Custom Resolutions in Half-Life and Forcing Window Mode

I like to run any game I can in widescreen (720p is the norm, since my PC can't handle the full 1440x900), but Half-Life doesn't support widescreen (it's the non-steam version, I don't have a legitimate copy). I need to know if there's any way to set custom resolutions in Half-Life without causing it to revert to 400x300 (which it did, causing my monitor to say "Mode out of range" and made restarting my PC the only recourse).
Also I'd like to have a program that'll force window mode in any program. My monitor can't correctly scale 4:3 resolutions, so I'd like a program that forces them to go into windo mode so I can have 4:3 games look proper. I just wish my LCD would've let me set 4:3, but to no avail.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Just buy the stupid game. It's $10. $15 for the Platinum Pack with everything.

Forcing Window Mode in Programs that Don't support it is probably dang-near impossible. You'd need something like VMWare except with 3D Acceleration, and there are a number of technical issues making that very nearly impossible.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Arainach

Just buy the stupid game. It's $10. $15 for the Platinum Pack with everything.

Forcing Window Mode in Programs that Don't support it is probably dang-near impossible. You'd need something like VMWare except with 3D Acceleration, and there are a number of technical issues making that very nearly impossible.

Actually I was planning to buy Half-Life 2 in a few weeks wehn I get a new PC, this was just a stopgap. Well, I can run it in widescreen, so I'll cope. But games like StarCraft and similar fullscreen games look bad in 16:10 when in fact, they're running at 640x480. I guess I'll give VMWare Server a try once I get enough RAM

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.