You can tell DeskPicture to change the displayed picture from time to time, cycling through pictures from the same folder. You can set an exact time interval for switching pictures, or tell it to switch at random intervals. DeskPicture does the switching in the background, and does not disturb whatever work you might be doing in an application.
When you tell DeskPicture to change pictures, you are telling it to switch within the boundaries of the currently-selected picture. This means that the new picture will be scaled to fit the boundaries of the original one窶田onsequently, if the new picture is of very different proportions (a landscape orientation when the original is a portrait orientation, for example), the new picture may look distorted when it appears. A good way to prevent this from happening is to keep pictures of the same orientation and proportions in a folder. Another approach you can take is to use the 窶廚rop picture窶 function to expand the borders of a picture outward. For example, if the original is in a portrait orientation (tall and narrow), you can crop its sides outward to create a wider border. When you do this, the new borders will easily accommodate a picture in a landscape orientation without distorting it (you can also hold down the Option key and click 窶廡ull crop窶 to crop the picture outward to the borders of your screen). If you use this technique, be sure you do not also scale the original picture, as DeskPicture won窶冲 be able to apply these combined settings to all the pictures it displays.
1. Open the DeskPicture control panel and click on the icon for screen containing the picture you want to set for automatic picture changing.
The desktop items and menu bar disappear and are replaced by the control window, and handles appear around the border of the picture you have most recently placed on the desktop.
2. Select the picture you want to set for automatic changing by clicking it.
When the picture is selected, handles appear around it borders. If you are only displaying one picture, it is already selected when the control window appears.
3. Select the 窶廚hange picture窶 checkbox in the control window.
This activates the automatic changing function. When this function is active, DeskPicture will look in the folder where the currently-selected picture is located, and display successive pictures from that folder at a time interval that you specify. Notice the two pop-up menus at the bottom of the control window become active.
4. Using the pop-up menu on the left, choose the order for automatic changing.
You can choose between:
At random: Chooses a picture at random from the same folder in which the currently-selected picture is located.
In sequence: Switches to the next picture alphabetically in the same folder in which the currently-selected picture is located, and then continues to cycle through the pictures in alphabetical order.
5. Using the pop-up menu on the right, choose the time interval for automatic changing.
You can choose between:
At startup: Switches to a different picture only when you start up or restart your Macintosh.
At random: Switches to a different picture at random time intervals.
Every 30 min.: Switches to a different picture on the half-hour.
Every hour: Switches to a different picture on the hour.
Every day: Switches to a different picture every day at midnight.
Other...: Opens a dialog box where you can specify a time interval other than the options available on this menu. Simply type the appropriate values in the text fields to specify the desired interval.The 窶弋ime interval is only approximated窶 checkbox allows for an element of surprise by letting you specify that DeskPicture will change pictures 窶徇ore or less窶 at the selected interval, rather than exactly (more specifically, plus or minus 20% of the specified interval).
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6. When you have configured your desired automatic changing settings, click the close box in the upper left of the control window.
A dialog box appears, asking if you want to save your changes.
7. Click 窶彜ave.窶
The control window closes, and you are returned to the DeskPicture control panel. The picture will change according to the settings you specified.
