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| {{Short description|Decorative background on electronic devices}} | |||
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| A '''wallpaper''' or '''background''' (also known as a '''desktop background''', '''desktop picture''' or '''desktop image''' on computers) is a digital image (photo, drawing etc.) used as a decorative background of a ] on the screen of a ], ] or other electronic device. On a computer, wallpapers are generally used on the ], while on a ] they serve as the background for the ''home screen''. Though most devices include a default background image, modern devices usually allow users to manually change the background image. | |||
| The term "]" was used in ] before Windows XP (In Windows XP and later, it is called the "desktop background"). Meanwhile, ] refers to it as "desktop picture". On older systems that allowed small repeated patterns to be set as background images, the term '''desktop pattern''' was used. | |||
| ==Formats== | |||
| Images used as computer wallpaper are usually ] with the same size as the ] (for example 1024×768 pixels, or 1280×1024 pixels) in order to fill the whole background. Many screen resolutions are ], so an image scaled to fit in a different-sized screen will often be the correct shape, albeit that scaling may impact quality. ] and ] format are common. | |||
| ==History== | |||
| Users with ] (16:9 or 16:10) monitors have different ] requirements for wallpaper, although images designed for standard (]) monitors can often be ] or ] to the correct shape without loss of quality. | |||
| ]]] | |||
| The ] was one of the earliest systems to include support for an arbitrary image as wallpaper via the xsetroot program, which at least as early as the X10R3 release in 1985 could tile the screen with any solid color or any ] ] file. In 1989, a ] program called {{Not a typo|xgifroot}} was released that allowed an arbitrary color ] image to be used as wallpaper, and in the same year the free xloadimage program was released which could display a variety of image formats (including color images in ] Rasterfile format) as the desktop background. Subsequently, a number of programs were released that added wallpaper support for additional image formats and other features, such as the xpmroot program (released in 1993 as part of ]) and the ] software (released in 1994). | |||
| Wallpapers are sometimes available in double-width versions (e.g. 2560×1024) for displaying on multi-monitor computers, where the image appears to fill two monitors. ] is one of the main sources for multi-monitor wallpapers. | |||
| The original Macintosh operating system only allowed a selection of 8×8-pixel binary-image tiled patterns; the ability to use small color patterns was added in ] in 1987.<ref>Robert R. Wiggins, "All systems go. (Software Review) (System Tools 5.0 with MultiFinder.)", ''MacUser'' (1 March 1988)</ref> ] in 1997 was the first Macintosh version to include built-in support for using arbitrary images as desktop pictures, rather than small repeating patterns.<ref>Franklin N. Tessler, "Mac OS 8 arrives," ''Macworld'' (1 September 1997)</ref> | |||
| Smaller images can be tiled (repeated) to fill large areas, and depending on how skilfully the wallpaper was created, the effect can look reasonably good. However, if the join is too obvious, or the image repeats too many times, it will look very repetitive. | |||
| ] in 1990 was the first version of Microsoft Windows to feature support for wallpaper customization, and used the term "wallpaper" for this feature.<ref>Gus Venditto, "Windows 3.0 brings icons, multitasking, and ends DOS's 640k program limit," ''PC Magazine'' (1 July 1990)</ref> Although Windows 3.0 only came with 7 small patterns (2 black-and-white and 5 16-color), the user could supply other images in the ] with up to ] (although the system was theoretically capable of handling ] images, it did so by ] them to an 8-bit ])<ref>], "Working with 24-bit color bitmaps for Windows," ''PC Magazine'' (10 September 1991)</ref> to provide similar wallpaper features otherwise lacking in those systems. A wallpaper feature was added in a ] of OS/2 2.0 in 1991.<ref>Wendy Goldman, "New version may tiop scales in IBM's favor over DOS, Windows: A look at OS/2 2.0," ''Computer Reseller News'' (24 June 1991)</ref> | |||
| With the increase in color screen ], wallpapers are starting to appear scaled to their lower resolution. These are often sold at a high profit to telephone users, although some phones have software which allows images to be uploaded from a computer. Mobile telephones with cameras can often use images from the camera, or from a received image, as the wallpaper. | |||
| Due to the widespread use of ]s, some wallpapers have become immensely recognizable and gained iconic cultural status. '']'', the default wallpaper of Windows XP, has become the most viewed ] of the 2000s.<ref name="St. Helena Star story">{{cite news |last = Sweeney |first = Cynthia |title = Say goodbye to 'Bliss' |newspaper = ] |url = http://napavalleyregister.com/star/lifestyles/say-goodbye-to-bliss/article_2c485132-b504-11e3-85ef-0019bb2963f4.html |access-date = May 19, 2014 |date = March 26, 2014 |archive-date = October 24, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151024191442/http://napavalleyregister.com/star/lifestyles/say-goodbye-to-bliss/article_2c485132-b504-11e3-85ef-0019bb2963f4.html |url-status = live }}</ref> | |||
| Most display systems are capable of specifying a single-colour to use as the background in place of a wallpaper, and some (such as ]) allow colour-gradients to be specified. MS Windows 9x systems allow using editable repeating two-color 8x8 tiles for background. | |||
| {{clear}} | |||
| ==Animated backgrounds== | |||
| ] on ]]] | |||
| Animated backgrounds (sometimes referred to as ''live backgrounds'' or ''dynamic backgrounds'') refers to wallpapers which feature a moving image or a 2D / 3D scene as an operating system background rather than a static image, it may also refer to wallpapers being cycled in a playlist, often with certain transition effects. Some operating systems, such as ], provide native support for animated wallpapers. | |||
| === Microsoft Windows === | |||
| From version 3.4, KDE supports ] wallpaper in ] format. This has the advantage that a single file may be used for screens of any size, or stretched across several screens, without loss of quality. | |||
| * ], which is included in ] through ], allows web apps to run as desktop background and deliver live contents. Animation is one of the possibilities. | |||
| ==Styles== | |||
| * In the ] edition of ], ] allows videos of any supported format (including animated ]s) as wallpapers. | |||
| * Starting with ], the OS can cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals. While the OS no longer supports animated backgrounds, it enables third-party software to fill that gap. This degree of extensibility is unique to Windows. | |||
| === Android === | |||
| Wallpaper styles are as varied as people themselves, using photographs, ]s, 3D renders or abstract pattern with complex ]s. It can be useful to have plain areas so that ]s can be clearly seen atop the wallpaper. | |||
| Live wallpapers have been introduced in ] to provide native support for animated wallpapers. From a technical point of view, live wallpapers are software applications that provide a moving background image and may allow for user interaction or utilize other hardware and software features within the device (accelerometer, GPS, network access, etc.).<ref>{{cite web|title=Live Wallpapers (Technical Article)|url=http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|work=developer.android.com|access-date=5 November 2010|archive-date=10 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110012801/http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> | |||
| Typical categories can include ], ] and ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. | |||
| === macOS and iOS === | |||
| In business use, corporate ] or plain backgrounds are often specified by the ]. | |||
| ] has built-in support, via the Desktop & Screen Saver panel in its ], for cycling through a folder collection of images on a timed interval or when logging in or waking from sleep. Since ], the user can also select a "Dynamic Desktop" that automatically updates to visually match the time of the day.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|title=macOS Mojave's dark mode makes late-night computing less painful|work=Engadget|access-date=June 6, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180605225502/https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|archive-date=June 5, 2018}}</ref> | |||
| When using ] computers through a ], it can often be useful to create a wallpaper with the computer's name on it, to easily identify which computer you're connected to. | |||
| Additionally, macOS has the native ability to run a ] on the desktop; in this configuration, the screen saver appears beneath the desktop icons in place of the system wallpaper. However, macOS does not feature a built-in interface to do this; it must be done through ] commands or various third-party applications.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227070312/http://www.macosxtips.co.uk/index_files/set-screen-saver-to-desktop-background.html |date=2010-12-27 }}. Mac OS X Tips (2006-11-09). Retrieved on 2013-07-21.</ref> | |||
| ==Timed wallpapers== | |||
| Dynamically animated backgrounds have also been introduced in ] and later versions, however they are restricted to the ones provided by Apple. ] iOS devices can download other dynamic backgrounds. | |||
| Some operating environments (e.g. ] and ]) allow a number of different wallpapers to be used, and "rotated" to display a different wallpaper at different times, to display a ] image from a directory. If the facility is not available in the OS' wallpaper settings, it may be possible to get an external program which can change the wallpaper at certain times. | |||
| === Linux distros === | |||
| ==Active wallpapers== | |||
| ]s usually provides their own original backgrounds. For example: | |||
| * ] puts many alternative backgrounds under the <code>/usr/share/backgrounds</code> directory. | |||
| Programs such as and use Internet connections and graphics calculations to change the wallpaper with real data, such as a shadowed view of the earth, the latest cloud or weather map, or various events. Some media players can redirect video playback to desktop, allowing using any video as a wallpaper. Other tools (for example ) can add to wallpaper interactive ] like calendar, notes, ] or generate wallpaper image using various algorithms. | |||
| * ] 2 can be set to cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals, similarly to Windows 7. | |||
| * ] provides various wallpapers, usually in the <code>/usr/share/backgrounds/mate</code> directory. | |||
| * ] version 4 and later provide various dynamic wallpapers, including a slideshow, and other options provided by plugins, such as fractals and Earth map. | |||
| * ] v17 supports image sequences, animated and interactive desktop backgrounds in its default configuration. | |||
| ⚫ | ==See also== | ||
| ==Setting the wallpaper on a computer== | |||
| ⚫ | * ] | ||
| *]: Use the '''fbsetbg''' command to specify a wallpaper. | |||
| *]: '''gnome-control-center''' shows the control panel, with options for wallpaper, or right-click on the background to select the wallpaper directly. | |||
| *]: Needs to be done in the ] config file. | |||
| *]: '''kcontrol''' shows the control panel, with options for wallpaper, or right-click on the background to select the wallpaper directly. | |||
| *]: Use the '''Desktop''' or '''Desktop & Screensaver''' panel in '''System Preferences''', or control-click the desktop and choose 'Change Desktop Background'. | |||
| *]: Use the Desktop tab of the '''Appearance''' control panel in versions 8.5-9.2, the '''Desktop Pictures''' control panel in versions 8.0-8.1, the '''Desktop Patterns''' control panel in versions 7.5-7.6, or the '''General Controls''' control panel in earlier versions. | |||
| *]/]/]: ''Start, Run, Control panel, Display'', or right-click on the background and select "Properties". | |||
| *]: Use the '''wmsetbg''' command to specify a wallpaper. | |||
| ==References== | |||
| ]s and ]s often have the ability to set an image as the desktop background if you right-click it or choose a menu option. | |||
| {{Reflist|31em}} | |||
| ⚫ | ] | ||
| ] | |||
| ⚫ | == |
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Latest revision as of 14:33, 15 December 2024
Decorative background on electronic devices
A wallpaper or background (also known as a desktop background, desktop picture or desktop image on computers) is a digital image (photo, drawing etc.) used as a decorative background of a graphical user interface on the screen of a computer, smartphone or other electronic device. On a computer, wallpapers are generally used on the desktop, while on a mobile phone they serve as the background for the home screen. Though most devices include a default background image, modern devices usually allow users to manually change the background image.
The term "wallpaper" was used in Microsoft Windows before Windows XP (In Windows XP and later, it is called the "desktop background"). Meanwhile, macOS refers to it as "desktop picture". On older systems that allowed small repeated patterns to be set as background images, the term desktop pattern was used.
History
The X Window System was one of the earliest systems to include support for an arbitrary image as wallpaper via the xsetroot program, which at least as early as the X10R3 release in 1985 could tile the screen with any solid color or any binary-image X BitMap file. In 1989, a free software program called xgifroot was released that allowed an arbitrary color GIF image to be used as wallpaper, and in the same year the free xloadimage program was released which could display a variety of image formats (including color images in Sun Rasterfile format) as the desktop background. Subsequently, a number of programs were released that added wallpaper support for additional image formats and other features, such as the xpmroot program (released in 1993 as part of fvwm) and the xv software (released in 1994).
The original Macintosh operating system only allowed a selection of 8×8-pixel binary-image tiled patterns; the ability to use small color patterns was added in System 5 in 1987. Mac OS 8 in 1997 was the first Macintosh version to include built-in support for using arbitrary images as desktop pictures, rather than small repeating patterns.
Windows 3.0 in 1990 was the first version of Microsoft Windows to feature support for wallpaper customization, and used the term "wallpaper" for this feature. Although Windows 3.0 only came with 7 small patterns (2 black-and-white and 5 16-color), the user could supply other images in the BMP file format with up to 8-bit color (although the system was theoretically capable of handling 24-bit color images, it did so by dithering them to an 8-bit palette) to provide similar wallpaper features otherwise lacking in those systems. A wallpaper feature was added in a beta release of OS/2 2.0 in 1991.
Due to the widespread use of personal computers, some wallpapers have become immensely recognizable and gained iconic cultural status. Bliss, the default wallpaper of Windows XP, has become the most viewed photograph of the 2000s.
Animated backgrounds
Animated backgrounds (sometimes referred to as live backgrounds or dynamic backgrounds) refers to wallpapers which feature a moving image or a 2D / 3D scene as an operating system background rather than a static image, it may also refer to wallpapers being cycled in a playlist, often with certain transition effects. Some operating systems, such as Android, provide native support for animated wallpapers.
Microsoft Windows
- Active Desktop, which is included in Windows 95 OSR 2.5 through Windows XP, allows web apps to run as desktop background and deliver live contents. Animation is one of the possibilities.
- In the Ultimate edition of Windows Vista, Windows DreamScene allows videos of any supported format (including animated GIFs) as wallpapers.
- Starting with Windows 7, the OS can cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals. While the OS no longer supports animated backgrounds, it enables third-party software to fill that gap. This degree of extensibility is unique to Windows.
Android
Live wallpapers have been introduced in Android 2.0 Eclair to provide native support for animated wallpapers. From a technical point of view, live wallpapers are software applications that provide a moving background image and may allow for user interaction or utilize other hardware and software features within the device (accelerometer, GPS, network access, etc.).
macOS and iOS
macOS has built-in support, via the Desktop & Screen Saver panel in its System Preferences/Settings, for cycling through a folder collection of images on a timed interval or when logging in or waking from sleep. Since macOS Mojave, the user can also select a "Dynamic Desktop" that automatically updates to visually match the time of the day.
Additionally, macOS has the native ability to run a screen saver on the desktop; in this configuration, the screen saver appears beneath the desktop icons in place of the system wallpaper. However, macOS does not feature a built-in interface to do this; it must be done through Terminal commands or various third-party applications.
Dynamically animated backgrounds have also been introduced in iOS 7 and later versions, however they are restricted to the ones provided by Apple. Jailbroken iOS devices can download other dynamic backgrounds.
Linux distros
Linux distributions usually provides their own original backgrounds. For example:
- Debian puts many alternative backgrounds under the
/usr/share/backgroundsdirectory. - GNOME 2 can be set to cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals, similarly to Windows 7.
- MATE provides various wallpapers, usually in the
/usr/share/backgrounds/matedirectory. - KDE version 4 and later provide various dynamic wallpapers, including a slideshow, and other options provided by plugins, such as fractals and Earth map.
- Enlightenment v17 supports image sequences, animated and interactive desktop backgrounds in its default configuration.
See also
References
- Robert R. Wiggins, "All systems go. (Software Review) (System Tools 5.0 with MultiFinder.)", MacUser (1 March 1988)
- Franklin N. Tessler, "Mac OS 8 arrives," Macworld (1 September 1997)
- Gus Venditto, "Windows 3.0 brings icons, multitasking, and ends DOS's 640k program limit," PC Magazine (1 July 1990)
- Charles Petzold, "Working with 24-bit color bitmaps for Windows," PC Magazine (10 September 1991)
- Wendy Goldman, "New version may tiop scales in IBM's favor over DOS, Windows: A look at OS/2 2.0," Computer Reseller News (24 June 1991)
- Sweeney, Cynthia (March 26, 2014). "Say goodbye to 'Bliss'". St. Helena Star. Archived from the original on October 24, 2015. Retrieved May 19, 2014.
- "Live Wallpapers (Technical Article)". developer.android.com. Archived from the original on 10 November 2010. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
- "macOS Mojave's dark mode makes late-night computing less painful". Engadget. Archived from the original on June 5, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2018.
- Set a Screen Saver as the Desktop Background | Terminal Archived 2010-12-27 at the Wayback Machine. Mac OS X Tips (2006-11-09). Retrieved on 2013-07-21.