fubar,
Thank you so much for answering my questions. It seems that you can enjoy a screensaver as a standalone item. Enjoy what they do but watch them when you feel in the mood. Not having to use them for their designated purpose. I like that idea. The blank screensaver idea is a good one too.
Your right about the power management options and power consumption. Managing all that can be a daunting task.

I think I will start gathering some screensavers and save them to look at. There are some really nice ones that I let go by.

Thanks again fubar for such a complete and concise and informative explanation and answers to my questions.

To me you are the most valuable asset that GOTD has. I hope they appreciate what you bring to the table. I know I do.

I can't understand all the downvotes. This is a fantastic screensaver. I've loved all the Astro-Gemini screensavers and it's always a happy day when one pops up on GOTD. This one is especially pretty and uses some fancier graphics tricks. You can turn the music on or off and adjust the graphics qualities. It also has the option to have famous quotes, BBC News headlines and the time in your chosen format on the screen during the saver. What more could you want? I love it!

And it installed fine on my Win. 7 64-bit Pro laptop.

I just had to say that this is one of the most gosh darn cute things I have ever seen, yet alone for a screensaver!!! Love it! XD! Thank you very much!

This is really nice. If you don't like screensavers, don't get it. But if you like cute bunnies, it's very nice. Does not stretch across my two monitors like some savers do. This one works the right way with two monitors.

I don't really use screen savers either, I just have my screens turn off after a certain amount of time. However, I still enjoy some of the screensavers by Astro Gemini because they are fun to watch. I particularly like the "golden autumn" one, and it's just rain falling. Sometimes - in the summer - we will go many weeks without rain - so if I'm in the mood to hear rain falling I just fire up that screensaver.

As for the Easter eggs, it's still fun. Thanks GOTD and Astro!

#23, joe, you brought up a number of issues. First, I'll address some power-consumption issues, since I suspect that many readers aren't aware of all of them. All recent versions of Windows, especially Vista and higher, have endless settings related to power management. On top of that, CPUs and GPUs generally enter lower-power states even while you're using them if they're not being fully utilized. A GPU will not enter a lower-power state when connected to multiple monitors while it's on, however. Among the endless power settings, a few of the main ones are whether and when the hard disks spin down, when the display is turned off, and when the computer goes to sleep. Screen saver settings are separate from power management settings in newer versions of Windows. With multiple monitors, Windows doesn't support per-monitor screensaver use or settings, but a number of third-party utilities do.

I usually use the Blank screensaver, set to come on a few minutes before monitor power-down. That gives me some warning if I don't want that to occur, because power cycling shortens the life of CRTs and fluorescent backlights in LCDs, and waiting for them to warm up is a nuisance. In a normal LCD, the backlight stays on and the display will actually draw more power when black because the LC cells are turned on. Some LCDs have dynamic contrast, those will reduce backlight levels. LED backlights can turn off, and LCD displays with LED backlights can have their power cycled without issue.

The same tired old arguments come up on every screensaver. LCDs don't suffer burn-in, but they can have image retention from charge build up across the LC cells. That will usually go away after it's been powered down for a long time, or if you use changing images, like videos or well-designed screensavers. That can be why you have "stuck pixels". There's also software just for trying to eliminate that via cycling the LC cells to eliminate the charge. If that doesn't work, the cell's defective. I have a CRT as a secondary monitor, although it died. I have others, but I haven't bothered. Again, my normal screensaver is blank with display power-down shortly afterwards. However, my current LCD display has a known defect which the manufacturer never corrected, it can only be powered down manually, which is a pain. On top of that, Windows power management can be a bear. Normally, my computer goes to sleep on its own. My current Windows 7 installation, which I'm going to reinstall anyway, quit going to sleep. I haven't been able to determine why (can be very, very tough to track down). mike is right about the fact that you have to stay on top of the various Microsoft C++ runtime library installations, that's why I like near-continuous backups and restore points. Those do mess things up frequently. You need to monitor installations, when possible (don't forget about background Windows Update), check the Windows logs frequently, and check CPU usage in Task Manager. Sometimes, a damaged installation will result in high CPU usage, other times, it will result in some process having a slightly elevated CPU usage. It takes very little to keep a computer from going to sleep.

3D screensavers can consume a lot of power. That's why I prefer to run screensavers on-demand when I want to view them. You don't have to set shortcuts, just type in the leading part of a word of the name into Windows Search, if you have partial matching enabled. If there's more than one hit, you do have to memorize which will just launch the screensaver without doing other things. 3Planesoft has a steampunk Steam Clock screensaver which I like, but it really heats up my GPU and gets the fans roaring, so I only view it briefly.

Regarding Wallpaper, Windows 7 supports background slideshow themes (you can set the interval to anywhere from 10 seconds to 1 day). It comes with some, there are some nice free ones on the Internet (as always, watch out for malware in any type of download).

Happy Easter Folks! -- My own love affair with screen savers started with.. Win95 and animal footprints, I'm sure we all remember how "cute" it all was:) Over the years I developed a fully blown addiction to screen savers (read: became a junkie!), I had snow falling on my desktop, realistic fish swimming on my own background (more "appropriate" choice it was, the better..lol), Christmas Countdown with different presents opening on Tree each day and things frolicking in the background, rain slashing in all directions..,and - CLOCKS:), oh dear, oh dear (practically all 7Art's Offers - "Rainy Clock" being my absolute fav!) Then I moved to Incredi (of IM) screen savers with crazy things happening on desktop - some cartoony Clark with his own office (on my desktop), mysterious forests, butterflies, cows mooing, deers licking water.. Oh, not forgetting Vlad Gerasimov's (or his Bro's) yummy Clocks! (back to clocks of course), latest being able to animate some parts of still pictures and turning them to screen savers (Life Photo Maker). ASO, aso -- You've got the picture:) My Husband calls me "romantic fool".. Well - truth is - I don't use them any more (hardly..), but I will forever Collect Them!! -- So today's GAOTD (with many Thanks!) will neatly fit into my Collection, and then (if allowed, is it Portable? Are any of them Portable?? - will be stored on some CD). I Cannot, Will not, ever, say NO to any of them:)-- and come Easter, I will have a "shy" go at this one, just to get me into mood.. PS.Some of them can seriously poo up your PC!!, I should know...LOL.

There is an easy choice to eliminate the letterbox effect and make the screensaver full screen. Go to options and click off the widescreen effect.

Now, this screensaver isn't my cup of tea, so I'm not going to download it.

But I don't understand all the haters who rate software, or give it a thumbs down, on this or any other software, without taking the time to download it and try it out. If you download something and you don't like it, by all means give it a negative rating or a thumbs down. Or both.

But if you don't take the time to test out a piece of software, then you haven't earned the privilege of rating it, which after all is what the Comments section is for.

Registered quicky on Vista SP2. Appears to be in skinny letterbox format on my almost 18" laptop. If it is stretchable _I_ don't know how, so 1/3 of my screen is black. No choices for scene length. Therefore, every few seconds the screen flashes to a diffferent camera angle and is too ADD for my likings. Most marketed SCR's give you clear and full customizations. The music is fine enough as is the graphics. I wouldn't want to pay money for it but freebie is fine. Thank You.

I have maybe a different opinion on screensavers. I actually like screensavers, but I don't use them. Ok what I mean by that is I like the pictures depicted on a lot of them. Especially space related ones. I even like today's offering.
Now that being said, I agree with an above poster that when I am using the computer...well, I am using the computer.
I was wondering if someone who uses them can tell me when they look at them.
fubar , if you would weigh in on this , I sure would appreciate it. I value your opinion. I know that you comment when screensavers are offered and I know you express that you use them.

I can see a possible use , if you have dual or triple monitors. When only using one, you would have nice scenes on the other one or two.
Perhaps because I shut off my computer when not in use that I find no need for them.

Again I like what different screensavers depict but I don't see a use for them for me personally.

Even wallpaper is sometimes in the way when I use a computer. On my linux computer , I have 4 desktops with different wallpaper on each . And I hardly notice what I have on the other 3 that I don't use so much.

Anyway, I would love to hear different points of view on this. I don't see why screensavers need to be bashed on a continuous basis. As said this is legitimate software. If you don't like it , don't download it. As I don't.

Thanks to anyone that wants to comment on this.
Joe

Eyecandy for the few that like this kind of stareware. My screensaver isn't turned of but set to the usual 10 mins and as you may have guessed already hardly ever kicks in... Installs easy. read the comments on yesterday's proggie, you're missing out good stuff

EZ install on Vista Home, HP Pav laptop-
kinda cute actually, the facts & news alerts are a plus, the graphics are way better than some I have looked at too.
You can tell someone put a little thought into this 1 for the scenes that play out-
A good offering for the weekend b4 Easter, let it run all week-it will please the kids and hardcore Easter followers, without offending the nonFollowers of the tradition. :)

Silent_K is correct that a screensaver is as legitimate a piece of software as any other.

There are many, many legitimate pieces of software I have never and will never download, as they appear to be useless or excessive to me. That includes screensavers. So while I don't think that a screensaver necessarily goes against the spirit and nature of this website, I do think it's kind of unreasonable for people to ever charge for a screensaver in this day and age, unless it's literally the best screensaver ever. This is not.

I look forward to having the same argument when the Giveaway of the Day is a fart button.

I'm not sure why this is getting such a low approval. I enjoyed it. The music isn't what I listen to in my car, but it wasn't intended to be. They meant it to be peaceful and serene music. Graphics look very nice. My 5 year old girl is gonna love it. Thanks.

I've just had one issue so far. I don't see it in the drop down list of screen savers. This might be user ignorance, though. Gonna see if I can figure out how to get it in the list and not have to double click it each time I want it to run.

Misconception of screen savers.
First a screen saver does not save anything connected with the screen or(LCDs), they do not need screen savers, because there is no phosphor to burn.
Second, by using screen saver on a LCD screen might fatigue the TFT junctions by constantly changing brightness and colors.
Your CPU can not take a break or go into low level state because must
attend to the screen saver program constantly working and therefore using more CPU power.
Third, the best screen saver is not to have one on the first place and set the screen to blank after few minutes of inactivity.

#1: "But if you ignore the music, this is good fun"

Don't see any reasons you couldn't play whatever using a separate player. The screensaver uses the bass code for audio playback -- I didn't see anything taking a *very quick* look on their site [un4seen.com], but you might need to use a player that doesn't use bass as well... not sure if that would/could conflict or not. Anyway, players I tried that don't use that bass code seemed to work fine.

I know it'd be better if it had music to your liking or a choice etc., but just saying...

I was certain I was going to hate the Easter 3D Screensaver because it was going to be too cutesy, but it's actually kinda nice IMHO. With all options on it does stress my graphics card & CPU a bit -- experience tells me it probably won't run, or at least run well on some PCs/laptops depending on graphics card/chip D3D capabilities. The .scr screensaver file can be run as-is from a right click, or you can rename it to .exe -- double click it to bring up the configuration, run it adding -run from the command line or a shortcut & it'll run normally... Note: using a desktop shortcut I had to uncheck Exit on Mouse Move -- otherwise it'd start, then stop shortly afterward.

Setup adds/copies 2 files + the .scr [screensaver] to the system folder -- those files [msvcp71.dll & msvcr71.dll] are the same versions I have already in 7, though they are slightly smaller [they're unsigned]. The Astro Gemini Software\Easter 3D Screensaver folder primarily holds a readme.html. Setup also adds an uninstall key + 1 key for Astro Gemini, where the configuration settings you make are saved.

I Like Screensavers, thanks giveaway

Wow - tough audience! Anyone who doesn't find this charming is a hard person to please. Bunnies, Easter eggs, butterflies - what's not to like? And let's not forget that it's free...

Thank you, GOTD and Astro Gemini!

Installed easily on my XP system, registration was a snap and the screensaver is quite good quality. Some people enjoy screensavers, others don't, just like with any type of software. If you don't want or need a particular offering, you can come back the next day and maybe find something you do like. GOTD offers a variety of software, to appeal to a variety of people, all for free. Thanks, GOTD and AG.

Easter is about Jesus, not a rabbit!

This is a delightful screen saver. Along with animated bunnies, butterflies and flowers, it includes a small box at the top of the screen saver that tells various traditions, customs, history of Easter. It opens on Windows 7 into wide screen with a very large digital clock at the bottom. It downloaded without problems.

Thanks to you GOTD and to Astrogemini for this fine addition to my screen saver collection.

Its about time we had a new name for 'screen savers' as its been a very long time since anyones screen needed saving. Yes, I have used the orange/black and green/black crt screens which needed a screen saver, that was more than 15 years ago. Does anyone still use them?

On the music files can you search and find the music files and then rename that file and then rename a music file you like to the file name that came with the program? seems like that would be a work-around if that will work.

I don't use screensaver and usually don't comment unless I do download and try it out so I won't download to try but maybe some others who do use screensavers will find this comment worthwhile.

Great software thank you very much.

Downloaded and installed it onto XP (SP3). Installed without problems. It conducted the registration automatically within a few seconds. I configured it to show the "Easter information" and ran it. I then changed the settings to show information from the BBC web site. All worked perfectly. The screensaver is not spectacular, but it is plenty good enough for a screen saver.

On my PC (single core ATI 3500=Intel 2.2GHz approx, with 4GB RAM) Frames per second are in the many hundreds (Nvidia GTX8800 card, with twin 28" monitors at 1920 x 1200, 32 bit colour). It only runs on the primary display, but it does blank the secondary screen, which is the correct behaviour.

Based on this, I have just gone to the Astrogemini web site and bought a couple more (The "Saturn" and "Garden Flowers", which are both good as well!).

Thank you Astrogemini and GOTD. This is one of the better giveaways recently.

No doubt there will be many negative votes simply because it is a screen saver. Ridiculous votes and comments from ridiculous people should be ignored...

With ref to the comment "Make it not a screensaver".
-A screensaver software is just as legit as any other software. Perhaps this type of software is not so popular for you, but giving thumbs downs just cuz u dont like it is so not justified.

I'm speaking out to those who find people giving thumbs downs just cuz the software doesn't suit them disgusting.

Just like many other I feel the urge to use the computer when I well, use the computer. If I want to see things moving across my screen I'll watch tv. I suppose nice work on the 3D stuff tho.

I like screensavers. I hope people that don't like screensavers will allow me.

This is a nice screensaver. It has a nice atmosphere about it. Very colourfull, funny rabbit and abundant eastereggs.

Next week I will enjoy a nice Easter brunch with my kids and grandkids. I'm already looking forward to see the grandkids faces looking at the Easterrabbit. Thank you GAotD and Astrogemini for this nice gift, very good timimg.

March 22th, 2008 we had this screensaver also
http://www.giveawayoftheday.com/easter-3d-screensaver/

I lost it and I'm glad to have it back. I think they changed something, becuase you can follow the BBC news now aswell (I don't remember that from the last time).

Nice day to all of you.

Although a many-times rerun, I like this screensaver better than I used to (better video card and drivers). Sure, the graphics are dated but look reasonably good on high-res display with a decent card and drivers. Not only do you have the typical settings, but you can select any or all of Easter facts, BBC news, or famous quotes. You can interact with the screensaver (especially useful if you decide to run it standalone rather than as a screensaver). Interactive settings are not saved, it starts with the screensaver settings. Very clean install.

Thank you folks - It is really cute and great graphics too

I really like this, except for that dull music. What were they thinking? I know there's an option to turn the music off, but it would be better if we had the option to select our own music files instead.

BTW lame music seems to be a problem with all Astro Gemini screen savers. You'd think they would've learned by now!

But if you ignore the music, this is good fun. A great addition to my screen saver collection.