Are you one of the many Windows users who love to personalize their computer, and want their desktop to really stand out? Do you want to use a video or slideshow in place of your static desktop background, and impress your friends and family? Believe it or not, you can, and it’s quite simple too.
For Windows Vista Ultimate Users:
If you are a Windows Vista Ultimate user, you can use a small utility created by Microsoft called DreamScene. DreamScene allows you to easily turn your desktop background into a looping video or photo slideshow of your choice. Vista Ultimate users can download and install DreamScene through windows update by following these steps:
Start Windows Update. You can find Windows Update by searching for it in the start menu, or locate it manually by browsing through the All Programs list. Alternatively, if Windows Update is already running, simply double click the Windows Update icon in your task-bar and it will pop up. In the windows Update menu, click the button labeled View Available Extras. Check the box next to Windows DreamScene, and click install to begin the installation process. If you don’t see Windows Dreamscene in the list of Available Extras, click Check for Updates. Once Windows DreamScene is finished installing, restart your computer so that any files that might have been in use can be updated.
That’s it. Now, to set a video file as your desktop background, click start, and open the control panel. From there, choose Change Desktop Background under the Appearance and Personalization header. Finally, browse to the location of your video, and select it. Congratulations! You should now see a video loop in place of your desktop background. You can adjust how the video is displayed under the How Should the Picture be Positioned caption. Be sure to hit ok once the video is setup the way you like it, so that the desktop does not revert back to its previous state. Now that Windows DreamScene is setup, you can search online for more videos to display, or create your own videos or slideshows with Windows Movie Maker.
For Windows XP and 7 Users:
If you use a different version of Windows, such as Windows 7, but would still like to replace your desktop background with a video or slideshow, do not worry! There are several programs available online that allow you to do this on other versions of Windows, as well as their 64-bit counterparts. One such program is DeskScapes by Stardock:http://www.stardock.com/products/deskscapes/
As with Dreamscene, once DeskScapes is installed, you can search online for more videos to display, or create your own videos or slideshows with Windows Movie Maker.
Final Words of Advice:
If you find a video that you want to use, but it does not show up in the list of available videos, it may not be an appropriate type of video. If the video extension is something other than MPEG or WMV, you need to convert it to one of these file types using a video converter. There are dozens of free video converters online, and just about any should do the trick. One that I can recommend is Any Video Converter: http://www.any-video-converter.com/
If you have any questions, feel free to email me at [email protected]