Say goodbye to Windows’ screen-saver app

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LANGALIST By Fred Langa Built for a bygone need, the classic screen saver is slowly disappearing from Windows 10. It’s now gone in Win10’s Themes, and
[See the full post at: Say goodbye to Windows’ screen-saver app]

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Elly, woody

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Tracey Capen wrote:

Built for a bygone need, the classic screen saver is slowly disappearing from Windows 10.

Perhaps not as bygone as Microsoft may think!  Here’s a picture of a 2 year old LED television from Wikipedia.

A lock-screen slideshow is indeed a form of screensaver (in terms of being able to prevent image persistence), but there’s nothing wrong with leaving the old kind of screensaver in there if people like it.  It’s never “time to move on” simply because time has elapsed… Microsoft said the same thing when people implored them not to remove the Classic start menu from the upcoming Windows 7.  It’s up to the user to decide whether it is, in fact, time to move on!

Even a couple of decades ago, it was possible to set Windows to lock the screen when the screensaver starts, and to present a password challenge upon cancellation of the screensaver, so the bit about lock screens being more secure isn’t really true.  If a lock screen can display a slideshow, it can display flying toasters or what have you just as easily.

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Bartels Juice, MHCLV941, Tom-R, Charlie, phaolo

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Is Microsoft insane? Why in the world would I NOT want a screen saver? My 24″ Dell Ultra Sharp monitor was expensive and I need a screen saver for it! I am very picky about a monitor and will ONLY purchase Dell Ultra Sharps with non reflective screens (another in a long list of reasons to NEVER have a laptop as almost all have horrible reflective screens). My computers run 24/7/365 so a screensaver is a necessity if I want my expensive monitors to last many years.

Besides what is a lock screen? I DETEST laptops and will NEVER have one. I have two VERY POWERFUL desktops one running Windows 8.0 Pro and the other Windows 10 Pro 1809. They are attached to one monitor mainly because I have no space on my desk for two large wide screen monitors and no space to replace this desk with a bigger one. I use a Local Account on both computers and both boot directly to the desktop bypassing login. I have no need to “lock anything” as no one is here but me.

I need a screen saver no if, ands or buts about it. I do NOT need superfluous security. Has Microsoft totally forgotten the HAPPY DESKTOP user who does NOT need locked screens or passwords to Windows because they don’t travel with their desktops and don’t have nefarious folks around who might mess with their computers in their homes?

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MHCLV941

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Is it safe to assume that you do nothing on your computers that requires security, and that you never leave your home?

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My screens turn off after 10 minutes, no need for a screensaver. I haven’t used one for years.

Eliminate spare time: start programming PowerShell

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The problem with turning it off is that image persistence risk increases. A screen saver (like ribbons or plasma) forces the monitor to “exercise” their pixels.

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How so? If the monitor is off no pixels are active.

cheers, Paul

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Because every time is on, it is showing mostly the same thing (e.g. Windows task bar, Office menus, etc.) and being off does not change that fact. Now, if you use a screen saver, the monitor can randomize what is showing, lowering the risk of image persistence.

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I’m pretty sure nobody at Microsoft actually uses computers!  We sure know they aren’t being used for testing anymore, and now something like this lunacy.

Blanking the screen after a time limit has always been a bad idea.  Users approach the computer not aware if it is on or off, and then they push the power button.  The computer screen comes back on just in time to show you it is shutting down.

HIPAA, and many other regulatory frameworks, require screen locking after a prescribed time period, with re-authentication required to unlock.

Regular users should want their machine locked when they step away and fail to return in a timely manner.

And finally, what about Win-L?  Is that going away too?

Here’s a novel concept – ditch the stupid picture we have swipe past to get to the login screen.  These are not cell phones.  And keep the screen saver.

Of course this isn’t really a big problem, 3rd party software will offer screensaver solutions just like providing a proper start menu.

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MHCLV941, Kranium

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Huh?  Nobody said that locking the computer was going away!

Your venting is misplaced.

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“HIPAA, and many other regulatory frameworks, require screen locking after a prescribed time period, with re-authentication required to unlock.”-Anonymous

+1  Very Important and Insightful comment.

I am beginning to think all “free” windows 10 versions will probably not be HIPAA compliant in the near future – opening the door for lawsuits. Only Windows 10 Enterprise will probably be HIPPAA compliant – at a ever increasing costs to Windows users and the medical business.

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MHCLV941

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Microsoft is already moving that way: features only in Enterprise that ought to be in Pro.  A prominent example of this is customizing the default start menu and taskbar to de-c*** it.

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If the windows screen saver does, in fact, become history at some point, will there be a way to use lock screen with a file that has a .scr extension?

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MHCLV941

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Why the belief that the lock screen is going away? You can dump energy-wasting screen savers and still lock the screen…

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Because I like looking at them, SoundSpectrum’s G-Force in particular.

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Kranium

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HA! Fred just got a great shout-out for this article from Leo Laporte, Paul Thurrott and Mary Jo Foley on the TWiT broadcast.

The discussion is on yesterday’s Windows Weekly, starting around minute 58.

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Elly

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I suppose I’m missing something but how a screen saver with the option to lock the screen checked any less secure than the (drum roll please!) Lock Screen?  The net result seems to be the same.

I am a long time subscriber to SoundSpectrum’s G-Force screen saver/visualization software because I like looking at it in both roles, as a screen saver, and as a music visualization plug-in.

Why the he** can’t Microsoft leave well enough alone?

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