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{{shortShort description|Digital image used as a decorativeDecorative background on a computerelectronic desktopdevices}}
[[File:Computer monitor screen image simulated.jpg|thumb|A computer screen showing a background wallpaper photo of the [[Palace of Versailles]]]]
[[File:Wp3.jpg|thumb|A wallpaper from fractal]]
A '''wallpaper''' or '''background''' (also known as a '''screensaver''', '''desktop background''', '''desktop picture''' or '''desktop image''' on computers) is a digital image (photo, drawing etc.) used as a decorative background of a [[graphical user interface]] on the screen of a [[computer]], [[smartphone]] or other electronic device. On a computer, wallpapers are generally used on the [[desktop metaphor|desktop]], while on a [[mobile phone]] they serve as the background for the ''home screen''. Though most devices come with a default background image, modern devices usually allow users to manually change the background image.
 
A '''wallpaper''' or '''background''' (also known as a '''screensaver''', '''desktop background''', '''desktop picture''' or '''desktop image''' on computers) is a digital image (photo, drawing etc.) used as a decorative background of a [[graphical user interface]] on the screen of a [[computer]], [[smartphone]] or other electronic device. On a computer, wallpapers are generally used on the [[desktop metaphor|desktop]], while on a [[mobile phone]] they serve as the background for the ''home screen''. Though most devices come withinclude a default background image, modern devices usually allow users to manually change the background image.
The term "[[wallpaper]]" was used in [[Microsoft Windows]] before [[Windows XP]] (where it is called the "desktop background"), while [[macOS]] refers to it as "desktop picture". On older systems which allowed small repeated patterns to be set as background images, the term '''desktop pattern''' was used.
 
The term "[[wallpaper]]" was used in [[Microsoft Windows]] before [[Windows XP]] (whereIn Windows XP and later, it is called the "desktop background"),. whileMeanwhile, [[macOS]] refers to it as "desktop picture". On older systems whichthat allowed small repeated patterns to be set as background images, the term '''desktop pattern''' was used.
 
==History==
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The original Macintosh operating system only allowed a selection of 8×8-pixel binary-image tiled patterns; the ability to use small color patterns was added in [[Classic Mac OS#System Software 5|System 5]] in 1987.<ref>Robert R. Wiggins, "All systems go. (Software Review) (System Tools 5.0 with MultiFinder.)", ''MacUser'' (1 March 1988)</ref> [[Mac OS 8]] in 1997 was the first Macintosh version to include built-in support for using arbitrary images as desktop pictures, rather than small repeating patterns.<ref>Franklin N. Tessler, "Mac OS 8 arrives," ''Macworld'' (1 September 1997)</ref>
 
[[Windows 3.0]] in 1990 was the first version of Microsoft Windows to come withfeature support for wallpaper customization, and used the term "wallpaper" for this feature.<ref>Gus Venditto, "Windows 3.0 brings icons, multitasking, and ends DOS's 640k program limit," ''PC Magazine'' (1 July 1990)</ref> Although Windows 3.0 only came with 7 small patterns (2 black-and-white and 5 16-color), the user could supply other images in the [[BMP file format]] with up to [[8-bit color]] (although the system was theoretically capable of handling [[24-bit color]] images, it did so by [[dithering]] them to an 8-bit [[Palette (computing)|palette]])<ref>[[Charles Petzold]], "Working with 24-bit color bitmaps for Windows," ''PC Magazine'' (10 September 1991)</ref> to provide similar wallpaper features otherwise lacking in those systems. A wallpaper feature was added in a [[beta release]] of OS/2 2.0 in 1991.<ref>Wendy Goldman, "New version may tiop scales in IBM's favor over DOS, Windows: A look at OS/2 2.0," ''Computer Reseller News'' (24 June 1991)</ref>
 
Due to the widespread use of [[personal computer]]s, some wallpapers have become immensely recognizable and gained iconic cultural status. ''[[Bliss (image)|Bliss]]'', the default wallpaper of [[Microsoft]] [[Windows XP]] has become the most viewed [[photograph]] of the 2000s.<ref name="St. Helena Star story">{{cite news|last = Sweeney |first = Cynthia |title = Say goodbye to 'Bliss'|newspaper = [[St. Helena Star]] |url = http://napavalleyregister.com/star/lifestyles/say-goodbye-to-bliss/article_2c485132-b504-11e3-85ef-0019bb2963f4.html |access-date = May 19, 2014 |date = March 26, 2014 }}</ref>
 
Due to the widespread use of [[personal computer]]s, some wallpapers have become immensely recognizable and gained iconic cultural status. ''[[Bliss (image)|Bliss]]'', the default wallpaper of [[Microsoft]] [[Windows XP]], has become the most viewed [[photograph]] of the 2000s.<ref name="St. Helena Star story">{{cite news |last = Sweeney |first = Cynthia |title = Say goodbye to 'Bliss' |newspaper = [[St. Helena Star]] |url = http://napavalleyregister.com/star/lifestyles/say-goodbye-to-bliss/article_2c485132-b504-11e3-85ef-0019bb2963f4.html |access-date = May 19, 2014 |date = March 26, 2014 |archive-date = October 24, 2015 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151024191442/http://napavalleyregister.com/star/lifestyles/say-goodbye-to-bliss/article_2c485132-b504-11e3-85ef-0019bb2963f4.html |url-status = live }}</ref>
{{clear}}
==Animated backgrounds==
[[File:Animated Wallpaper Windows 10 - Wallpaper Engine.gif|thumb|upright=2|An animated wallpaper using [[Wallpaper Engine]] on [[Windows 10]]|alt=mannyImage of a setting sun in wireframe behind a Windows 10 desktop UI]]
Animated backgrounds (sometimes referred to as ''live backgrounds'' or ''dynamic backgrounds'') refers to wallpapers which feature a moving image or a 2D / 3D scene as an operating system background rather than a static image, it may also refer to wallpapers being cycled in a playlist, often with certain transition effects. Some operating systems, such as [[Android (operating system)|Android]], provide native support for animated wallpapers.
 
=== Microsoft Windows ===
====Windows====
Modern [[Windows]] systems can be configured to cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals. Windows does not natively support animated backgrounds, however, third-party software can be installed to have full support for placing animated images, video files, 2D or 3D scenes, and web pages as wallpapers. Similar functionality could be found in the [[Active Desktop]] feature of [[Windows 98]] and later versions.
 
* [[Active Desktop]], which is included in [[Windows 95|Windows 95 OSR 2.5]] through [[Windows XP]], allows web apps to run as desktop background and deliver live contents. Animation is one of the possibilities.
=== Google ===
* In the [[Windows Vista editions|Ultimate]] edition of [[Windows Vista]], [[Windows DreamScene]] allows videos of any supported format (including animated [[GIF]]s) as wallpapers.
* Starting with [[Windows 7]], the OS can cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals. While the OS no longer supports animated backgrounds, it enables third-party software to fill that gap. This degree of extensibility is unique to Windows.
 
==== Android= ===
Live wallpapers have been introduced in [[Android Eclair]] to provide native support for animated wallpapers. From a technical point of view, live wallpapers are software applications that provide a moving background image and may allow for user interaction or utilize other hardware and software features within the device (accelerometer, GPS, network access, etc.).<ref>{{cite web|title=Live Wallpapers (Technical Article)|url=http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|work=developer.android.com|access-date=5 November 2010|archive-date=10 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110012801/http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
 
Live wallpapers have been introduced in [[Android Eclair|Android 2.0 Eclair]] to provide native support for animated wallpapers. From a technical point of view, live wallpapers are software applications that provide a moving background image and may allow for user interaction or utilize other hardware and software features within the device (accelerometer, GPS, network access, etc.).<ref>{{cite web|title=Live Wallpapers (Technical Article)|url=http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|work=developer.android.com|access-date=5 November 2010|archive-date=10 November 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101110012801/http://developer.android.com/resources/articles/live-wallpapers.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
===Apple===
 
==== macOS= and iOS ===
[[macOS]] has built-in support, via the Desktop & Screen Saver panel in its System Preferences, for cycling through a folder collection of images on a timed interval or when logging in or waking from sleep. Since [[macOS Mojave]], the user can also select a "Dynamic Desktop" that automatically updates to visually match the time of the day.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|title=macOS Mojave's dark mode makes late-night computing less painful|work=Engadget|access-date=June 6, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180605225502/https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|archive-date=June 5, 2018}}</ref>
 
[[macOS]] has built-in support, via the Desktop & Screen Saver panel in its [[System Preferences|System Preferences/Settings]], for cycling through a folder collection of images on a timed interval or when logging in or waking from sleep. Since [[macOS Mojave]], the user can also select a "Dynamic Desktop" that automatically updates to visually match the time of the day.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|title=macOS Mojave's dark mode makes late-night computing less painful|work=Engadget|access-date=June 6, 2018|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180605225502/https://www.engadget.com/2018/06/04/macos-mojave-includes-dark-mode/|archive-date=June 5, 2018}}</ref>
Additionally, macOS has the native ability to run a [[screen savers|screen saver]] on the desktop; in this configuration, the screen saver appears beneath the desktop icons in place of the system wallpaper. However, macOS does not come with a built-in interface to do this; it must be done through [[Terminal (macOS)|Terminal]] commands or various third-party applications.<ref>[http://www.macosxtips.co.uk/index_files/set-screen-saver-to-desktop-background.html Set a Screen Saver as the Desktop Background | Terminal]. Mac OS X Tips (2006-11-09). Retrieved on 2013-07-21.</ref>
 
Additionally, macOS has the native ability to run a [[screen savers|screen saver]] on the desktop; in this configuration, the screen saver appears beneath the desktop icons in place of the system wallpaper. However, macOS does not come withfeature a built-in interface to do this; it must be done through [[Terminal (macOS)|Terminal]] commands or various third-party applications.<ref>[http://www.macosxtips.co.uk/index_files/set-screen-saver-to-desktop-background.html Set a Screen Saver as the Desktop Background | Terminal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101227070312/http://www.macosxtips.co.uk/index_files/set-screen-saver-to-desktop-background.html |date=2010-12-27 }}. Mac OS X Tips (2006-11-09). Retrieved on 2013-07-21.</ref>
 
====iOS====
Dynamically animated backgrounds have also been introduced in [[iOS 7]] and later versions, however they are restricted to the ones provided by Apple. [[iOS jailbreaking|Jailbroken]] iOS devices can download other dynamic backgrounds.
 
=== Linux /distros Unix===
[[Linux distribution|Linux distributions]]s usually provides their own original backgrounds as well. For example, [[Debian]] put many alternative backgrounds under its system's /usr/share/backgrounds directory.:
 
====GNOME====
[[GNOME]] 2 also can be set to cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals, similarly to Windows 7.
 
==== MATE ====
[[MATE (software)|MATE]] also provides various wallpapers, usually in system's /usr/share/backgrounds/mate directory.
 
====KDE====
[[KDE]] version 4 and later provide various dynamic wallpapers, including a slideshow, and other options provided by plugins, such as fractals and Earth map.
 
* [[Debian]] puts many alternative backgrounds under the <code>/usr/share/backgrounds</code> directory.
====Enlightenment====
* [[GNOME]] 2 also can be set to cycle through pictures from a folder at regular intervals, similarly to Windows 7.
[[Enlightenment (window manager)|Enlightenment]] v17 supports image sequences, animated and interactive desktop backgrounds in its default configuration.
* [[MATE (software)|MATE]] also provides various wallpapers, usually in system's the <code>/usr/share/backgrounds/mate</code> directory.
* [[KDE]] version 4 and later provide various dynamic wallpapers, including a slideshow, and other options provided by plugins, such as fractals and Earth map.
* [[Enlightenment (window manager)|Enlightenment]] v17 supports image sequences, animated and interactive desktop backgrounds in its default configuration.
 
==See also==
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{{Reflist|31em}}
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Computer Wallpaper}}
[[Category:Graphical user interface elements]]
[[Category:Desktop environments]]