After sharing the top 7 screen savers for Windows 7 found on the Internet, it is time to show how to create your own screen saver. I’m sure you have some awesome pictures on your computer so, let’s use Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011 and create a screen saver with them.
Before starting this tutorial, make sure you have Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011 installed on your computer. View details on how to install Windows Live Essentials 2011 for some quick information on this great application.
Opening Screen Saver Settings
First, you need to open the Screen Saver Settings window. As always with Windows operating systems, there are several ways to do this.
One is to right click on the Desktop and choose Personalize.
In the bottom-right side of the Personalization panel, click on Screen Saver icon.
The Screen Saver Settings window is where all screen saver related customizations are made.
Another way of opening the Screen Saver Settings window is to follow this path: Control Panel -> Appearance and Personalization -> Change screen saver.
Creating Your Own Screen Saver
Click on the drop-down list of screen savers and choose Windows Live Photo Gallery.
To customize your screen saver, click on Settings.
You have two options: you can either use all the photos and videos from Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011 which fit a specific set of criteria or use a specific folder that holds the images and videos for your screen saver.
Screen Saver Using Tags & Ratings from Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011
Remember our tutorials on adding ratings and descriptive tags to your photos with Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011? We will use these elements to filter photos for your screen saver.
If you want to use photos with specific descriptive tags that you have created, type the tag in the corresponding box.
When using ratings to filter the pictures and videos included in the screen saver, click on the drop-down box to select a specific number of stars.
If you don’t want to use photos having certain descriptive tags, check the box for ’Don’t show items tagged’ and write the tag names you want to avoid from being included in the screen saver.
Screen Saver Using the Contents of a Folder
Select ’Use photos and videos from:’ to be able to pick the folder which contains the photos and videos to be included in the screen saver.
Click the Browse button.
Select the desired folder and press OK.
If you have sub-folders with photos and videos, they will also be included in your screen saver.
Customizing the Screen Saver
Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011 offers several themes for your screen saver, like fade, black and white, sepia, collage and others.
You have three speed choices for your photos: Slow, Medium or Fast. Click on the drop-down box to choose the one you prefer.
By default, the order in which your photos are displayed is alphabetical. To make it random, check the Shuffle contents box.
When you have finished with configuring the screen saver, press the Save button to return to the Screen Saver Settings window.
Use the Preview button to check out your new screen saver.
The preview ends when you press any key or move your mouse.
In the Screen Saver Settings window, click OK when done with setting your screen saver.
Possible Problem
In the Windows Live Photo Gallery Screen Saver Settings window, you might see the message: ’This computer’s video card can’t play themes’.
Details on solving this problem can be found here. If you don’t manage or you don’t want to solve this problem, don’t worry, your screen saver will still work but without themes.
Conclusion
Creating screen savers with family photos or pictures from trips can be a great idea. All you need to do is to follow the steps described in this tutorial. For more about Windows Live Photo Gallery 2011 and how to use its features, check the articles recommended below.