你听说过屏保吗？你知道它们是什么以及它们的目的是什么吗？为什么我们称它们为屏保呢？他们会拯救我们的屏幕吗？我们做了一些研究，发现虽然在十多年前很流行，但由于显示器技术的变化，屏幕保护这个词近年来已经成为一个误称。让我们看看为什么会发生这种情况，以及为什么您可能仍想使用屏幕保护程序：
什么是屏保？
屏幕保护程序是设计用于在您不使用屏幕时使屏幕空白或填充动态图像的计算机程序。它们最初的目的是防止旧电脑显示器老化，这也是它们被称为“屏幕保护程序”的原因。("screensavers.")对于现代显示器来说，老化不再是一个问题，但人们仍然坚持使用屏幕保护程序，因为他们喜欢它们并且可以使用它们来隐藏屏幕上留下的任何潜在敏感信息。
屏幕保护程序的最初目的是什么？
了解什么是屏保并回答“屏保的主要目的是什么？”这个问题。("what is the primary purpose for a screensaver?")，你必须先了解一下他们的历史。作为孩子，我们说服父母购买的第一个有趣的程序之一是After Dark屏幕保护程序。这部分是因为我们进行了研究并了解老化可能会损坏我们的显示器。这种情况可能会将图像永久刻录到旧显示器的屏幕上。
然而，我们承认，我们将这个程序推给我们父母的另一个重要原因是我们爱上了最初的After Dark屏幕保护程序中的飞行烤面包机。该屏幕保护程序是伯克利(Berkeley) 系统公司(Systems)在 1980 年代初期为个人计算机创建的首批屏幕保护程序之一。从那以后，它一直是计算机用户的崇拜偶像。
因此，我们可以说拥有屏保的最初原因有两个。正式地，人们希望他们保护家用电脑的显示器免于老化。其次(Secondarily)，人们只是喜欢使用它们，因为它们很有趣。
什么是（曾经）老化？
1980 年代的旧显示器使用阴极射线管 ( CRT(CRTs) ) 工作。CRT(CRTs)将燃烧的荧光粉暴露在屏幕的另一侧以投射图像，并且逐渐地，燃烧会永久地进入屏幕的背面。将静止图像留在屏幕上可以更快地设置老化。这就是导致重影出现在旧电视和ATM显示器以及旧 PC 显示器上的原因。等离子(Plasma)屏幕也轻微地容易受到荧光粉老化的影响。但是，LCD(LCDs)和LED(LEDs)等较新的显示器屏幕不会出现老化现象。
为什么老化不再是一个重大风险？
最终，由于用于保护屏幕免受荧光粉灼伤的涂层技术的进步， CRT(CRTs)的老化风险比旧型号的要小。此外，更现代的CRT显示器上使用的颜色通常不如过去使用的单调单调那么刺眼和明亮，因此老化的风险显着降低。
尽管如此，目前您很难在电脑商店找到出售的CRT显示器。(CRT)它们仍然存在，但您可能需要特别订购才能获得新的。因此，老化并不是一个重大风险，因为当前所有的 PC 显示器都使用LCD屏幕。
液晶屏是怎么回事？
LCD屏幕不使用荧光粉来投射图像，因此不会有东西被烧到屏幕上的风险。但是，长时间打开LCD显示器可能会磨损荧光背光源，从而导致(LCD)LCD屏幕随着时间的推移变得更暗。请注意，LCD屏幕可能会遭受称为图像残留(image persistence)的问题，其中图像会暂时卡在LCD屏幕上。但是，纠正此问题的一种方法是关闭LCD显示器一天左右以使其休息，或将背景图像设置为定期旋转。理想情况下(Ideally)，你已经关闭了你的每天晚上都有液晶(LCD)显示器，这不应该成为问题。
(Are)屏保对液晶屏有害吗？
他们可以。即使在典型使用情况下，大多数LCD屏幕的亮度也会随着时间的推移而降低，而让显示器开启屏幕保护程序只会加快这一过程。荧光背光灯通常是LCD(LCD)监视器组件的重要组成部分。一旦变得太弱，最好的办法往往是更换整个显示器。需要明确的是，如果你让你的液晶(LCD)显示器一夜之间反复运行，你可能会尽快购买一台新显示器。因此，建议将屏幕保护程序主要用于娱乐目的。使用我们目前的技术，它们并没有“节省”太多。将LCD(LCD)显示器设置为在闲置时间过长时自行关闭电源会更有效。
如果您想了解如何关闭屏幕保护程序，请阅读我们关于如何在 Windows 中设置和自定义屏幕保护程序(How to set and customize screensavers in Windows)的指南。为确保您的 LCD 屏幕在您不使用时不会一直处于浪费状态，您还应该调整您的Windows电源计划，以便尽快关闭显示器。查看本教程以了解详细信息：通过在 Windows 中调整电源计划来节省电量的 13 种方法(13 Ways To Save Power By Tweaking Power Plans In Windows)。
为什么要使用屏幕保护程序？
由于显示器技术的变化，“屏幕保护程序”一词已成为现代用词不当。如果有人问您类似“以下哪项表明您应该使用屏幕保护程序的原因？”之类的问题。("which of the following indicates why you should use a screensaver?")，答案是这样的：屏幕保护程序仍然有应用程序作为娱乐或用于各种实用目的，例如运行防病毒软件。
但是，任何使用LCD显示器的人都可以通过在闲置时关闭电源来节省更多投资。因此，如果您有液晶(LCD)显示器，最好不要使用屏幕保护程序。虽然它们最初用于实用和有趣的目的，但现在它们应该只用于娱乐。
您是否(Are)在 PC 上使用屏幕保护程序？
您还想在Windows计算机上使用屏幕保护程序吗？如果您这样做了，但您不确定要在您的 PC 上设置什么屏幕保护程序，我们在本综述中为您推荐了一些好的屏幕保护程序：Top 12+ best free screensavers for Windows。或者，如果您愿意，可以按照本指南中的步骤使用自己的照片创建自己的屏幕保护程序：如何在 Windows 中使用 IrfanView 创建屏幕保护程序(How to create a screensaver with IrfanView, in Windows)。如果您有什么要添加到我们的文章中，或者如果您想与世界分享一些好的屏幕保护程序，请不要犹豫，在下面的评论部分中这样做。我们很想听到您的声音！
What is a screensaver and should you use one?
Have you hеard abоut screеnsavers? Do you know what they are and what their purpose is? Why do we сall them screensavers after all? Do they save our screens? We have done a bit of research and found out that, although popular more than a decade ago, due to changes in monitor teсhnology, the term sсreen saver has become a misnomer in recent years. Lеt's see why that happened and also why you might still want to use a screensaver:
What is a screensaver?
Screensavers are computer programs designed to blank the screen or fill it with moving images when you are not using it. Their original purpose was to prevent burn-in on older computer monitors, and that is also why they are called "screensavers." The burn-in is no longer an issue for modern monitors, but people still hang on to screensavers because they like them and can use them to hide any potentially sensitive info left on the screen.
What was the original purpose of a screen saver?
To understand what screensavers are and to get an answer to the question "what is the primary purpose for a screensaver?", you must first learn a bit about their history. As kids, one of the first fun programs we convinced our parents to buy was the After Dark screensaver program. This was partly because we had done our research and understood that burn-in could damage our monitors. This was a condition that could permanently burn an image into an older monitor's screen.
However, we admit that another big reason we pushed this program on our parents was that we were in love with the flying toasters featured in the original After Dark screensaver. This screensaver was one of the first created for personal computers in the early 1980s by Berkeley Systems. It has been a cult icon for computer users ever since.
So, we can say the reason for having screensavers was initially two-fold. Officially, people wanted them to protect the family computer's monitor from burn-in. Secondarily, people just liked to use them because they were fun.
What is (was) burn-in?
The old monitors of the 1980s used cathode ray tubes (CRTs) to function. CRTs expose burning phosphor to the other side of a screen to project an image, and, gradually, the burn works its way into the backside of a screen permanently. Leaving a still image in place on the screen allows burn-in to set in much more quickly. This is what causes the ghost image to appear on older TVs and ATM monitors, as well as old PC monitors. Plasma screens were also mildly vulnerable to phosphor burn-in. However, newer monitor screens like LCDs and LEDs are immune to burn-in.
Why is burn-in not such a significant risk anymore?
Eventually, CRTs were at a smaller risk for burn-in than older models due to advances in the coating technology used to protect the screen from the phosphor burn. Additionally, the colors used on more modern CRT monitors were typically less harsh and bright than the stark monotones used in the past, so the risk for burn-in significantly decreased.
Despite this, it is going to be rare for you to find a CRT monitor for sale in a computer shop at this time. They do still exist, but you might have to make a special order to get a hold of a new one. So, burn-in is not a significant risk because all current PC monitors use LCD screens.
What is the deal with LCD screens?
LCD screens do not use phosphor to project their image, so there is no risk of something getting burned onto the screen. However, leaving an LCD monitor powered on for long periods of time can wear out the fluorescent backlight, which can cause an LCD screen to become dimmer over time. Note that it is possible for an LCD screen to suffer from something called image persistence, in which an image temporarily gets stuck on an LCD screen. However, one way to correct this is by just turning off the LCD monitor for a day or so to allow it to rest, or setting your background images to rotate routinely. Ideally, you are already powering down your LCD monitor every night, and this should not become an issue.
Are screensavers harmful to LCD screens?
They can be. Even with typical usage, most LCD screens' brightness decreases over time, and leaving the monitor on with a screensaver only speeds up this process. The fluorescent backlight is usually an essential part of the assembly of an LCD monitor. Once it becomes too weak, the best thing to do is often to replace the entire monitor. To be clear, if you leave your LCD monitor running overnight repeatedly, you might be shelling out for a new one sooner. Because of this, it is advisable to use screensavers primarily for entertainment purposes. With our current technology, they do not "save" much. It is more efficient to have an LCD monitor set to power itself down when it is left idle for too long.
If you want to learn how to turn off your screensaver, read our guide on How to set and customize screensavers in Windows. To make sure your LCD screen does not remain turned on wastefully when you do not use it, you should also adjust your Windows power plan, so that the display is turned off sooner rather than later. Check out this tutorial for details: 13 Ways To Save Power By Tweaking Power Plans In Windows.
Why should you use a screensaver?
Due to changes in monitor technology, the term "screen saver" has become a modern misnomer. If someone asks you a question like "which of the following indicates why you should use a screensaver?", the answer is this: screensavers still have applications as either entertainment or for various utility purposes such as running antivirus software.
However, anyone using an LCD monitor can save their investment more by having it power down when idle. So, if you have an LCD monitor, it is better not to use a screensaver. While they originally were used for purposes both practical and fun, now they should only be used for fun.
Are you using a screensaver on your PC?
Do you still want to use a screensaver on your Windows computer? If you do, but you are not sure what screensaver to set on your PC, we have a few good ones to recommend for you in this roundup: Top 12+ best free screensavers for Windows. Or, if you prefer, you can create your own screensaver, using your own photos, by following the steps from this guide: How to create a screensaver with IrfanView, in Windows. If you have something to add to our article, or if you want to share some good screensavers with the world, do not hesitate to do so in the comments section below. We would love to hear from you!
