Copyright: Copyright © 1994, Allen Jackson


Screen Saver Enhancer

Screen Saver Enhancer 2.0

SSE is an add-in to Microsoft Windows 3.1 that gives additional functionality to Windows screen savers.  The primary function of SSE is to force the screen to blank using the current screen saver whenever the user desires.

Choose a topic below for more information.

Notes about SSE

Splash Screen

Control Corners

Control Panel Options

System Menu

Hiding SSE

About Screen Savers

Enhancements

Registration


About Screen Savers

Screen savers were first introduced in Multimedia Windows which was an extension to Windows 3.0.  Somebody must have liked the idea, because screen savers were added to Microsoft Windows 3.1.

According to Microsoft, screen savers exist for two main reasons:

To avoid phosphor burn caused by static images on a screen

To conceal sensitive information left on a screen

The first reason is not such a problem nowadays.  Unfortunately, little was done to the screen saver mechanism in Windows to assist with the more important second reason.  SSE fills that void, and goes well beyond.

The Desktop applet in Windows Control Panel lets users select from a list of screen savers, specify how much time should elapse before the screen saver is started, configure screen savers, and preview screen savers.  Once a screen saver is chosen, Windows monitors keystrokes and mouse movements, starting the screen saver after a period of inactivity. However, Windows does not start the screen saver if any of the following conditions exist:

The active application is not a Windows application (e.g. MS-DOS).

A computer-based training (CBT) window is present.

Windows notifies the active application that it is about to save the screen, but the application answers in such a way to prevent the screen saver from activating.

In Windows 3.1, SSE will circumvent these restrictions with the exception of an MS-DOS Full Screen session.  The solution is not to run DOS full screen; it works just as well as a window.  Without full screen DOS applications present, SSE can save the screen at any time.  Although Windows 3.1 does not blank the screen if MS-DOS is the active application, this is not the case with Windows 95 (formerly known as Chicago); Windows 95 will blank even a full screen DOS session.  SSE has been tested with Windows 95, and works very well.

Note that the use of a screen saver can degrade performance on a workstation that is sharing resources. If you will be sharing resources on your computer specify a screen saver such as Marquee or Stars, which are not CPU intensive to provide the best resource sharing performance.


Notes about SSE

SSE was developed because I wanted the ability to use the huge number of Windows screen savers in the same way commercial screen saver add-ons are used.

SSE was developed by Allen Jackson.  I can be reached in decending order of preference as follows:

CompuServe:	72357,644

Internet:	ustccjf3@ibmmail.com

Channel1:	(617) 354-8873
Once online: J MAILBOX

The current version of SSE can always be found in the following locations:

CompuServe	Windows Fun Forum

Channel1:	(617) 354-8873

Internet FTP:	Who can suggest one?

For more information about specific aspects of SSE, choose a topic below:

Installing SSE

Removing SSE

Control Corners

Hiding SSE

Control Panel Options

System Menu

Splash Screen

Registration

Enhancements

Development Information

Disclaimer


Disclaimer

The author of SSE claims no warranty, implied or otherwise.  This software is provided "AS IS".  The author claims no responsibility for any damages that might be caused by the use or inability to use this software, whether it is licensed or not.  This includes, but is not limited to, hardware, software, operating systems, or any other computer accessories.  This software remains the property of the author and may not be modified in any way.


Splash Screen

The splash screen is your primary indication that SSE is being loaded.  If the SSE icon is being hidden on startup, it is the only indication.  The shareware version of SSE contains the phrase "UNREGISTERED SHAREWARE" in the splash screen.  Upon valid registration, this message is removed.  In addition, the shareware delay for the splash screen is five seconds.  This is reduced to one second upon registration.  The splash screen is the only difference between the shareware version and the registered version.  The shareware version of SSE is fully functional.

Note that the splash screen does not affect the operation of Windows.  For instance, if the shareware version of SSE loads first in your Windows Startup group, it will not delay the loading of other software.  In fact, you can start any program whose icon is not covered by the splash screen at any time while it is on the screen.


Screen Corners
Control Corners

The control corners can be placed in any of the four corners.

Sleep Corner

The sleep corner is the magic switch that starts the screen saver.  Just rest in the sleep corner for at least a second, and the screen saver will start.  The one second delay is to reduce accidental blanking.  The default sleep corner is the lower left.  Upon restoring the screen, if the mouse is still in the sleep corner, SSE will not save the screen until the mouse is moved away from, and back to, the sleep corner.

Notice that even when MS-DOS is the top-most application, that the sleep corner works!  Windows refuses to blank MS-DOS sessions by delay; it must be done explicitly.

Sleep Never Corner

Positioning the cursor in the sleep never corner disables the screen save delay feature.  The cursor will change to an exclamation point when it is in the sleep never corner (SSE 2.0 does not change the cursor under Windows 95).  As long as the cursor remains in the sleep never corner, Windows will not blank the screen.

Also see:

Sleep Now!


Hiding SSE

The most requested feature for SSE 1.x was "hide the icon!", so as of SSE 2.0 you can hide the icon!  It can be hidden on start up, or at any time from the SSE system menu.  When SSE is hidden, it's really hidden.  It will not appear in the task list or in the Alt-Tab sequence.  To unhide SSE, just run it again.

To determine if SSE is running at any time, move the mouse pointer to the sleep never corner and the cursor will change to an exclamation mark to indicate that SSE is active.


Control Panel Options

The Control Panel Options are so named because they correspond to the options Windows allows under the Control Panel Desktop applet with some enhancement.

Screen Saver Delay (in seconds)

The Screen Saver Delay differs from the Control Panel in that it allows specification of seconds rather than minutes (try setting it to one second and see how long you can wok without a one second break).

Disable screen saver delay for this session

If checked, Windows will never save the screen due to expired time.  The only way to blank the screen with this option turned on is explicitly with the SSE sleep corner or sleep now menu option.  If you save the current setting, this becomes the default for future Windows sessions.

Save disabled setting for future sessions

This options forces Windows to "remember" the setting above.


System Menu

The system menu is presented when the SSE icon is single clicked.  Choose one of the following for more information:

Options...

Hide SSE

Sleep Now!


Options

Choosing Options opens the SSE Options dialog.  Double-clicking on the SSE icon also brings up this dialog.  Choose one of the following for more information:

Sleep/Sleep Never Corners

Hide the SSE icon on startup

Control Panel Options

About...


Sleep Now!

This is an alternate way of starting the screen saver.  When Sleep Now! is chosen from the system menu, sleep happens immediately with no delay (unlike the sleep corner).


Registration
SSE Registration

SSE 2.0 is not free (version 1.0 and 1.1 were).  A lot of work has gone into SSE since version 1.0, and SSE is a valuable and unique Windows enhancement.  If I get half the response to SSE 2.0 as I did for the "free" registration of 1.x, I'll be ecstatic.  All SSE 2.0 registrations are valid for one free major upgrade (i.e. SSE 3.0).

SSE is shareware.  The use of SSE is subject to the following terms and conditions:

Unregistered users are granted a limited license to use SSE 2.0 on a 30-day trial basis for the purpose of determining whether it is suitable for their needs.  Continued use of SSE requires registration.  The use of unlicensed copies of SSE by any person, business, or government agency is strictly prohibited.

Upon registering, you will be provided with the registration code necessary to personalize your copy of SSE.  This eliminates the "UNREGISTERED SHAREWARE" notice on the splash screen and installs the registered name in the about box as evidence of registration.  Upon request, the author will send a registration confirmation notice to prove that the software has been legally registered.

Registration Dialog

Registration of SSE requires a name and registration code to be entered in the Registration Dialog.  The codes are unique and keyed to the licensee's exact registration name.  Upper and lower case is significant as well as punctuation and spaces.  For example, if SSE is registered to Joe Bleaux, Jr., It must be typed in as Joe Bleaux, Jr. without trailing or leading spaces.

To purchase SSE, choose Invoice, and then select File/Print Topic from the menu.


Shareware

SSE is shareware; it is not free.  Users are licensed to use SSE on their computers for the purpose of evaluation on a trial basis for a limited trial period.  This allows the you to 'try before you buy'.  When you decide to purchase a license for the software, you register the program.


SSE Invoice
Screen Saver Enhancer 2.0 Invoice

Single-user registration will be available soon via CompuServe (GO SWREG).

Qty	Product	Price	Amount
____	Screen Saver Enhancer 2.0 single-user license	$10.00	________
	Discounts: 2-4 licenses: $8.00 each 5-8 licenses: $6.00 each 8-14 licenses: $5.00 each
____	Screen Saver Enhancer 2.0 network server license	$75.00	________
____	Screen Saver Enhancer 2.0 unlimited license	$395.00	________
	Optional:
	Disk and Manual (includes shipping and handling)	$10.00	________
	Outside U.S. add	$8.00	________
	Total: cash, check, or money order in U.S. Dollars		________

Please register SSE in the following name:

Registration Name:	_________________________________________________

Mailing Address:	_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

_________________________________________________

Send my registration code via:	U.S. Mail	Phone

(circle and fill in the blank)	E-Mail	Fax	_______________________

Remit to:	Allen Jackson

2916 Wickford Dr.

Kennesaw, GA 30144

Purchase orders will be accepted from established businesses for a minimum of $75.00.


Possible Enhancements
Enhancements

Comments have been made for enhancements like single clicking the icon to activate sleep, ability to cycle screen savers, having an installation program, etc.  I'll address these and set the stage for the next revision of SSE.

Any sort of left-clicking on the icon to activate sleep is not practical.  Single-clicking on a Windows icon should (and does) cause the system menu to pop up.  Double-clicking causes the application window to be restored.  Although I tried various combinations, in the end, I was not willing to modify the "expected" behavior.  Right clicking is a possibility, but many of these rules change in Windows 95 anyway, so this is on hold.

There is a pretty good screen saver cycling program out there called CYCLE.SCR by Gordon Harris.  I think it can be found in the Windows Fun forum on CompuServe.  The only trouble I've had with it is that sometimes it will actually pull up more than one .SCR at the same time.  This is a possible addition for SSE.

The cursor will blink if you move it around near the don't sleep corner.  This is a behavior of Windows.  Windows resets the cursor every time the mouse changes position.  You usually don't see it because the shape doesn't change often within a screen region.  The only way to prevent the blinking is to disable the mouse when it's in the sleep never corner.  For instance, double click in the don't sleep corner with the desktop underneath.  The task list will pop up as it should; not so with SSE 1.1.  Note that Windows 95 treats the mouse differently, and the sleep never cursor will not display.

There are no global hot keys to invoke sleep mode.  This requires a system hook into Windows which degrades performance.  Also, system hooks must reside in a DLL which would have added another file to SSE.  A hot key sounds like a good idea, but I have vetoed it for now.

I am planning on replacing the Control Panel options completely and superseding them within SSE including the chooser, test, and setup.  What do you think?


Installing SSE

SSE is eeaaasy to install.  Just put SSE.EXE and SSE.HLP anywhere you want and run it!  It does not touch your .INI files (although SSE creates its own SSE.INI once the options are set).  If you want SSE to start with Windows, drop it in your Start Up folder (or add it to the "run=" or "load=" lines in WIN.INI).

Adding "/blank" to the command-line causes SSE to blank the screen immediately upon executing the first instance of SSE.  It does nothing if SSE is unhiding itself.


Removing SSE

To remove SSE from your system, delete the following files:

SSE.EXE

SSE.HLP

SSE.INI (in your Windows directory)


Development Information

I have tested SSE in a variety of different settings and conditions.  I have tested it with dozens of .SCR modules and have found none to be incompatible with SSE.  In fact, to be incompatible with SSE, a screen saver would pretty much have to be incompatible with Windows.  Incidentally, I have found many .SCRs that do not conform to the Windows screen saver specification, but these have their own set of problems.

There are a few other utilities that can force Windows to blank the screen similar to SSE.  They use a slew of different methods to accomplish their goal (some much worse than others).  SSE was built to be as unobtrusive as possible.  There are no DLLs required, no system hooks, and no excessive demands.  It runs mostly in idle time.

I have been diligent in making SSE as small and efficient as possible. I hope you find it to be as valuable an addition to your Windows tool kit as I have.

SSE was developed on a 486/50 running MS-DOS 6.0 and Windows 3.1.  It was created using Visual C++ 1.5 and MFC 2.0.  SSE was written entirely in C++ utilizing the Microsoft Foundation Classes whenever possible (and practical).  SSE 2.0 was written to be upwardly compatible with Windows.  SSE does not utilize undocumented tricks or traps to accomplish its job, therefore, it is certain to run on all future versions of Windows.  It has not been tested with Windows/NT, but should work flawlessly.  Please let me know if you are using SSE with NT.

Program History

Version 1.0

Initial release.

Version 1.1:

Made corner regions smaller.

Added sleep never corner.

Added one second delay on sleep activation.

Version 2.0:

Added Options, Hide SSE, and Sleep Now! to the system menu.

Changed the method for don't sleep control.

Cursor is no longer centered away from the sleep corner.  Sleep is activated a single time until the cursor is moved away from and back to the sleep corner.

Added the ability to hide SSE.

Added SSE options dialog.

Added registration dialog (SSE is no longer free).

Command-line processing for "/blank".

Many other valuable changes that got lost in the shuffle...