I looked at this again today.. I'm displeased because in addition to encrypted media extensions not being available in 1507 LSTB which means Netflix is resolution and bitrate starved, I wasn't able to fix it by trying to install the feature pack for the N and KN editions. So, this basically means only silverlight in IE if you plan to watch netflix on 1507 LTSB.

There is more to say though..

The March cumulative update (maybe one of the other ones as well that goes along with it released roughly round the same time, it's hard for me to pinpoint exactly which because they all went in at once) I noticed on 20H2 that it changed the rendering a bit in a way I didn't like. It basically makes it look like the screen is flickering without actually flickering.

This update goes to 1507 and 8.1 as well, so if you notice anything changing, that's why.

So this is a problem now, because even if you're running an older base build, an update can still update graphics-related components. So what is the solution? To not update like I stopped doing with W7? The next big W10 update isn't till the fall. The April one is still part of the 2004/20H1 threshold.

    I worked backwards and uninstalled KB4589198 KB5000807 KB4535680 KB4598231.

    Observed an improvement with the removal of KB4598231. This is the January cumulative update, which means you cannot install KB5000807 either (March). The other two are probably ok, one is a microcode update and the other is a secure boot update.

    I recommend no further cumulative update beyond December 2020 for 1507.

    7 months later

    I previously said Windows 10 1507 is more tolerable than Windows 7. I was wrong. The updates that you mentioned @Sunspark (Platform update, IE11, etc.) really do ruin Windows 7. Using Windows 7 with NO updates has been an upgrade (lol) vs Windows 10 1507.

    I would like to try Windows 8 with no updates, since "DPI Virtualization became the default for all settings over 96 DPI in Windows 8.1." This is similar to the problem that causes Windows 10 1507 to have blurry fonts.

    Microsoft really started messing up rendering far earlier than Windows 10 1607, although obviously that was a very big change for the worse.

    Edit: Windows 8 no updates no driver is strainy. Actually it feels much like Windows 10 1507. Not terrible but still strainy. The basic driver in Windows 8 is too capable. I guess the only way to truly stop the GPU acceleration is:

    Windows 7 no updates no drivers

    OR

    Windows XP can be tolerated with drivers. Probably technical limitations of the old XP display driver model.

    Edit 2:

    XDDM supported on Server 2008 R2. Could install drivers on this (still security updated), with benefits of old 2000/XP driver model @KM ? It should be Windows 7 except with this support? Maybe we can use strainy cards which we can currently only use in XP.

    Edit 3:

    I could not get Nvidia XPDM drivers installed on Server 2008 R2.

    I would sugest you give 8.1 one more try, believe me, with tweaking it can be the most stable and beautiful looking of them all

    Not to mention, with intel drivers 20.19.15.4444 from 2016 and ditherig, it feels paper-like.

    Greeting from a many years 8.1 user! šŸ˜€

      Alyosha2001

      Thanks for posting. Your setup does look very good.

      Are you using any tweaks to have fonts looking better?

      (In 8.0, you get ā€œUse XP style DPI scalingā€ which seems nicer)

        Thank you! The bold font is very easy to achieve, all

        you have to do it tick the box like in the screenshot, to all the 5 categories.

        I would mention that the aero glass tweak is very stable, had no issues with it, the resources consumption is like almost none, FAR better than the official Win7 implementation.

        For me this is the best OS made until now, and with lots of arguments in it's favor Been using it intensely on video editing and graphics computers, very long renderings, all I can say is to highly recommend it, if you hardware allows.

        On Windows 8.0, with no Nvidia graphics driver there is a ton of banding on the default desktop background. When I install the driver all the banding goes away and no disable dithering tweaks to work to bring it back. I will try Intel next.

        I thought my Quadro K4000 was free of dithering. Well I guess it could be said it is free from the always on VBIOS level dithering in newer cards, but the driver is still telling it to dither once installed.

        Windows 7 is the last Windows OS you can really trust not to screw with your vision/eyes. Starting with Windows 8 Microsoft completely rewrote the dispaly subsystem, disabled the ability to turn off Aero, and forced all elements through the desktop rendering engine which adds an entire extra layer of processing before you see what you see on the screen.

        Stick with 7

        5 days later

        Edit: This post no longer reflects my current opinion. I have been able to install display drivers on Windows 8.1. Also, 8.0 has very different rendering than 8.1 after further testing.

        Windows 7 is working on my XPS 7590 Intel 9th Gen laptop. Only thing is it needs USB Wifi, since the internal adapter has only Windows 10 drivers. Standard VGA driver is running it at 1080p native resolution.

        After a lot of testing I found that 8.1 and 10 1507/1511 have almost the same rendering (which is really not that bad compared to modern OS), maybe 10 is a bit cleaner, but it's not that noticeable. As we already know 1607 is when it dramatically changes. The only reason I bring this up is that if 2015 LTSB is not tolerable 8/8.1 are not likely to be tolerable either. But 8.1 specifically has the advantage of running .Net 4.8. 2015 LTSB can only do 4.6.2.

        But 7 is its own beast. I find it tolerable on the Standard VGA driver in a way that 8/8.1/1507 is not. With drivers installed it's not as special. That Standard VGA driver seems very limited in a way that is good for me.

        Standard VGA Driver > Basic Display Adapter (8/8,1, early 10) > Drivers on either

        I still want to do something with XP again. That's my next project. I want to transfer material for offline viewing on to an XP machine. It doesn't have to go online.

        Honestly, I find 19042.867 perfectly comfortable on my setup. Noticeably enough so that I actually stopped using 7. I still have the partition waiting there as a fallback, but I don't boot into it anymore.

        Part of the reason I am not willing to use the Standard VGA/Basic Display is because I need hardware acceleration for video playback. I don't have a TV so everything is done on my monitor. Without acceleration, there would be too much tearing, etc.

          Sunspark

          The experience on the Standard VGA / Basic Display adapter is really bad, especially since I need a multi-monitor setup. I mean itā€™s ridiculous to be using a computer this way in 2021.

          As you can tell though, Iā€™m really just grasping at straws here with my experiments until I find a real solution. I really do give every build of Windows a shot including the newer builds of 10 including all the updates, and 11. I try all the outputs on both Intel and Nvidia adapters including trying converter cables. I also fiddle with different driver versions (including different colour spaces) and settings. No luck yet.

          I do have a G-sync laptop on the way to try.

          I would like nothing more than to find 19042 comfortable. Just no luck so far.

          Edit: Iā€™ve also just got an eye patch now since it was recommended to me here recently. Maybe it will help.

              4 days later

              Alyosha2001

              I gave 8.1 another shot and actually it seems I can install my display adapter drivers in 8.1, but not in 7 or 2015 LTSB (differences in WDDM between all three versions). So maybe there is something to 8.1 after all. I am testing it now and especially on my Intel adapter I am very impressed. Also it's probably good you are using Intel driver from 2016 and not 2017 (Intel iGPU Driver Patch Notes - Dithering - LEDStrain Forum).

              I am excited. Which Start Menu replacement are you using?

                  degen

                  Yes, that's the last intel driver jitter free that I tested. The same one on win10 2004 isn't.

                  The start menu I used is OpenShellMenu.

                  I would like to mention that I am also very sensitive to screens, and that most of the guilines of this forum apply to me. That's why I think it's vice versa, too.

                  Also, there's something fishy with ditherig version greater than 1.7,at least on my setup. Very small detail, but it is. Don't know why

                    The few times I tried 8.1, it looked just awful on my hardware. But, I never tried it with the driver I use on W10.. I'm out of HD space, but maybe I can clear out some stuff from the W7 partition to free up about 40 gigs or so, so I can see if 8.1 can work at all for me. W10 is heavier on my dual-core CPU, and I haven't been happy with the bugs MS keeps introducing into W10.

                      Sunspark

                      Maybe W10 LTSC 2021, when it is released in Nov alongside 21H2, will be perfect for you. Comes pre debloated courtesy of Microsoft, and will get updates for 5 years. I don't recommend 8.1 unless absolutely necessary since software is dropping support for it just like 7 (even though 8.1 technically has MS support until 2023, this hasn't been respected by developers).

                          degen Iā€™ve also just got an eye patch now since it was recommended to me here recently. Maybe it will help.

                          Have you had time to test the eye patch?

                              tfouto

                              It should not be any different than W10 21H1 in that regard. For me, it probably wonā€™t be so great.

                                mike

                                I seem to be able to tolerate otherwise intolerable software while using the eye patch. Also my concentration is better.

                                    dev