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| Aero on Windows 7 RTM. | |
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| Caption buttons | |
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| Taskbar | |
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| Notification area | |
| First seen | Longhorn 6.0.4039 |
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| Last seen | Windows 8 (8250) |
Aero is the transparent, glass-like visual style present in Windows Vista and Windows 7. It originated with Longhorn's Aero Glass, first seen in Longhorn 4039.
In Windows Vista (starting with about Beta 2) and 7, Aero requires a capable GPU with a WDDM driver to display (official requirement: DirectX 9, minimum 64 MB video memory). Otherwise only the basic style, which is rendered on the CPU like in XP, is shown. In Windows 8 M2 and up, Aero can be rendered in software, allowing one to have Aero on any video card, but possibly taking a toll in overall system performance.
The new Aero theme in Windows 8 made it's debut when it was unlocked in build 7989, changing the Aero appearence drastically for the first time in 6 years since the Vista beta era.
Screenshots
Aero borders on Plex in Longhorn 4039
Aero in Windows Vista RTM
Aero in Windows 7 RTM
