When is an Animated Wallpaper a Screensaver?

from WinCustomize Forums

Answer:-

Never, if there are any sections of permanently, contrasted, static image.

Screensavers are 'supposed' to be just that  - savers of the screen - to prevent pixel/image burn-in/ghosting.

That will patently fail if the 'saver' itself actually adds to static image display.

There's a 'genre' of Screensaver submissions of late that really are more accurately described as 'Animated Wallpapers' - that are simply being applied by the executable 'scr' format but clearly cannot be actual functional 'savers' as they are partly static.

It kinda begs the question.....should they even be acceptable as Screensavers if they do not perform their original function?

What sayeth you?

 

NB.  This is particularly a general discussion as several people are submitting semi-static Screensavers.... that in spite of their apparent 'function-failing' appear to be popular....;)

2,131 views 8 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Screen savers are no longer necesary, LCD's fundamentally don't have the issue, and new CRT's have improved so much that it'd only be a problem if you NEVER used your computer. They're only really needed on older crt's, so old that almost nobody uses them anymore. The only thing is plasma tv's, which I've heard get bad burn-in and should always have a fully active screen-saver.

But overall, they've become more of a "cool thing" than a functional tool.

Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Regardless, your system should be set to put your monitor in standby after 15-20 minutes, in which case you'd never see any screensaver and/or save a lot on your power bill.  :)

 

Animated wallpapers, however, rule.  :)

 

Or at least they would if you could use Deskscapes with multiple monitors correctly.  :(

Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top

I have to agree that screen savers have taken the path of ascetically pleasing versus functionality.
Lately I've noticed a lot of dreams being converted to screensavers and I've found myself wondering the same thing as Jafo.
While I don't see anything wrong with the conversion and was thinking of doing the same with some of my dreams, I find myself in the position of not wanting to convert any that do not actually perform the task as named. I do have a few dreams that completely change every pixel so I would consider these to fit the bill but at the same time I find myself wondering why bother, since I never use a screen saver.

My question is, do enogh people use screensavers to make it worth converting them?:\

 

 

Reply #4 from WinCustomize Forums Top

This is why I wrote a screensaver that plays my currently running dream as my screen saver.

Download DreamScreenSaver.

  • Desktop Window Manager (Aero) must be running.
  • You can't use Vista's native "On resume, display logon screen". You have to disable it and re-enable it in the DreamScreenSaver configuration window.
  • It resumes dreams paused by maximized windows.
Reply #5 from WinCustomize Forums Top

The Baron is indeed the Master!

 

Hey bud, I have a couple of questions on the latest version of DreamScreenSaver.  I have a two adapter, three monitor setup and your program does something quite unique.  Normal .dreams play the same on monitors 1 and 2 (primary adapter), and don't show up on monitor 3 (secondary adapter), which is a stardock issue I know.  But when I do it with your program, I get two interesting results...

1) My desktop icons are kept on the screensaver image, leaving those pixels unchanged during the screensaving.  Which, essentially means that it runs just like a .dream, haha.  I'm not sure that's what you meant.  :)

2) The "Screencap" you take at the outset on my setup STRETCHES/SHIFTS out of proportion so that everything slides to the right (towards monitor 3).  The really interesting thing about this is that the monitor 2 dream now overlaps onto monitor 3!  This means that, whatever display routine you are using, is fully capable of spanning all three monitors with the same animated video image.  I was just wondering if there was some way you could tap that to give us the ability to play a single .dream or a single screensaver across a three monitor/two adapter desktop? 

Or perhaps you could tell Stardock how to do it?  ;)

 

Just curious.  Thanks.  :)

Reply #6 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Very interesting.  I'll have to guess as to what is going on since I don't have your setup. Is your center monitor the primary?

1) My desktop icons are kept on the screensaver image, leaving those pixels unchanged during the screensaving. Which, essentially means that it runs just like a .dream, haha. I'm not sure that's what you meant.
End of quote

Your icons should be hided when when screen saver starts and restored when it quits.  What version of Vista and DeskScapes do you have?

2) The "Screencap" you take at the outset on my setup STRETCHES/SHIFTS out of proportion so that everything slides to the right (towards monitor 3). The really interesting thing about this is that the monitor 2 dream now overlaps onto monitor 3! This means that, whatever display routine you are using, is fully capable of spanning all three monitors with the same animated video image. I was just wondering if there was some way you could tap that to give us the ability to play a single .dream or a single screensaver across a three monitor/two adapter desktop?
End of quote

The screen capture includes icons (The screen saver tries to hide them when it starts, but seems to fail in you case). But if you have one monitor without icons, it would be possible to copy it to other monitors.

Reply #7 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Left monitor is primary. On this system, left is 22" 1650x10f0, center is 24" 1920x1200, and right is 22" 1680x1050

Vista is 64 bit Ultimate

Deskscapes would be latest versions from Stardock and Microsoft (fully updated via Impulse w/betas)

I hope this helps.  :)

 

 

 

Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top

Animated wallpaper is nothing other than that if it's running on your desktop. You could take the exact same scene and run it as a screensaver, and it would be just that too.

Most animated wallpapers might look awesome, but are still nothing else than a video on repeat... So we could say that most animated wallpapers are NOT REALLY wallpapers, they are videos.

Personally I'd say that an animated wallpaper is an animated wallpaper when it's created with the intention of having it run as one. Otherwise it's just a video implemented as a wallpaper. And the same goes for screensavers and static wallpapers too.

I doubt very many would agree that common printing paper becomes a wallpaper if I glue it to my wall.

As for the burn-in thing... A crappy screensaver is still a screensaver. :)