26. Select a Screensaver

Screensavers were originally developed to protect computer screens (we're talking about those old amber and monochrome monitors) from having a static image burned onto the screen during long periods of screen inactivity. The monitors that we now use do not have the same burn-in problems, and most are energy-compliant devices that shut down after a period of inactivity. So screensavers are really mostly for fun and also provide you with the ability to lock your screen when you are away from your computer.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN	SEE ALSO
22 About GNOME Personal Settings	27 Use the Lock Screen Tool

Open Screensaver Preferences Dialog

In the Settings dialog box (in the Appearance pane), double-click the Screensaver icon. This opens the Screensaver Preferences dialog box.

Select Screen Saver Mode

Select the Mode list to select one of the following: Only One Screen Saver, Random Screen Saver (allows you to select a list of screensavers for random selection), Blank Screen Only (screen blanks, but a screensaver is not used) or Disable Screen Saver (the screensaver feature is not used).

Select Screensaver

If you select the Only One Screen Saver mode, select a screensaver from the list of screensavers provided. If you select Random Screen Saver, check boxes are placed next to the screensavers in the list. Enable or clear check boxes as needed to select the screensavers that will be used.

Tip

To see a full-screen preview of a screensaver, select the screensaver in the list and then select Preview. Also, be advised that some of the screensavers available require a lot of computer resources to run. If you have a newer system with a lot of power, feel free to run any screensaver. On older systems, you may want to stick with some of the simpler screensaver choices.

Set Timings

You can also set timings for how long the screensaver should run before the screen is blanked and how often the screensavers should be cycled if you chose to use the Random Screen Saver mode. Set the Blank After and Cycle After time settings as needed. If you also want to lock the screen and require your password to reenter the system, select the Lock Screen After check box and set a timing (for the Lock Screen tool). After completing the settings in the Screensaver Preferences dialog box, close the dialog box.

Tip

If you want to set Display Power Management for a compliant monitor (such as the timing for the monitor to use when it goes into standby), select the Advanced tab of the Screensaver Preferences dialog box. The Advanced tab also provides settings for image manipulation where you can set up a screensaver to use image files that you have stored in a folder.