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Animated Wallpaper Maker 3.1.5 Giveaway
$29.77
EXPIRED

Giveaway of the day — Animated Wallpaper Maker 3.1.5

Breathe new life into your desktop with Animated Wallpaper Maker!
$29.77 EXPIRED
User rating: 252 30 comments

Animated Wallpaper Maker 3.1.5 was available as a giveaway on December 18, 2012!

Today Giveaway of the Day
$24.96 / month
free today
Your all-in-one solution for home theater entertainment!

Breathe new life into your desktop! Animated Wallpaper Maker will help you turn your static photos into animated pictures and set them as your desktop background. You can animate any photo you have. Really! You don't need expensive, complicated software anymore.

You can create your own animated wallpaper in just a few mouse clicks. Load a picture, adjust animation parameters, and place the result on your desktop.

System Requirements:

Windows XP, Vista and 7

Publisher:

DesktopPaints.com

Homepage:

http://www.desktoppaints.com/about.php?product=wp_maker

File Size:

20.3 MB

Price:

$29.77

GIVEAWAY download basket

Bring back the Start button and menu to Windows 8.
Use Windows 7 desktop gadgets on Windows 10/8.1/8 operating systems.
View various meters for resource consumption.
Developed by Microsoft

Comments on Animated Wallpaper Maker 3.1.5

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#30

I had time to try it only today, and I can say that it is a very promising program. I put together a winter wallpaper with some layer of snowfall easily and fast. However, when I tried to use the result as a wallpaper, it wasn't as nice as in the editor.

I have two monitors, so the first thing I recognized is that in this program the wallpaper isn't duplicated as it normally is (even when the desktop is "extended"). There is only one piece of wallpaper for both monitors, "fit" in the middle (half here and half there) or "streched"/"fill" which is unenjoyable. Furthermore, I was a bit disappointed to see the snowfall keeps stalling for half-seconds.

The second thing I watched was the CPU, and I didn't see a number greater than 5.00, so it seems okay.

The third thing I experienced is that the wallpaper-exe crashed after cca 5 minutes of working - and I haven't got the slighest idea why, because I havent even get an error message.

Conclusion: I liked to work with it, I liked the result in the editor, but I can't use it as a wallpaper (or anywhere else). This is why only "promising" - it could be great if it would work purposefully.

Reply   |   Comment by Asame  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)
#29

It's not really relevant to this discussion, but people were droning on about Windows 7 style Start menus in Windows 8:
9 Windows Start menus for Windows 8
One should be aware that the new Windows for Dummies interface, taken straight from the failed Windows Phone UI, is what the Microbrains have decreed to be the new UI standard, despite the fact that everyone who uses Windows 7 to perform actual work can't stand it.

Reply   |   Comment by Fubar  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)
#28

I love ANIMATION in my art, I have both the DP Animation Maker, (I purchased the DP Extension Pack), and the wallpaper maker. I have done many projects with these and recommend them highly. Thank you GAOTD, and Merry Christmas to all, and have a Great new years.

Reply   |   Comment by Steven E Frizzell  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+2)
#27

Just installed it without a hitch and started to play with it... LOVED IT!! Thanks so much GAOTD!! Really a lot of fun,and I'm thinking about buying the extended pack...at $7.99 not a bad deal!

Reply   |   Comment by Monica  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+2)
#26

#19 if you have windows 7 ultimate, dreamscene is a standard feature, and you can use almost any video file as an animated desktop.

my current desktop is a wmv conversion of http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IFx3WX4DES0

so thanks for this, but as you can see I have no need to install another program to do what I can do already.

Reply   |   Comment by bman  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-3)
#25

I have also experienced the "Failed to create Direct 3D device" error.
Ran dxdiag - all working correctly (no problems) and accelerations are enabled. Don't know what it can be? Disappointed that the developer hasn't commented in this forum about this problem.
I was looking forward to trying it out after MikeR's (21) glowing review.
Windows Dreamscene might be a alternative. For XP users:

http://www.dreamscenexp.com/

Reply   |   Comment by JR Jones  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)
#24

Meant Start 8 in previous comment

Reply   |   Comment by Gilbert Jones  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-1)
#23

@ Rick Frog...There are at least two programs I know of that will restore the Start menu and start button in Windows 8...One is "classic shell"(which is free..do a google search for the URL)...The other costs $5 U.S. and is called Start * and is available from Stardock.com

Reply   |   Comment by Gilbert Jones  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-1)
#22

For those of you experiencing the "Failed creating the Direct3D device" error (#11, 12, 14?) ensure that your graphics hardware acceleration is set to an adequate level (Display Properties > Settings > Troubleshoot on Win XP) - you need at last DirectDraw and Direct3D accelerations enabled.

Reply   |   Comment by Glen  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+5)
#21

@ 18, TK: Before even making this comment, can I just say that I have NO connection with GAOTD and NO connection with today's developer. Truth be told, I came to today's software with no expectation other than that it would waste my time (well: how wrong can one be?)

Anyway. . . I'm very sorry that you're experiencing difficulties with this. I encountered none on Vista x32. As you've tried it on other OS's, I've just been to a neighbour's and DL'd and installed on his Windows XPx32 computer. Result? No problems. At all.

None of this is to gainsay you or your experience: as GOATD regulars know, I constantly bang on about how-the-heck-can-any-developer-KNOW-how-your-computer-is-configured when it comes to the thorny question of so-called Registry Cleaners. Answer: no developer does.
Every individual in the GAOTD community is different and every GAOTD user's computer is different. The parameters decided by a Registry Cleaner developer for one computer have the potential to totally screw up another computer because of its different configuration.

My experience today has been trouble-free and positive on two different computers running two different x32 OS's. There can be but two explanations here: (1) both these computers, operating both these OS's, are such that the software coding 'sees' them as 'standard' set-ups and integrates accordingly. Alternatively: somehow, in some way, the developer has -- psychically -- written this software to work *only* on computers configured the way that mine is, and the way my neighbour's is.

Obviously, the latter is nonsense.

'S not your fault but logic dictates that the "buggy / glitchy behaviour" you're accusing it of may well be a misdirected criticism. After all: you say you tried the screensaver version of this software before and hit a C++ runtime error. Which kind of begs the question. . . are the computers you're using as stable and compatible in their configuration as you might think? It's noticeable to me that you're talking of x64 OSs and I'm having no trouble with x32 OSs. . .

Please note: this comment is not intended in any way as a criticism of your own comment. But I download and test *lots* of software and I have to say that in bar the most rare of cases, any failures that crop up are due to problems at my end. Not at the developer's.

Much to my surprise, because I'm a cynical computer user, I was very impressed with what DesktopPaints has done here. I think it would be a shame if other GOATDers were put off the idea of actually downloading and trying this software because they fear their experience is bound to replicate yours. Chances are, it won't.

I wonder, have you thought of doing what George @ post 20 has done, and actually get in touch with the developer's technical support?

Worth a try, surely, before condemning outright the work of a developer who -- to me at any rate -- really does appear to have invested a helluva lot of thought and time and care in this software. . . and in bringing it to GAOTD today, has actually delivered an unexpected Christmas gift to many a computer user worldwide.

Reply   |   Comment by MikeR  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+12)
#20

Review of today's GAOTD after testing out on a specific project:

Downloaded and installed on Vista OS without a hitch. No email harvesting. No unwanted add-ons. Kudos to the developer.

GUI: well thought-out and highly intuitive. This is not a 'toy program': there's some very smart coding under the hood.

Test: I work a lot with digital image management software so tend to plunge right in rather than RTFM. If software is good it should at least be accessible for trial-and-error learning. This software is accessible: simply click on File / New Project and then Change Background and that's it, a browser window opens to let you go find the picture you want to animate.

A 16:9 widescreen 1680x1050 2.25MB jpeg was chosen for the test. It's a ground-level shot of a pond with ducks swimming on it. They're watched over by a shire horse at the other side of the water. To the left and right of the horse are shrubs and bushes. The low angle allowed the camera to be level with the nearest duck and to create an image of which one third is water / ducks / horse, two thirds is sky.

What I wanted to see was how dynamic this image could be made to be without it being tarted up to the point of looking absurd. So:

Step 1: Choose Effect. Obviously,Water Mirror. By default, the software set a horizon point across the middle of the image, almost obliterating the ducks / pond / horse / bushes content in the process. The Water Mirror fly-out panel proved itself equal to the task of instant modification and fine tuning: simply moving the Reflection / Horizon slider left or right adjusts the up / down setting.

This panel turned out to be indicative of the impressive amount of control which today's software places in the hands of the user: no less than nine separate controls for this Effect alone, all of 'em meaningful, all of 'em easy to work with. (As a bonus, reversing any action is as fuss free as it gets: just hit the Undo icon in the program's toolbar.)

For this test, I re-set the horizon line to just below the biggest foreground duck, then knocked back the default Green saturation to zero so that the colour in the original image was not displaced. Adjustment of all other controls was simple: every adjustment visually alters the image as you're tinkering with the controls; you can tweak until you're satisfied with the result (or change your mind, hit Undo, and start over.) My final settings were 1024x1024 reflection quality, reflection speed knocked back to about a quarter of velocity, and all other defaults left as is.

The image now 'shimmered' satisfactorily where the effect had been applied. But, because it's a zone effect, the contrast between the static and dynamic was all too apparent. I therefore used the Wave Brush to introduce motion into non-dynamic areas, again, fine-tuning thanks to the plethora of user controls.

That was pretty good. . . but because my ducks weren't all in a row (!) the horizon effect had actually separated one duck from its reflection by a considerable margin. The effect looked frankly awful. I therefore switched to the Water brush and found I could simply apply a liquid effect over that particular duck's reflection and actually remove the reflection entirely. Again, the software's abundance of options and controls made the job quick and easy.

A roster of built-in effects looked promising but after experimenting -- including introducing a cloud of gigantic killer butterflies into the scene -- I simply went for the Leaves 1 option (autumn gold) reduced the pixel size and, again, considerably slowed down the motion to around 20%. I also restricted the number of leaves to five.

Finally. . . I used the Drift brush with a smallish head to add motion to the upper strands of background foliage -- not all of it, just enough to suggest a sense of breeze.

I then saved the project as an executable file (two options for saving are offered: set as wallpaper, or save as an .exe: the latter, I'd suggest, is infinitely preferable) and then in Windows Explorer created a shortcut to that .exe and dropped the shortcut into my Quick Launch bar.

Job done. Total time: 15 minutes -- which, for a first attempt, without reference to any Help assistance, methinks was pretty darn good.

Result? Pretty darn good, too. This software is capable enough to do just about anything to an image, but the secret of successful animation is always less, less, less. Not more. Animation needs to be gentle and un-emphatic. Needs to allow the viewer to suddenly see (in this instance) a ripple here, a slowly spinning leaf there, an almost imperceptible bending of the bushes and shrubs. Not a Force 10 gale.

As for the finished 'project' in action, easy-peasy: I don't want any kind of animation running permanently on my desktop, so it's simply a case of clicking on the QL shortcut icon as and when.

Verdict: I have to disagree entirely with Giovanni's remark about wasting a remarkable amount of computer resources to run this -- going the .exe / QL shortcut route knocks that criticism on the head, and I'm a bit surprised Giovanni seems not to have realised it.

Yes, it's a wallpaper animator, but it's equally a screensaver, but thanks to that .exe means it's a screensaver of a different kind -- not one that hijacks anyone's existing .scr list or even the desktop itself. You animate an image and then choose when to run that animation with a quick click of a Quick Launch shortcut . . . and that's it.

Thoroughly recommended then: this is quality software that has been painstakingly thought out and implemented, one which places in the hands of the user an array of powerful tools that can be used intuitively and remarkably easily. Would that all softweare was like this.

Well done, GAOTD, and well done, Desktop Paints. Happy Christmas to you all.




Result?

Reply   |   Comment by MikeR  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+27)
#19

I downloaded and installed the program. I used a picture as a background. I added some effects. When I saved the project and tried to set it as my desktop's background, the program "crashed" and wasn't responding! I tried to make it work with both two options (set it as a wallpaper and as a stand-alone .exe as well), but nothing seemed to work!
I sent an e-mail to Desktop Paints. I'm waiting for their response...

Reply   |   Comment by George  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (0)
#18

Installed and activated with no problems. Seems to run fine on my Vista 32 system.

For people having issues with this or other GAOTD software, it may help to not install in "Program Files" as this often causes file access issues which can cause crashes or errors.

Reply   |   Comment by JGF  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-2)
#17

You can turn any picture into a screen background without any software, just go to the windows explorer where your pictures are and just right click on any one you want as background and select Set as background picture and is done.
This quasi software offered today is nothing more then conglomeration of the same picture with zoom in or zoom out effect that runs constantly in the background and heating and burning the life out of your CPU.
My question to the developer: Why such childish and outdated software needs further to be developed into more useless do nothing CPU hungry software?

Reply   |   Comment by Marie  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-14)
#16

Giovanni, can today's program also create GIF animations? Or which free software can create GIF animations? Cheers.

Reply   |   Comment by medstudz  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-8)
#15

#1 Kathy: I don't know why 50 people gave thumbs down for the remark. I guess they do not know how to use the Animation Maker for purposes other than making animations. I have used this program to produce photographs with stunning effects, and not only that when I had some technical questions DeskPoints quickly and promptly answered them, without any hassles. Great after service.
The WallPaper Maker is another great program, which I use to make various photo effects.
Thanks to GAOTD and DP for offering this program free.

Reply   |   Comment by drvajra  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+7)
#14

Similar issue to comments in 9 & 10

DPWManager_prv
"Failed creating the Direct3D device"

Ran DxDiag - passes every test.

Giovanni - your tips useful & humour always appreciated !
:)

Reply   |   Comment by JB  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+2)
#13

Well, if you love this kind of apps and are eager to waste a remarkable amount of your PC resources to enhance the look of your desktop, this is an excellent tool to use (probably the best wallpaper creator on the market), since it can turn any photo of yours into a beautiful animated wallpaper through tons of advanced options (colors, reflection, gradient, saturation etc...). And it provides users with a set of multiple effects as well, such as underwater, water mirror, fire etc...

FREE ALTERNATIVES

http://www.dreamscene.org
http://www.wallcreator.com (==> No installation needed)
http://wallpapers.x3studios.com

As for SCREENSAVERS MAKERS:

http://www.gphotoshow.com/gpshow_free.htm
http://www.instantstorm.com
http://www.goldshell.com/flashforge

Enjoy!!

Reply   |   Comment by G i o v a n n i  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+64)
#12

Same problem here as comment 9- failed to create 3D creator. Worked fine and was fun up until then. Running XP SP3 with plenty of RAM to play with such things but no dice.

Reply   |   Comment by Danyealle  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+2)
#11

Installed & activated screensaver maker but system says that'failed to create 3D creator

Reply   |   Comment by Shridhar.K  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-5)
#10

Not compatible with my Windows XP Pro SP 3 big-screen Toshiba Satellite P25 desktop replacement notebook PC. Installed twice and both times seem to be OK, but will not work. Always display error messages. I want to ask the publisher what is the problem and how to get it to work.

Reply   |   Comment by Peter Pan  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-8)
#9

Having used version 3.0.? I was glad to see this offering(just like an upgrade :-)).Great program I use it a lot.IMO it could use an option to import sound files but for free I'm happy with it.THANKS

Reply   |   Comment by Bobby Baker  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-13)
#8

I have a few issues.. it installed fine (or seemed to) on Windows XP SP3 but I see nowhere it's Registered.. when I click on Register, it asks for a License code that I do not have.. when I try to get the code, it takes me to a page to purchase.. so I thought, let me see if this program is even fun to play with before I go to the trouble of trying to fix it, so I tried to create a new file.. my jpg opened fine but when I tried a couple of the effects, they were blank and when I clicked Preview on one of the ones that worked, the entire program closed.. I also noticed it is set to automatically search for updates but I could not find any place to deactivate this.. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated..

Reply   |   Comment by jane  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-3)
#7

#2 (at the time of this comment):
"...know of a free program that will let me change the Log In screen and the Start up Images on My windows 8 and Windows XP machines..."

Look up "TweaksLogon".

To change the login user avatar/icon, look to where you can change the setting in MSWindows, then choose the pic you want from your own images. Or, take a pic you want to use, and copy/paste it into the same directory as the images MSWindows gives you. You might need Admin permissions to change that directory, so the first option is easier.

To change the startup sound, look up "Startup Sound Changer".

And to get the old-style start menu, look up "Classic Start Menu".

As for today's program, it work very similar to a previous giveawayoftheday program called "DP Animator", and it installs and works just fine on MSWindows 7 Home Premium 64 bit.

Reply   |   Comment by Sol  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+9)
#6

I posted here around two weeks ago when another DP software, Animated Screensaver Maker, was offered. The two programs having the same interface, same tools, same settings (and same bugs!), the only difference being the format of their output (.scr for ASM, .exe for AWM,), my comments and tips about ASM are also valid for AWM. You can find them here:

http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/animated-screensaver-maker-315/#comments (post 10)

I mentioned little bugs coming and going, version after version, as it often happens for very creative fast developing software with a small team of developers – if not a single one. This time in 3.1.5, if you use the “explosion” animation, some of you will get nothing but a “runtime error” or “wrong format” window when trying to create a wallpaper. They are working on this, and there are plenty of other animations!

P.S. To avoid having the program use to many resources, don’t forget to set the priority to “low” in the settings window.

Reply   |   Comment by ouialaraison  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+30)
#5

I do ask that every one ignores The Negative Posts I made about this Program on November 27 & 29 back then. My complaints should be Ignored because my problem was not with the software, but with the installation method used by GAOTD at that time.

I finally did figure out why I could not register any of the Executable files it required me to have Internet Explorer as my Primary browser with access to the internet.

My thanks go to Whiterabbit for helping me figure out that bit of info. I could not believe it was something so simple but I couldn't figure it out. I felt so stupid for not being able to figure out why I could not get programs to register or install myself.

With my Firewall blocking internet Explorer from going on-line I could not get the registration to work but thanks to Desktop Paints I got the program installed and to work just fine.

It took me some time to learn that by using Firefox I had a lot of programs fail to install & register. This program was one of them. But once I learned to set Internet Explorer as my default browser.

By granting I.E access to the internet through my firewall I never had another problem with a file failing to install other than the odd one or two for reasons that where not related to that problem..

I did get the program to install and work just fine for 5 months after that day I wrote to Desktop paints complaining of my problem I received a reply from Desktop Paints via E-mailed with a new Install File & a registration code.

Once installed that way it worked just fine & it continued to work fine right up until the day my Hard drive developed the click of Death and failed.

Sadly I never did come back and state how much I enjoyed the program after I had it working & for that I apologize.

It turned out to be a real Gem of a proggy & I simply can not say just how happy I am to have it once again. Thank you so much. =)
Signed
Rick Frog

Reply   |   Comment by Rick Frog  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-11)
#4

It would be nice if you combined all three packages into one, give the software away with limited effects, and sell a pro version and package effects addons. This would get your product out to the market and serious buyers would pay for the full features.

Reply   |   Comment by Bruce McLeod  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+5)
#3

I've had this on my pc since it was given away the first time and I've purchased the extension packs.
Pro's- It is really easy to use and fun to play with. It draws attention to your screen and confuses colleagues thinking it's a screen saver that cant be gotten rid of.

Con's - It slows my startup dramatically I have to delay it win patrol.

Reply   |   Comment by Paul  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (+34)
#2

I Lost this from the previous time I had it off of here which was VS 3.01 given away back in November of 2011. I think it was given away on November 11 but I am not 100% sure on that.

I am so very happy to find it given away here once more. I got this the last time it was offered and fell in love with it. Let me say again I just loved it.

I found it very simple to use and a real pleasure to create my own wallpapers and screen savers. I spent many hours just goofing around making animated pictures.

Sadly I lost the program when my hard drive crashed and my Back up was corrupted I was just devastated at the loss of my hard drive and the various wallpapers I had made.

But I learned my lesson from that incident to make backups of my back ups of my back up of my primary drive. Hopefully if one drive goes down I will now have 2 more drives i can use to recover. & can just slide one in to replace the drive that failed..

I am hoping that Desktop Paints has added the feature to make new start up screens for Windows XP and other operating systems.

If they have not perhaps Ashraf Or Giovanni know of a free program that will let me change the Log In screen and the Start up Images on My windows 8 and Windows XP machines. (it's the same computer just dual boot able so I can work in either environment

I like the feel and look of Windows Xp and hate the look of Windows 8 Maybe this program will let me make some changes to the start up screen image and if it can change the Welcome screen I would be very pleased.

I look forward to playing with this program today. I will re-post if I find anything to complain about. But I can say now, I had no complaints about it last year and simply can not say how happy I am to see it on here again.

Thank You Desktop Paints and Give Away Of the Day for this wonderful program & this wonderful early Christmas Present.
Signed
One Happy Frog
Rick Frog

Reply   |   Comment by Rick Frog  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-1)
#1

I have animation maker from DP an it is freaking awesome!!! SO will be grabbing this posthaste with mucho thanx!!!! Company makes quality products.

Reply   |   Comment by Kathy Boulier  –  11 years ago  –  Did you find this comment useful? yes | no (-81)
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