Cool Wallpaper Updater

By Harry Fear

View the post at my blog.

We all get fed up of our boring desktop wallpapers.

InterfaceLift.com provides beautiful wallpapers for free, for your use as a desktop wallpaper.

This application, which runs on demand, selects a random wallpaper on the website and then downloads it and applies it as your desktop background.

Current version: 1.01b

Download:

• CWU Installer (.exe, executable; 830kb)
• Zipped CWU installer (.zip, zipped executable; 778kb)

Requirements: Windows XP/Vista

Usage (how-to):

1. Launch the program by clicking on one of the shortcuts. By default, the installer sticks a shortcut to the program:
   

   (i) on your desktop, entitled "Cool Wallpaper Updater":
   
   (ii) in your quickstart area, entitled "Update wallpaper":
   
   (iii) in your "Start -> Program Files" list in the folder which is entitled "Cool Wallpaper Updater" (by default):
   

2. [Before the program loads your firewall may ask you if you want to permit an internet connection to 2-3 programs, please 'Accept'/'Yes'/'OK' this]
3. Wait while the program exercises an internet connection check:
   
4. Wait while the program automatically downloads a new random wallpaper and applies it!
   

Limitations:

• You must run the program on demand - no auto-scheduling yet included. Do this manually in XP or Vista.
• Only works Windows XP and above (i.e. Vista too)
• Currently only supports 1280x800 resolution desktop JPEGs (- at some point I'll implement an automated check to detect the operating system's resolution, which then finds the appropriate resolution wallpaper)

Bug reports: Please report all bugs to me ASAP

Disclamer: this software is provided entirely without warranty under this license (manipulation of the program is prohibited).

Thanks to: a few developers whose applications are used as components for this program. Primarily: to the developers of WGET. Secondly: to Phillip Winterberg for his application 'CLWCP'.

Change log:

• Second beta release, v. 1.01b:
  
  • 1. Changed internet connection test timeout to 3 seconds with 10 failed connection attempts allowed (i.e. 30 second connection waiter maximum before erroring-out). This stops the 'no internet connection, yet wallpaper updated' problem.
  • 2. Saves the temporary image file to cwu_wallpaper.jpg, not wallpaper.jpg
• Initial release, v. 1.00b