Windows XP Bliss Screen Saver

Windows XP Bliss Screen Saver is based on XP’s already popular Bliss desktop background. The screensaver describes a huge grassy field with clouds rolling by.

Any user who has installed at least once Windows XP on their computer is surely familiar with XP’s default desktop background. It’s called Bliss and illustrates a landscape near Napa, California. The photo was taken in 1996 by Charles O’Rear, a resident of Napa, who claims that the image was not manipulated in any way.

Bliss depicts a clear blue sky covered in white clouds over a green field. The beauty of the picture came from the fact that although it was taken with a hand held medium-format camera, it managed to comprise such powerful contrast and such vivid colors.

Since its popularity grew so fast, Microsoft also rolled out a screensaver that illustrates an animation of the clouds over the grassy field. The screensaver shows only a part of the hill depicted in the original picture and the image quality could have been a lot better.

Installation is fairly easy (standard for a screensaver program). Unzip the download archive, locate the Install file and double-click it. If you just want to test it without installing it, just run the SCR inside the uncompressed folder. The right-click menu (on the screensaver image) allows you to customize the play speed and to pause / resume the playback.

Also located in the download archive is an AVI file, the video that Windows XP Bliss Screen Saver relies on to be launched properly. Feel free to improve its quality if you aren’t satisfied with the current state.

In conclusion, Windows XP Bliss Screen Saver is a fun desktop enhancement for XP users. The image used for the animation inside the screensaver is a reminder of Microsoft’s first blasting success.