Desktop Themes
| Category: PC KNOW HOW | Date: 2002-08-20 |
Every once in a while, when Im working on someones computer, shell remark, "...and can you get rid of those *awful* noises that my grandson put on there?". Seems that Junior visited and changed all the colors and pictures, and now every time she does anything, the computer barks and moans and creaks...He has installed a Desktop Theme, and she hates it! What to do?
Many Windows machines come with a series of matching icons, wallpapers, and sounds. Each has a theme, like Baseball, the 1950s, or Mystery (my favourite). To see what you have on your machine, go to the Control Panel (select the Start button, then "Settings" and "Control Panel") and look for an icon called "Desktop Themes". Select the "Themes" dropdown box at the top and a whole list of them may appear. If you choose one, youll see what your computer will look like with the new theme. Select "Apply" and it will change your computer, select "Cancel" to get out without changes.
If youre happy with how your computer looks, you dont need to read any further. But what if you cant find a theme you like? Or what if you want some parts of one theme and some parts of another? What if you have no themes at all?
If you want to make changes but dont like any theme you have available, read on. Were going to take a quick and easy look at four areas where changes can be made to give your computer that unique look, or to fix the changes someone else has made. Those areas are wallpaper, sounds, icons, and cursors. The possibilities and combinations are limitless, but youre going to have to get your hands a little dirty (dont worry, though, you really cant hurt anything).
Wallpaper:
The easiest and most visible portion of the desktop theme is the wallpaper: the picture or color upon which all the little icons sit. Windows95 came with a plain, awful green... Windows98 comes with a bunch of pictures and a few complete themes, but if you bought your computer from HP or Dell, they may have installed their own theme on it (usually an ad for their products).
To change it, the first thing you need to do is minimize all programs so you can see the desktop. This can be done by clicking the square icon with a picture of a pencil on it (lower left corner by the start button), or by clicking the down arrow in each open program (the idea here is to be able to see the whole desktop).
Good, now right-click somewhere on the desktop and choose "Active Desktop", then "Customize My Desktop". A "Display Properties" box should appear which has about 6 tabs, click the one that says "Background". What you should see is a little picture of your whole desktop, as well as a list of available pictures (bottom left). If you click on a few of the pictures on the list, youll see the little picture of your desktop changes, showing you what it will look like if you choose this picture.
Find one you like? Click "Apply" and its done. If nothing tickles your fancy, you can just click "Cancel" and youll be done...no changes are made. If you just want to change the color of the desktop, click the "Appearance" tab, select the dropdown arrow next to "Color" near the bottom, and choose a color you like. Click apply to keep it, cancel to go back.
Sounds:
Do you notice the music that plays when your computer boots or shuts down? How about the little clicks that sound when you open or close a program? These are customizable, as well.
With the desktop showing, click the "Start" button, then "Settings"/"Control Panel" and double-click the icon that has a picture of a bullhorn or speaker (its probably called "Sounds" or "Sounds and Multimedia"). You should now see a pop-up box...
Now click the "Sounds" tab and look at the list of sound events presented... these events mean your computer is doing something like opening a program or delivering new mail. Try this: select "Exit Windows" on the list (click it once), then click the square box with a triangle in it (the "Play" button). Sound familiar? Thats the sound that plays when you exit windows, and this is where you can change it, eliminate it, even add sounds of your own!
To change a sound, simply click "Browse" and a whole list of available sounds should pop up...double click one and see if you like it. Nearly every conceivable event in Windows can have a unique sound, from animals growling to movie clips. Have fun with it!
Icons:
Changing the icons on your desktop (My Computer, Recycle Bin, etc.) is easy as well. Right-click the desktop and bring up the "Display Properties" box you did to change the wallpaper, then choose the "Effects" tab. Now you should see the icons which appear on the desktop (only the Windows ones...installed programs come with their own, and its probably best to leave them alone). Select one by clicking it once, then choose "Change Icon...". A few Windows-supplied icons will appear and you can select any one you want. But you are not limited to those...
If you *really* want to play, youll need to download a collection of Icons from the internet. Put them in a directory by themselves, and when you have the Windows Icons showing, select "Browse" and find the directory. Now you can make *any* icon appear on the desktop, from your favourite cartoon characters to pictures of fish or birds...you can make it look any way you want!
Cursors:
Did you ever notice how the pointer or arrow changes when youre doing different things in Windows? Sometimes a little hourglass appears, sometimes its just a straight line, at times its even a little hand. That pointer is called a cursor and it is customizable as well. From the Control Panel (review the Sounds section if you forgot how to get there), double-click on the Mouse Icon and select Pointers. Like the Sound Events list, the cursor list will show different cursors for different events, like when you are pointing at text or when the computer is busy. Select one and click Browse and youll see a whole list of available cursors. Dont forget that you must click "Apply" if you want to keep them, and "Cancel" will get you back the way you were.
Good Computing to you!
About the Author
Bill Hoyt is the Webmaster of Hoyt Station Personal Computing. For the best in free software plus tips to make your computing experience more enjoyable, subscribe to the Free Software Newsletter by visiting hoytstation.com
This article may be re-published anywhere in any form free of charge, provided that the author bylines are included.
bill@hoytstation.com
http://www.hoytstation.com
Many Windows machines come with a series of matching icons, wallpapers, and sounds. Each has a theme, like Baseball, the 1950s, or Mystery (my favourite). To see what you have on your machine, go to the Control Panel (select the Start button, then "Settings" and "Control Panel") and look for an icon called "Desktop Themes". Select the "Themes" dropdown box at the top and a whole list of them may appear. If you choose one, youll see what your computer will look like with the new theme. Select "Apply" and it will change your computer, select "Cancel" to get out without changes.
If youre happy with how your computer looks, you dont need to read any further. But what if you cant find a theme you like? Or what if you want some parts of one theme and some parts of another? What if you have no themes at all?
If you want to make changes but dont like any theme you have available, read on. Were going to take a quick and easy look at four areas where changes can be made to give your computer that unique look, or to fix the changes someone else has made. Those areas are wallpaper, sounds, icons, and cursors. The possibilities and combinations are limitless, but youre going to have to get your hands a little dirty (dont worry, though, you really cant hurt anything).
Wallpaper:
The easiest and most visible portion of the desktop theme is the wallpaper: the picture or color upon which all the little icons sit. Windows95 came with a plain, awful green... Windows98 comes with a bunch of pictures and a few complete themes, but if you bought your computer from HP or Dell, they may have installed their own theme on it (usually an ad for their products).
To change it, the first thing you need to do is minimize all programs so you can see the desktop. This can be done by clicking the square icon with a picture of a pencil on it (lower left corner by the start button), or by clicking the down arrow in each open program (the idea here is to be able to see the whole desktop).
Good, now right-click somewhere on the desktop and choose "Active Desktop", then "Customize My Desktop". A "Display Properties" box should appear which has about 6 tabs, click the one that says "Background". What you should see is a little picture of your whole desktop, as well as a list of available pictures (bottom left). If you click on a few of the pictures on the list, youll see the little picture of your desktop changes, showing you what it will look like if you choose this picture.
Find one you like? Click "Apply" and its done. If nothing tickles your fancy, you can just click "Cancel" and youll be done...no changes are made. If you just want to change the color of the desktop, click the "Appearance" tab, select the dropdown arrow next to "Color" near the bottom, and choose a color you like. Click apply to keep it, cancel to go back.
Sounds:
Do you notice the music that plays when your computer boots or shuts down? How about the little clicks that sound when you open or close a program? These are customizable, as well.
With the desktop showing, click the "Start" button, then "Settings"/"Control Panel" and double-click the icon that has a picture of a bullhorn or speaker (its probably called "Sounds" or "Sounds and Multimedia"). You should now see a pop-up box...
Now click the "Sounds" tab and look at the list of sound events presented... these events mean your computer is doing something like opening a program or delivering new mail. Try this: select "Exit Windows" on the list (click it once), then click the square box with a triangle in it (the "Play" button). Sound familiar? Thats the sound that plays when you exit windows, and this is where you can change it, eliminate it, even add sounds of your own!
To change a sound, simply click "Browse" and a whole list of available sounds should pop up...double click one and see if you like it. Nearly every conceivable event in Windows can have a unique sound, from animals growling to movie clips. Have fun with it!
Icons:
Changing the icons on your desktop (My Computer, Recycle Bin, etc.) is easy as well. Right-click the desktop and bring up the "Display Properties" box you did to change the wallpaper, then choose the "Effects" tab. Now you should see the icons which appear on the desktop (only the Windows ones...installed programs come with their own, and its probably best to leave them alone). Select one by clicking it once, then choose "Change Icon...". A few Windows-supplied icons will appear and you can select any one you want. But you are not limited to those...
If you *really* want to play, youll need to download a collection of Icons from the internet. Put them in a directory by themselves, and when you have the Windows Icons showing, select "Browse" and find the directory. Now you can make *any* icon appear on the desktop, from your favourite cartoon characters to pictures of fish or birds...you can make it look any way you want!
Cursors:
Did you ever notice how the pointer or arrow changes when youre doing different things in Windows? Sometimes a little hourglass appears, sometimes its just a straight line, at times its even a little hand. That pointer is called a cursor and it is customizable as well. From the Control Panel (review the Sounds section if you forgot how to get there), double-click on the Mouse Icon and select Pointers. Like the Sound Events list, the cursor list will show different cursors for different events, like when you are pointing at text or when the computer is busy. Select one and click Browse and youll see a whole list of available cursors. Dont forget that you must click "Apply" if you want to keep them, and "Cancel" will get you back the way you were.
Good Computing to you!
About the Author
Bill Hoyt is the Webmaster of Hoyt Station Personal Computing. For the best in free software plus tips to make your computing experience more enjoyable, subscribe to the Free Software Newsletter by visiting hoytstation.com
This article may be re-published anywhere in any form free of charge, provided that the author bylines are included.
bill@hoytstation.com
http://www.hoytstation.com
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