copied from:
http://www.neowin.net/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t268172.html:
“ohhh, that's not a problem with patching.
read my noob guide:
Q: What is the difference between a theme and a visual style?
A: The terms “theme” and “visual style” are often thrown around carelessly and used interchangeably, which adds to the confusion, but the distinction is clear.
A visual style (.msstyles) is the file that skins the windows, taskbar, start menu, and other elements of the Windows appearance. Visual styles are loaded in the appearance tab of the display properties dialog.
A theme (.theme) is a visual style with saved settings, wallpapers, icons, and so on. Themes are loaded in the theme tab of the display properties dialog.
When people say themes, they usually mean visual styles.
Q: My uxtheme did not patch! What do I do?
A: Now hold on there. How do you know it failed? The easiest way to check to see if uxtheme.dll was patched is to simply double-click the msstyles file of a third party theme. If double-clicking loads the display properties dialog with the correct visual style, then the patching process was successful. If not, re-patching is necessary. This time, try manually replacing the file using Replacer (
http://www3.telus.net/_/replacer/) in safe mode and make sure the themes service is set to automatic.
Q: Uxtheme was patched successfully, but visual styles do not appear in the appearance tab dropdown list. What do I do?
A: This is a common problem, but one that deserves more attention than it is currently given. The problem is caused by a misnamed visual style folder. For the style to appear in the list, the folder name in which it is residing must correspond to the name of the msstyles file. For instance, gloss.msstyles must be in its visual style folder named “gloss” in the correct directory (C:\WINDOWS\Resources\Themes) and it will appear. The correct path for the file itself should then be:
C:\WINDOWS\Resources\Themes\gloss\gloss.msstyles
And equivalently, the shell folder should be in the same “gloss” folder: C:\WINDOWS\Resources\Themes\gloss\shell.
Q: What is a shellstyle and how do I install it?
A: Shellstyle.dll is a file often bundled with the visual style that skins the common tasks pane (and other panes, e.g. the add/remove panel). No installation is necessary. Simply unzip the visual style to the appropriate directory as mentioned above and make sure the shell folder is in the visual style folder along with the msstyles file.
Q: I patched, but my start menu and taskbar are not skinned. What is wrong?
A: First, check to make sure the correct version of the dll is being used. Also try patching in safe mode. Then check the directories to see if uxtheme.dll has been misplaced. It should only appear in the system32 folder, and not in the Windows folder. If all else fails, try replacing uxtheme.dll with Replacer in safe mode several times. Some have indicated that this fixes their problem.”
B@Th*nG
