What's the point of a screen saver?

[seshomaru samma]

Do screen savers have any technical function or are they for aesthetic purposes only?

[aysiu]

Aesthetic only.

This is what a screensaver is for (at least in our household):

I leave my computer for a while. I come back a half hour later and say, "Ah... my cat is so cute." Then I touch move my mouse a little bit, the cat goes away, and I start working again.

Or, sometimes when my wife and I are watching TV, she'll glance over at the computer and admire the photos, "Oh, yeah. I remember when we were there..."

It's really the only time we ever look at the digital photos we have.

[jfinkels]

They used to have a purpose in the past (i.e. before my time :D), they prevent monitors' from getting images 'burnt' in by the electron beam inside the cathode ray tubes. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Screen_saver

Of course, for LCD screens this isn't a problem...so they just stuck around as a little amusement for the user.

[cody50]

Doesnt it help to reduce screen burn in as well? Perhaps that was the original function for older equipment.

/jfinkels beat me to it.

[Lucifiel]

Hmmm... I think this was from the old days of operating systems when running a screen-saver would:

a) if anyone tried to access your computer, they'd be presented with a password

b) power-saving features

Sorry, I just don't remember why they're used anymore. :p

[seshomaru samma]

you people are fast....
Do screen savers take resources?
I can see gnome-screensaver in my ps ax

[bukwirm]

Yes, screensavers use your CPU, graphic card, and memory, but they generally use it while you're not, so why worry about it? Plus, most screensavers don't use very many resources (Unless you're running something like Hyperspace (http://www.reallyslick.com/)).

[a12ctic]

My screensaver is just a plain back screen, then when I come back it asks for a password. I like it better that way.

[seshomaru samma]

Yes, screensavers use your CPU, graphic card, and memory, but they generally use it while you're not, so why worry about it? Plus, most screensavers don't use very many resources (Unless you're running something like Hyperspace (http://www.reallyslick.com/)).

(Is there a Hyperspace for Linux?)
Edit : yes there is ,checking it out now.....

[ubukool]

I remember that one of the first things I saw on Ubuntu that really impressed me was the Rocket screensaver - it was just so cool and showed what you could do with Linux. It still amazes me to watch those rockets shoot into the sky, lighting up the clouds. It's well wicked and far superior to a bunch of flying windows symbols! :)

[reclusivemonkey]

Believe it!

http://www.ionpool.net/arcade/archuk/006_25_yrs_of_screen_burn_on_OLD_monitor.jpg

In a place I used to work there was a monitor for an old server which had suffered a similar effect. Screen burn *used* to be a very real problem, that's why screensavers were created. However, people are right to say its just eye candy now.

[jfinkels]

You know, I was always a fan of the starfield (and related) screensavers.

[EdThaSlayer]

There is no real point in a screensaver, except to keep your monitor running and waste power. If you are going to be away from your computer for a while, just turn the screen off and help save not only our planet, but also your power bill.

[bukwirm]

Unless you have a laptop and can't turn the screen off without turning the computer off ...

[goumples]

If you password lock your screensaver then it does have a purpose.. when u walk away from your machine no one can mess with your files if the screensaver you have up is password protected.

[Tundro Walker]

In the "old days" (80's), they used to have monitors that would get images "burnt" into them if left with the same image too long. You used to see these types of monitors at public libraries, with their green or orange CRT console appearance. You could see vague images of screens that were left on too long (EG: somebody did a search for a book, you can barely make out the details, but you see them none-the-less). So, screensavers helped prevent that by either powering down the monitor due to inactivity, or providing a moving image to prevent burn-in. But, when it was found how those monitors were being used, the industry quickly developed better monitors to prevent that. About mid to late 80's, it was kinda hard to come by those monitors again, unless, like I said, you were in the school library, which always had the cheapest hand-me-down junk (ah, yes, at least we folks in the U.S. have our priorities straight...lol... Basketball players getting paid millions of dollars, and school teachers getting paid squat while the educational system has to skimp by with meager funds for computers and extracurricular activities... Glad I'm not in school anymore.)

Today, screensavers are mostly used for fancy personal protection. You leave your computer, and it locks down after 5 min, forcing a password to re-enter. If you have that disabled, then a screensaver is just a waste of resources. If you're going to leave your computer for a long time, just have it hibernate/sleep.

If you absolutely want a screensaver, but are still power/resource concious, then have it go off after 5 min of inactivity, then have the computer hibernate/sleep after 10. So, you can leave it for a bit (going to bathroom and such), and return to it without someone else prying into the porn ...uh...artwork you're downloading. And, if you take off and leave it, it'll power down. If you don't care about a screensaver, then just have your monitor power down after 5 min (it powers up in like a second, so no big deal), and have comp hibernate/sleep after 10. IE: you really don't need the screensaver, unless, like my roommate, you absolutely love flaunting your collection of anime porn art collection or what-not.

If you're really interested in personal security, though, just get "brightside" from the repo's. It lets you use screen edges and corners to toggle actions. You can set it up so if you park your mouse in a certain screen corner, your computer will auto-screensaver / lock, so you don't have to worry about waiting 5 min for it to do so. You can use another corner to have it auto-hibernate.

[beercz]

They impress my poor Windows using counterparts. God the number of times I have seen that damned XP logo bouncing around the screen.

Currently the aforementioned counterparts particularly like the bouncing cow!!

[Tundro Walker]

They impress my poor Windows using counterparts. God the number of times I have seen that damned XP logo bouncing around the screen.

Currently the aforementioned counterparts particularly like the bouncing cow!!

Yeah, that too....as "look what my computer can do that yours can't" envy-inducing joy. Ah, bliss.

I will say that I use the screensaver at work as a way to tell if someone (like IT) has re-booted my computer without my say so. I use a Windows computer at work, and to be a smart-***, I replaced the usual WinXP logo with my HelloKittyXP logo. Folks have seen it, and it's lost its novelty. But, I know when someone's rebooted my machine, because the default WinXP logo will be bouncing around again. Why is this so important? Because I have some automated stuff on my computer that runs all hours of the night. It emails me if it's ran, but I like to have the visual indication right when I come in if I should check to make sure it ran or not.

Alternately, I wanted to use Ubuntu at work for personal stuff when I have some down time, so I installed it on my mp3 player which has a partitionable drive (which I partitioned about 14gb for).

My co-worker noticed my screensaver was doing stuff that doesn't come default on WinXP, and started hounding me about "you're not supposed to download and install third-party stuff like that on your computer." I told her I didn't. I was running a totally different OS off my mp3 player.

She just kinda stood there with her jaw open, deer-in-the-headlights look, trying to comprehend what I just said. I tried explaining what I was doing, because she didn't quite get it, but she was definitely interested when I was showing her the 3d Compiz desktop...I believe her words were "how can I get my computer to do that?".

I was a bit heart-broken to tell her that what I was doing probably violated several if not all of the IT departments rules about running external software on corporate hardware. And if they really wanted to be an *** about it, I could probably lose my job over it. She chose to stick with "plausible deniability", but I think I talked her into trying it out on her home computer. LOL!

[Oki]

In the "old days" (80's), they used to ...
The same problem are today with plasma screens.

[bonzodog]

I run X-screensaver still, but it runs the Electric Sheep screensaver, which is a distributed computing project, I like to leave it on for when I am in IRC, I often lurk for hours, and will go and watch TV, then come back a couple of hours later to see if anything interesting has been said.

[frup]

LCD screens can get screen burn. At work we run AutoCAD 100% of the time. One of the first LCD screens we got at work now has the AutoCAD tool bars burnt in to it, which when having AutoCAD minimized looks like a weird grayish line with slight outlines of buttons, when maximised you don't notice it. None of the computers have screen savers active..

[EdThaSlayer]

Unless you have a laptop and can't turn the screen off without turning the computer off ...

Actually, you can turn off the screen without turning the computer off. There is a nice app called the power management which can be found in System->Preferences->Power Management and you can choose to put the display to sleep when it hasn't been used for 11 minutes. :guitar:

[e30ernest]

Actually, you can turn off the screen without turning the computer off. There is a nice app called the power management which can be found in System->Preferences->Power Management and you can choose to put the display to sleep when it hasn't been used for 11 minutes. :guitar:

Hello I am new here. I'm a newbie when it comes to linux. I must say the default screensavers included with Ubuntu sure beats XP by a mile! However, I couldn't get my monitor to shut down using the power management app. My screensaver just goes on and on even if I have my monitor set to shut down in 10 minutes of inactivity.