屏幕保护程序是现代计算机时代(computer age)的一个有趣的工具。顾名思义，它们最初是为了保护CRT屏幕免于永久老化而创建的。如今，几乎普遍
使用的屏幕技术(screen technology)是LCD。
虽然 LCD 可能会遭受永久性图像烧毁(image burn)，但这种情况实际上只发生在机场等商业屏幕上，在这些地方，图像具有数百小时的静态元素。作为桌面计算问题，它不再重要了。
然而，屏幕保护程序仍然有其用途。如果您在离开计算机时忘记锁定计算机，它们可以用作安全措施。(security measure)在不使用PC(PC isn)时，它也是一种有吸引力的装饰。Windows的每一次迭代都带有相当不错的屏幕保护程序选择，但Windows 10 似乎以一种特定的方式倒退了一步。
在Windows 7中，内置的幻灯片屏幕保护程序(slideshow screensaver)具有相对丰富的选项。您可以有有趣的过渡，让图像出现在屏幕上的随机位置，并且通常在显示您的图片集(picture collection)时增加趣味性。
在Windows 10中，您仅限于居中的图像，根本没有过渡。因此，虽然Windows 10 动态壁纸(Windows 10 Live Wallpapers)非常酷，但我们这些想要展示自己的图像集合的人并不太高兴。
所以我们继续寻找一些可以恢复旧屏幕保护程序魅力的替代品，男孩(screensaver and boy)，我们找到了一些好的替代品吗？
gPhotoShow（免费和专业版 10.90 欧元）(gPhotoShow (Free and Pro
Version 10.90 Euro))
gPhotoShow功能非常丰富，同时仍然非常精简且易于使用。您可以添加多个文件夹作为图像源，但遗憾的是您不能同时在屏幕上显示多个图像。
gPhotoShow(advantage gPhotoShow)相对于照片屏幕保护程序(Photos screensaver)的第一个大优势是小图片的随机放置。Windows 照片仅支持居中视图，这会使小图像在大而宽的显示器上看起来很傻。(image look goofy)
gPhotoShow的专业版提供了很多额外的功能，但没有一个是普通用户绝对必须拥有的。(Pro version)免费版几乎是您想要的不错的幻灯片屏幕保护程序(slideshow screensaver)。
一些可能值得要价的Pro功能包括(Pro)平移和缩放动画(pan & zoom animation)、TIFF 支持(TIFF support)、全景照片支持、视频剪辑支持(video clip support)以及记住播放之间序列中的最后一张图像的能力。
对于我们的钱来说，“剪贴簿模式”，结合几张图片来填满屏幕，是最值得购买Pro 版(Pro version)的理由。但是，下一个屏幕保护程序选项(screensaver option)免费提供几乎相同的功能。
Endless Slideshow (Free and
Pro Version $19.95)
Endless Slideshow的主要声名是它可以自动下载多组预定义主题中的图片。这样做的好处是，您可能会对从未见过的图片感到惊讶。如果您不是那种喜欢策划自己的图片集(picture collection)的人，那也很好。
Endless Slideshow功能非常丰富，您可以根据自己的具体需求对其进行调整。每个屏幕多张图片、自定义背景(custom background)、大量尺寸选项和清晰标记的功能使其使用起来轻而易举。
不幸的是，将程序设置为还包括它自己自动下载的图像也是一场赌博。一方面，您可能会看到自己不喜欢的图像。在最坏的情况下，总是有人担心一些不合适的图片可能会意外潜入。这在测试期间从未发生过，但老实说，价值主张的“无尽
”部分(value proposition)实际上(” part)是包装中最不有趣的部分。
作为一个纯幻灯片屏幕保护程序(pure slideshow screensaver)，Endless Slideshow 非常出色，但免费版本存在一些令人讨厌的限制。减少过渡并将屏幕上的图像数量限制为每个屏幕四个并不是什么(screen isn)大不了的事。但是，能够手动推进幻灯片是一项应该始终存在的功能。
遗憾的是，Endless
Slideshow的免费版本不允许您这样做。对于某些人来说，这可能会破坏交易，因为默认的照片屏幕保护程序(Photos screensaver)确实允许这样做。尽管如此，Endless总体上更好，您可以使用它创建一些非常有趣的自定义外观。
如果您花 20 美元购买
Pro 版(Pro version)，您将获得手动图片浏览功能，以及更多功能。单个Pro 许可证(Pro licence)还允许您在两台计算机上安装软件，因此，如果您有两台计算机，每台计算机的费用为 10 美元。这是一个很棒的
幻灯片屏幕保护程序，每个人都(slideshow screensaver and everyone)应该至少尝试免费版本。
ScreenPaver ($14.95)
不幸的是，ScreenPaver没有免费版本，如果您想使用它，您必须支付要价。(asking price)好消息是有 30 天的试用期，除了令人讨厌的提醒您还剩多少天外，没有任何功能限制。
用您的钱，您可以获得一个功能齐全、功能齐全的
幻灯片屏幕保护程序(slideshow screensaver)，具有您所期望的功能。您可以随机化图像的位置、拉伸它们、缩小它们并通常告诉软件您希望如何处理图像。这似乎是像这样的屏幕保护程序的基本要求，但Windows 10附带的屏幕保护程序除了随机化图像外，什么都不做。
说到图片选择(picture selection)，ScreenPaver有一个非常强大的系统来选择您从中绘制图片的目录。您可以从多个驱动器中提取它们，选择子文件夹，甚至将文件夹中的某些图片标记为收藏。它没有一些幻灯片屏幕保护程序那么多的过渡，但令人怀疑的是，许多人会担心只有几十个过渡(dozen transition)效果而不是数百个。
值 15 美元？这是一个可靠的购买，特别是如果您无法通过上述两个免费选项获得想要的东西。
3 Slideshow Screensavers Far Better Than The Windows 10 Default
Sсreensavers are an interesting tool in the
modern computer age. As the name ѕuggests, they were оriginally created to
protect CRT screens from permanent burn-in. These days the almost-universal
screen technology іn use is LCD.
While LCDs can suffer a permanent image burn,
that really only happens with commercial screens at places like airports where
the image has static elements for hundreds and hundreds of hours. As a desktop
computing issue, it just doesn’t matter any more.
Yet screensavers still have their uses. They
can be used as a security measure if you forget to lock your computer when
walking away from it. It’s also an attractive decoration when the PC isn’t in
use. Every iteration of Windows has come with quite a decent selection of
screensavers, but Windows 10 seems to be a step back in one particular way.
In Windows 7 the built-in slideshow screensaver had a relative wealth of options. You could have interesting transitions, have images appear at random spots on the screen and generally spice things up when displaying your picture collection.
In Windows 10 you’re limited to a centered image and no transitions at all. So while Windows 10 Live Wallpapers are pretty cool, those of us who want to showcase their own collection of images are not too happy.
So we went on the hunt for some alternatives
that could bring back the charm of the old screensaver and boy did we find some
good ones!
gPhotoShow (Free and Pro
Version 10.90 Euro)
gPhotoShow manages to be quite feature-rich, while still being pretty streamlined and easy to use. You can add multiple folders as image sources, but unfortunately you can’t show multiple images on the screen at the same time.
The first big advantage gPhotoShow has over
the Photos screensaver is the random placement of small pictures. Windows
Photos only supports a centered view, which can make small image look goofy on
big, wide monitors.
The Pro version of gPhotoShow offers quite a
few extra features, but none that the average user absolutely must have. The
free edition is pretty much what you want from a decent slideshow screensaver.
Some Pro features that might be worth the
asking price include pan & zoom animation, TIFF support, panoramic photo
support, video clip support and the ability to remember the last image in the
sequence between plays.
For our money, the “scrapbook mode”, which
combines several images to fill the screen, is the most worthwhile reason to
buy the Pro version. However, the next screensaver option offers an almost
identical function for free.
Endless Slideshow (Free and
Pro Version $19.95)
Endless Slideshow’s main claim to fame is the fact that it can automatically download pictures within several sets of predefined themes. The upside of this is that you can be surprised with pictures you’ve never seen before. It’s also great if you aren’t the kind of person that enjoys curating your own picture collection.
Endless Slideshow is incredibly feature-rich,
and you can tune it pretty much to your exact needs. Multiple pictures per
screen, custom background, plenty of sizing options and clearly labeled
functions make it a doddle to use.
Unfortunately, setting the program to also
include images it automatically downloads itself is also a bit of a gamble. For
one thing, you might see images that you really don’t like. In the worst case,
there’s always the concern that some inappropriate pictures could sneak in by
accident. That never happened during testing, but honestly the “endless” part
of the value proposition is actually the least interesting part of the package.
As a pure slideshow screensaver, Endless
Slideshow is brilliant, but there are some annoying limitations in the free
version. Having fewer transitions and limiting the number of on-screen images
to four per screen isn’t a huge deal. However, being able to manually advance
slideshows is a feature that should always be there.
Regretfully, the free version of Endless
Slideshow doesn’t let you do that. That might be a dealbreaker for some, since
the default Photos screensaver does allow for this. Still, Endless is better
overall and you can create some really interesting custom looks with it.
Should you stump up the twenty bucks for the
Pro version you’ll get your manual picture browsing function, plus a whole lot
more. A single Pro licence also lets you install the software on two computers,
so if you have two machines it works out to ten bucks apiece. It’s a great
slideshow screensaver and everyone should try the free version at the very
least.
ScreenPaver ($14.95)
Unfortunately, ScreenPaver does not have a free version and you’ll have to pay the asking price if you want to use it. The good news is that there’s a 30-day trial, with no feature limitations other than an annoying reminder of how many days you have left.
For your money you get a solid, fully-featured
slideshow screensaver with the functions you’d expect. You can randomize the
position of images, stretch them, scale them down and generally tell the
software how you want images to be handled. This seems like a basic requirement
for a screensaver like this, yet the one included with Windows 10 does none of
this except for randomizing images.
Speaking of picture selection, ScreenPaver has
a pretty robust system to choose which directories you draw your pics from. You
can pull them from multiple drives, select subfolders and even mark certain
pictures within a folder as a favorite. It doesn’t have as many transitions as
some slideshow screensavers, but it’s doubtful that many people would be
concerned by only having a few dozen transition effects rather than hundreds of
them.
Worth the $15? It’s a solid buy, especially if
you don’t quite get what you want with the two free options above.
