Hello!
Every computer user (especially the female half :)) tries to give his Windows originality, to customize it for himself. It's no secret that not everyone likes the basic settings, and besides, they can even slow down your PC if it is not particularly powerful. (by the way, such effects include the same Aero).
Other users want to disable various graphical bells and whistles. they are simply not used to them (after all, earlier in Windows 2000, XP this was not all. For example, I am generally quite ascetic in this, but other users have to help ...).
So, let's try to slightly change the appearance of the seven ...
How do I change the theme?
Where can I find many new topics? At the office. the Microsoft website has a sea of them: https://support.microsoft.com/ru-ru/help/13768/windows-desktop-themes
Theme - in Windows 7, a theme is everything that you see. For example, a picture on the desktop, window color, font size, mouse cursor, sounds, etc. In general, all display and sound effects are related to the selected theme. A lot depends on it, which is why we will start with our OS settings.
In order to change the theme in Windows 7 you need to go to personalization settings... To do this, it is not necessary to go to the control panel, you can simply right-click anywhere on the desktop and select the item "personalization" from the menu (see Fig. 1).
There are a lot of other topics on the Internet, just above, under the heading of this subsection of the article, I gave a link to the office. Microsoft website.
By the way, an important point! Some themes may even cause your computer to slow down. For example, themes without the Aero effect (I talked about it here :) run faster (as a rule) and require lower computer performance.
How to change the background, wallpaper on the desktop?
Large selection of ready-made wallpapers: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/17780/featured-wallpapers
The background (or wallpaper) is what you see on your desktop, i.e. background picture. It is this picture that has a very big influence on the design. For example, even the strip of the taskbar changes its hue depending on which picture was selected for the wallpaper.
To change the standard background, go to personalization (note: right-click on the desktop, see above), then at the very bottom there will be a link "" - click it (see Fig. 3)!
By the way, the background on the desktop can be displayed in different ways, for example, there may be black stripes along the edges. This happens because your screen has a resolution (more about this here -). Those. roughly a certain size in pixels. When it does not match, then these black stripes are formed.
But Windows 7 may try to stretch the picture to fit your screen (see Figure 4 - bottommost red arrow: Padding). True, in this case, the picture may lose its spectacularity ...
How do I resize desktop icons?
Resize icons- very simple! To do this, right-click anywhere on the desktop, then select the "view" menu, then select from the list: large, medium, small (see Fig. 5).
How do I change the sound design?
To do this, you need to open in control panels Personalization tab, and then select Sounds.
Here you can change the usual soundtrack for various others: landscape, festival, heritage, or turn it off altogether.
How do I change the screensaver?
Also similar to the personalization tab (note: right-clicking anywhere on the desktop), at the bottom we select the screen saver item.
How do I change the screen resolution?
Option number 1
Sometimes you need to change the screen resolution, for example, if the game slows down and you need to start it with lower parameters; or check the operation of a program, etc. To do this, right-click on the desktop, and then select Screen Resolution from the pop-up menu.
Option number 2
Another way to change the screen resolution is to configure it in the video drivers (AMD, Nvidia, IntelHD - all manufacturers support this option). Below, I will show how this is done in ItelHD drivers.
First, you need to right-click on the desktop and select "Graphic characteristics" from the pop-up menu (see Fig. 12). You can also find the video driver icon and go to its settings in the tray, next to the clock.
Fig. 12. Graphic characteristics
Fig. 13. Resolution, section display
How to change and customize the START menu?
To customize the START menu and taskbar, right-click on the START button in the lower left corner of the screen, then select the properties tab. You will be taken to the settings: in the first tab you can customize the taskbar, in the second - START.
It probably doesn't make much sense to describe each checkbox in the settings. It is best to customize for yourself experimentally: if you do not know what the checkbox means, turn it on and see the result (then change again - look, you will find what you need by typing :))..
Configuring the display of hidden files and folders
Here, it is best to enable the display of hidden files and folders in the explorer (many newbies get lost and don't know how to do it), as well as showing file extensions of any file types (this will help avoid some types of viruses that disguise themselves as other types of files).
It will also allow you to know for sure what file you want to open, as well as save time when searching for some folders (some of which are hidden).
To enable display, go to Control Panel, then to the tab design and personalization... Next, look for the link “ Show hidden files and folders»(In the explorer settings section) - open it (fig. 17).
- uncheck the box next to “ hide extensions for registered file types«;
- move the slider to show hidden files, folders and disks ”(see Fig. 18).
Desktop gadgets
Gadgets are small information windows on your desktop. They can notify you about the weather, incoming emails, show the time / date, exchange rates, various puzzles, slides, CPU utilization indicators, etc.
You can use the gadgets installed on the system: go to Control Panel, type "gadgets" into the search, then you will have to choose the one you like.
By the way, if the presented gadgets are not enough, then you can additionally download them on the Internet - for this there is even a special link under the list of gadgets (see Fig. 19).
Important note! A large number of active gadgets in the system can cause a decrease in computer performance, slowdowns and other delights. Remember that everything is fine in moderation and do not clutter your desktop with unnecessary and unnecessary gadgets.
That's all for me. Good luck to everyone and bye!
Some users carelessly refer to the choice of the interface theme operating system... And I must say that in vain, since its correct selection reduces the load on the eyes, helps to concentrate, which, in general, leads to an increase in performance. Therefore, if you spend a lot of time at the computer, using it for work, then experts advise you to choose background images with calm tones, in which there are no aggressive colors. Let's take a look at how to set a suitable skin on a Windows 7 computer.
The design of the interface can be divided into two main components: the background of the desktop (wallpaper) and the color of the windows. The wallpaper is directly the picture that the user sees when the desktop is displayed on the screen. Windows are the interface area Windows Explorer or applications. By changing the theme, you can change the color of their borders. Now let's take a direct look at exactly how you can change the appearance.
Method 1: using built-in Windows themes
First of all, let's take a look at how to install the built-in Windows themes.
- Go to the desktop and right-click on it. In the launched list, select the position "Personalization".
You can also go to the desired section through the menu "Start"... Click on the button "Start" in the lower left corner of the screen. In the menu that opens, go to the item "Control Panel".
In the launched Control panels go to subsection "Change theme" in the block "Design and personalization".
- The tool that has the name "Changing the picture and sound on your computer"... The options presented in it are divided into two large groups of objects:
- Aero themes;
- Basic and high contrast themes.
Selecting a background from the Aero group allows you to make the interface design as presentable as possible, thanks to a complex combination of shades and the use of the semi-transparent window mode. But, at the same time, the use of wallpapers from this group creates a relatively high degree of load on computer resources. Therefore, it is not recommended to use this type of design on weak PCs. This group contains the following topics:
- Windows 7;
- Characters;
- Scenes;
- Nature;
- Landscapes;
- Architecture.
Each of them has additional opportunity choosing a desktop background from built-in pictures. We will discuss how to do this below.
Basic options are represented by a much simpler type of design with a high degree of contrast. They are not as visually appealing as the Aero themes, but their use saves system computing resources. This group contains the following built-in themes:
- Windows 7 - simplified style;
- High contrast # 1;
- High contrast # 2;
- Contrast black;
- Contrast white;
- Classic.
So, choose any of the options you like from the Aero groups or basic themes. After that, we make a double click with the left mouse button on the selected element. If we select an element from the Aero group, then the background of the desktop will be set to the picture that is the first in the icon of a specific theme. By default, it will change to the next one every 30 minutes and so on in a circle. But for each basic theme, only one version of the desktop background is attached.
Method 2: choosing a topic on the Internet
If you are not satisfied with the set of 12 options that is presented by default in the operating system, then you can download additional design elements from the official Microsoft website. There is a selection divided into categories, many times exceeding the number of topics that are built into Windows.
In addition, many other topics can be found on third party sites. For example, the design in the style of the Mac OS operating system is especially popular.
Method 3: create your own theme
But often the built-in and downloaded from the Internet options do not satisfy users, and therefore they use additional settings related to changing the desktop picture and window colors that meet their personal preferences.
- If we want to change the background image on the desktop or the display order, then we should click on the name at the bottom of the window for changing images "Desktop background"... Above the specified name there is a preview picture on this moment set background.
- The window for selecting a background image is launched. These pictures are also called wallpaper. Their list is located in the central area. All pictures are divided into four groups, navigation between which can be done using the switch Image Locations:
- Windows desktop backgrounds(built-in pictures are located here, broken down by the groups of topics we have considered above);
- Image library(all pictures located in the folder "Images" in user profile on disk C);
- Most Popular Photos(any pictures on the hard disk that the user most often accessed);
- Solid colors(a set of backgrounds in one solid color).
The user can check the boxes next to those pictures that he wants to alternate when changing the desktop background in the first three categories.
If the presented set of pictures does not contain the image that the user wants to set as the background of the desktop, but the desired picture is on the computer's hard disk, then click on the button "Overview…".
A small window opens, in which, using the hard disk navigation tools, you need to select the folder where the desired picture or pictures are stored.
After that, the selected folder will be added as a separate category to the wallpaper selection window. All image files located in it will now be available for selection.
In field "Image position" it is possible to set exactly how the background image will be positioned on the monitor screen:
- Filling(default);
- Stretch(the picture is stretched across the entire monitor screen);
- Center(the drawing is used in its full size, located in the center of the screen);
- Pave(the selected picture is presented in the form of small repeating squares all over the screen);
- To size.
In field "Change images every" you can set the time period for changing the selected patterns from 10 seconds to 1 day. A total of 16 different options for setting the period. The default is set to 30 minutes.
If you suddenly in the process of work, after setting the background, do not want to wait for the next background image to change, according to the set change period, then right-click on an empty area of the desktop. In the menu that opens, select the position "Next Desktop Background Image"... Then the picture on the desktop will immediately change to the next object installed in the order of the active theme queue.
If you check the box next to the parameter "In random order", then the pictures will change not in the order in which they are presented in the central area of the window, but in random.
If you want to change between all images located in the window for selecting a background image, then click on the button "Select all", which is located above the image preview area.
If, on the contrary, you do not want the background image to change at a given frequency, then click on the button "Clear all"... All objects will be unchecked.
And then check the box next to one of the images that you constantly want to see on your desktop. In this case, the field for setting the frequency of changing pictures will cease to be active.
After all the settings in the wallpaper selection window are completed, click on the button "Save changes".
- Automatically returns to the window for changing the image and sound on the computer. Now we need to move on to changing the color of the window. To do this, click on the item "Window color", which is located at the bottom of the window for changing the picture and sound on your computer.
- The window for changing the color of windows is launched. The settings located here are reflected in changing the shades of the borders of windows, menus "Start" and the taskbar. In the upper part of the window, you can choose one of 16 basic design colors. If they are not enough, and you want to make a finer setting, then you should click on the item Show Color Adjustment.
This will open a set of additional color adjustments. With four sliders, you can adjust the levels of intensity, hue, saturation, and brightness.
If you check the box next to the item "Turn on transparency", then the windows will become transparent. Using the slider Color Intensity you can adjust the transparency level.
After all the settings are done, click on the button "Save changes".
- After that, we again return to the window for changing the image and sound on the computer. As you can see, in the block "My themes", in which the themes created by the user are located, a new name has appeared "Unsaved topic"... If you leave it in this status, then with the next changes to the desktop background settings, the unsaved theme will be changed. If we want to leave the opportunity to turn it on at any time with the same set of settings that we set above, then this object must be saved. To do this, click on the inscription "Save Topic".
- After that, a small save window starts with an empty field "Topic name"... Here you need to enter the desired name. Then click on the button "Save".
- As you can see, the name that we assigned appeared in the block "My themes" windows to change the image on the computer. Now, at any time, it is enough to click on the specified name so that this particular design is displayed as the desktop screensaver. Even if in the future you will make manipulations in the section for selecting a background image, these changes will not affect the saved object in any way, but will be used to form a new object.
Method 4: change wallpaper through the context menu
But the simplest way to change the wallpaper is to use the context menu. Of course, this option is not as functional as creating background objects through the window for changing the image, but at the same time, its simplicity and intuitive clarity attracts most users. In addition, for many of them it is quite enough to simply change the picture on the desktop without complicated settings.
We go with the help Windows Explorer to the directory where the image that we want to make the background for the desktop is located. Click on the name of this picture with the right mouse button. In the context list, select the position Set as Desktop Background, after which the background picture will change to the selected picture.
In the window for changing the image and sound, this picture will be displayed as the current image for the desktop background and as an unsaved object. If desired, you can save it in the same way as we discussed in the example above.
As you can see, the operating room Windows system 7 has in its arsenal huge set to change the appearance of the interface. At the same time, the user, depending on his needs, can choose one of 12 standard themes, download a ready-made version from the official Microsoft website or create it himself. The latter option assumes design settings that will most closely match the user's preferences. In this case, you can choose the pictures for the desktop background yourself, determine their position on it, the frequency of the change period, and also set the color of the window frames. Those users who do not want to bother with complex settings can simply set the wallpaper via context menu Windows Explorer.
A theme is a collection of settings that regulate the overall "mood" of your computer, namely the look of your operating system.
To set a different skin, in the Personalization window, select one of the seven presented Aero themes. You can also find additional ones by clicking on the Other Internet Topics link, which is located in the same window. To see how the theme will look when applied, just select it and the theme settings are applied immediately. If you are not satisfied with the result, just choose another one. If suddenly among the existing themes you do not find what suits you, you can create your own, taking as a basis any of the standard ones.
Each theme combines the parameters of the desktop background, window colors, sound scheme and a splash screen. They are all displayed at the bottom of the Personalization window as their respective icons. To change any of them, click on the icon and configure the desired settings.
Change the background picture
Windows 7 has a whole gallery of beautiful images that you can use to decorate your desktop. To open it, click on the Desktop background link in the Personalization window.
To change the picture, just click on the thumbnail you like. All offered images have high quality and dimensions to fit the screen. If you wish, you can place your own drawing or Photo on the Desktop. To do this, expand the Image location list and select the folder where the image is stored. Standard folders for storing images are offered by default. If none of them contains the image you are looking for, click the Browse button, specify the folder manually and select the desired image by clicking. The proportions of the pattern you have selected may not correspond to the geometric dimensions of the screen. In this case, severe picture distortion and loss of quality will occur. To get rid of these unwanted effects, try choosing an appropriate option from the Image position list box.
If you do not want to place any pictures on the Desktop, but simply want to fill it with a certain color, select Solid Colors in the Image Location list and click on the shade you like. If none of them suits you, click on the More details link and choose the shade yourself. To save the changes when exiting the window, click OK.
In addition to the already classic background image and solid fill of the Desktop, you can use a completely new feature of Windows 7 - a slideshow on the Desktop. This stunning innovation combines the power of both classic static backgrounds and dynamic slideshow effects. If you enable slideshow on the Desktop, then you will never get tired of the background image, because the images will replace each other at a given interval. To enable the slideshow, in the Change Desktop Wallpaper window, hover over the other sample background images and select the check boxes for the ones you want to include in the slideshow. You can add your own pictures to the slideshow. In the lower part of the window, in the Change image every list box, you can set the interval at which images will be changed.
The appearance of windows in Windows 7
To select a different color scheme, click the Window color link. In the window that opens, you will see a palette of 16 color swatches. By sequentially clicking on them, observe the change in the color of the window title and select the most suitable shade. The brightness of the color can be adjusted using the slider below the palette. By default, windows in Windows 7 are semi-transparent. To disable this effect, simply uncheck the Enable transparency checkbox.
If you want to choose the color of the windows yourself, click the Show color settings link and use the sliders to select a hue, adjust its saturation and brightness.
Windows 7 allows you to turn off the Windows Aero style and switch to the simplified Windows 7 style. This is useful when, when choosing the Windows Aero style, the computer resources are insufficient for good performance. To change the style, click the Additional appearance options link. As a result, a window will open. Color and appearance of the window, similar to the one that was present in previous versions Windows.
IN latest version its operating system, Microsoft has done a lot to improve the external Windows view 7. However, everything, even the best, gradually gets bored and users start looking for an opportunity to change their usual working environment. The banal change of the desktop wallpaper does not count - today we will talk about a deeper change in the "windows".
Themes and styles
The program does not require installation, but it must be run as administrator ( Right click - Run as administrator). After that, the utility will automatically patch your system, making it available to install various themes. Then you need to specify the path to the files you need from the theme you downloaded and click on the Install Theme button. The theme will appear on the right side of the list of installed themes. Now you just need to select the desired design option from the list and click Apply Theme to change the look of your system.
Start button
For change appearance Start button, use the program Windows 7 Start Button Changer... The utility comes with ten design options for the start button. After choosing the appropriate option, Explorer will restart and you will see an updated Start button.
Program icons
Change icons installed applications it is possible and by standard means Windows - by selecting the desired picture in the file properties. But for everyone installed programs it takes a long time, so it's better to use the app 7conifier, which not only allows you to change many icons in one fell swoop, but also contains several eye-pleasing themes.
You can easily switch between icon sets in the program interface, as well as restore the default set if you followed the program's advice and did backup on first launch. With the help of 7conifier it is possible to create your own sets of icons.
Well, as a result, after applying all of the above programs, your system will take on a completely new look. For example, this.