Screensaver not working

  • Thread starter Thread starter SC Tom
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SC Tom

I know this subject has probably been beat to death, but I've not found nor
seen a solution. No matter what time I set for the screensaver, it rarely
comes on, and never in the period I have it set (1 minute for test
purposes).

I am running XP Home SP3 with 4GB RAM, and plenty of hard drive space. I
have a regular PS2 keyboard and a wireless MS Natural 6000 mouse. I have all
the latest and greatest security, Office, and hardware updates from Windows
Update, including the HID non-user input data filter 'fix' from MS. I know
that the mouse is known to cause this problem, but I had no problem with my
screensaver until 2-3 weeks ago, and I've had the mouse with the original
(v5.26) ipoint driver for over a year now.

If I boot into safe mode and safe mode with networking, the SS works fine. I
did a print screen of the services and processes that were running in
normal, safe, and safe w/networking, and in normal mode I stopped all the
services I could and ended all processes that I was allowed to end. Of
course, the OS wouldn't let me stop all of them.

I checked the registry settings, and they are all correct AFA I could tell-
screensaver active, not protected, and set for 60 seconds. Occasionally it
will start, but the time is random, sometimes 20 minutes, sometimes 5
minutes. I've tried disconnecting from the internet and shutting Zone Alarm
down, and ended all it's processes, but that wasn't the cause of this
problem. I've uninstalled all the updates I've gotten in the last 30 days,
but that hasn't helped either. I even downloaded a little program called
SaverStarter, and that will turn it on by moving my cursor to the upper left
corner of the monitor (shades of Afterdark LOL), so I know at least the
screensavers do work. But I haven't been able to fix whatever is keeping the
timer from tripping the SS on.

Any ideas or suggestions would be deeply appreciated. I know this is a
trivial matter, but it just bugs the crap out of me.

Thanks,
SC Tom
 
Screen savers wait for a specified length of time during which there is
no activity. If something occurs to break the state of inactivity, the
timer restarts. You must determine what is causing the inactivity timer
to reset.

I wish you well, but I doubt you'll find an answer. Since there hasn't
been a real need for screen savers for many years, there hasn't been
much development activity in the technology.
 
I think you may be right that I won't find for certain what is causing the
activity. I know if I start a file download, then force the screensaver with
the program I tried, as soon as the download finishes, the screensaver will
go off. So whatever is causing it not to trigger on in the first place,
you'd think would show up in task manager or process explorer.

Why are screensavers not needed anymore?

SC Tom
 
Screen savers avoided burn-in on CRT monitors, which was caused by
displaying a static image for an extended period of time. Today, most
people have LCD monitors, which do not suffer from burn-in, so screen
savers are now objets d'art.

The screen saver that made a name for screen savers was, arguably, the
famous Flying Toasters from After Dark. During the macarena craze, the
Hey Macaroni screen saver was also very popular.

One last thing about screen savers: Be careful where you get yours. Free
screen savers that you get from the web frequently include malware.
 
Leonard Grey said:
Screen savers avoided burn-in on CRT monitors, which was caused by
displaying a static image for an extended period of time. Today, most
people have LCD monitors, which do not suffer from burn-in, so screen
savers are now objets d'art.

The screen saver that made a name for screen savers was, arguably, the
famous Flying Toasters from After Dark. During the macarena craze, the Hey
Macaroni screen saver was also very popular.

One last thing about screen savers: Be careful where you get yours. Free
screen savers that you get from the web frequently include malware.
Click to expand...

It's not a screen saver that I got, it's a small program to trigger the
Windows default screensavers I already have. I've had experience working on
friends PC's who had the misfortune of downloading those super-duper freebie
3D screensavers.

LCD screens may not be subjet to CRT burn-in, but they are susceptible to
LCD image persistence (pretty much the same thing IMO):

http://compreviews.about.com/od/monitors/a/LCDBurnIn.htm

SC Tom
 
SC Tom said:
It's not a screen saver that I got, it's a small program to trigger the
Windows default screensavers I already have. I've had experience working
on friends PC's who had the misfortune of downloading those super-duper
freebie 3D screensavers.

LCD screens may not be subjet to CRT burn-in, but they are susceptible to
LCD image persistence (pretty much the same thing IMO):

http://compreviews.about.com/od/monitors/a/LCDBurnIn.htm

SC Tom
Click to expand...

There is a difference. CRT burn-in is permanent damage to the
CRT phosphor coating, and is cumulative. LCD image persistence
is usually temporary, and can be corrected by turning off the
display for a few hours to let the pixels reset. Anyone who turns
their system off at night will never see the effects of LCD image
persistence, as it takes many consecutive hours with a fixed image
to cause it. Even with color CRTs it takes a long time for image
burn-in. I've seen it on security monitors after a year or more of
showing the same image 7/24. The B&W monitors deteriorated
much more quickly.
 
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