Wallpaper and Screensavers
It's Cold Outside. In this winter desktop theme, the wallpaper shows two pairs of shoes by a cabin door that opens onto a winter scene. The included screen saver is particularly clever: The wallpaper remains on screen, but falling snow, bows, and snowflakes slowly appear while you're treated to Vanessa Williams's jazzy rendition of the classic "Baby, It's Cold Outside." http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,64369/description.html?tk=nl_hsxdw n Cars. Fans of Disney/Pixar's latest animated movie will enjoy this free theme package. You can choose from two wallpapers: a red background with a big Cars logo, or the movie poster. The icons are tiny pics of the cars, and the cursors--a forklift, a small red and white arrow, and an odometer--are equally eye-catching. The sounds are snippets of dialogue or a revving motor. The screen saver plays a snappy rendition of "Route 66" while showing pictures of the characters. http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,64356/description.html?tk=nl_hsxdw n The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. This desktop theme package includes seven wallpapers to choose from, each featuring a different character from the movie. Your pointer is a sword that turns into the One Ring when the computer is busy. Icons are small pictures of the main characters. There are very few sounds, mainly clashing swords--but in a nice touch, error alerts are a chilling Nazgul cry. The screen saver displays movie-poster images on a black background. http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,64358/description.html?tk=nl_hsxdw n Matrix Code Emulator Reality Rift Studios' free Matrix Code Emulator fills your computer display with the famous falling green code seen in the Matrix movies. There are no sound effects, so it's safe to use in an office. The screen saver is easy to install: Just double-click the executable file, and follow the installation prompts. It's fairly customizable, too. Select Settings in the Windows Display Properties dialog box, and you can opt to display quotes from the movie along with the falling text; flip the falling glyphs into horizontal or vertical orientation; speed up or slow down the scroll rate; change the screen resolution; and more. http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,64109-order,1page,1/description.html?tk=nl_wbxdwn
Tao Screen Saver Thought-provoking quotations from the Tao Te Ching appear alongside beautiful photos of Chinese art, architecture, gardens, and bamboo forests. Installing the screen saver was a snap: Download and click the executable file. And the program is the only one I've seen that asks permission to be made the default screen saver. The Settings panel includes controls for MP3 and MIDI music, but sound files aren't included in the download, and there doesn't appear to be any way to access them from the program. That's probably just as well, since this screen saver would be an excellent nerve-calmer in high-stress office environments where music isn't appreciated. http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,64116-order,1page,1/description.html?tk=nl_hsxdwn Don't Touch My Computer The Don't Touch My Computer cartoon screen saver is cute and fun. A guy walks into an office, carrying a little dog. He sets the dog down, hangs up a sign ("Watchdog on Duty"), and exits the frame. The dog sits there, chases its tail, or scratches itself--until someone touches your keyboard or mouse. Then it goes into attack mode, jumping at the screen and barking. (Pressing 'Esc' gets you out of the screen saver.) Download the executable and click it to install. Clicking 'Settings' in 'Display Properties' lets you silence the dog's barking (probably a sensible step to take in an office environment). Don't Touch My Computer is free, but the vendor's logo appears at the bottom right of the screen with a link to its online offerings--a news feed, astrological advice, and so on. http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file/fid,28234-order,1-page,1c,alldownloads/description.html?tk=nl_hsxdwn My Pictures 3D. Manage images in a 3D gallery that can be transformed into a screensaver. http://www.download.com/My-Pictures-3D/3000-2407_410521820.html?tag=lst-6-6 Vladstudio Companion. Change your desktop background with wallpaper downloaded in random order. http://www.download.com/Vladstudio-Companion/3000-2336_410424753.html?tag=lst-6-9 Rick Baker Images. Display beautiful photos of nature created by Rick Baker. http://www.download.com/Rick-Baker-Images-Rick-s-Picks-Screen-Saver/30002385_4-10412725.html?tag=lst-6-2
Fabulous free photos! Everystockphoto has more than a quarter million photos from which you can choose. And they're all free! www.everystockphoto.com