a computer-generated scene

We’re offering these video backgrounds only to users who have installed the Windows DreamScene Preview. However, the Content Pack will continue to be available when the final version of DreamScene is released, so don’t worry about installing the preview just so you can obtain them. The preview version is an unsupported release; it is not appropriate for users who are uncomfortable with installing prerelease software. If you’ve installed the Windows DreamScene Preview, click Check for updates in Windows Update to see the Content Pack, which is offered as an Ultimate Extra.

We plan to release additional content sometime after the final version of Windows DreamScene is released. For now, enjoy these four videos, plus the “aurora” content that was installed

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