[jacobjordan]

Believe it or not, i have seen programs you have to pay for to do something like this, and i could make a program to do it in a half hour (i haven't because it is so easy to do it by hand). First, open the folder containing the program you wish to upgrade. Then, in that folder, create a new file and call it *.manifest, but in the place of the *, put the programs actual file name. So, if you had a program called MyProgram.exe, it would look like MyProgram.exe.manifest. Then, open that manifest in notepad, or any text editor, and put the following text:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes"?>
<assembly xmlns="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:asm.v1" manifestVersion="1.0">
<assemblyIdentity version="1.0.0.0" processorArchitecture="X86" name="Company.Product.PUT PROGRAM NAME HERE" type="win32" />type="win32" />
type="win32" />
<description>WindowsExecutable</description>
<dependency>
<dependentAssembly>
<assemblyIdentity type="win32" name="Microsoft.Windows.Common-Controls" version="6.0.0.0"
processorArchitecture="X86"
publicKeyToken="6595b64144ccf1df" language="*" />
</dependentAssembly>
</dependency>
</assembly>


Just in case the big green text up there didn't stand out like a beacon in the night, look for green text that says PUT PROGRAM NAME HERE, and enter the file name of the program in that space. Then save the file, and next time you open the program, it should have a nice new look.

BTW: i did test that exact code on several programs, and it worked just fine. Also note that some old programs render their own visual styles, and don't take from the system. So if you have a program that seems to resemble classic windows, and it is rendering its own controls, the .manifest file will have no effect. An example of such a program would be Paint Shop Pro 7.