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clint 2002-05-02 13:25
I'm running XP pro. I have a Geforce 2mx as my primary card, and a Matrox G450 pci running 2 other monitors. I have 2 problems
1) My wallpaper doesn't show up on logon or when I switch users. I have to bring up the ultramon wallpaper app, re-select the one of the images and hit apply to get the wallpaper to display again.
2) the screensaver never activates
any ideas would be appreciated.
Thanks,
-C
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Christian Studer 2002-05-03 02:17
1) check if the wallpaper generated by UltraMon is the active wallpaper in Display Properties > Desktop.
2) check if the UltraMon Screen Saver is the active screen saver in Display Properties > Screen Saver. If you are not using Beta 7, you'll have to assign a screen saver to at least one monitor, otherwise the screen saver will exit immediately.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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clint 2002-05-03 03:27
The ultramon screensaver is selected in Display Properties->screensaver.
The wallpaper I have selected for my primary monitor appears in Display properties->desktop. 'Default' is what is hilighted in the scroll window on that tab.
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Christian Studer 2002-05-03 05:05
Configure the UltraMon screen saver with the Beziers or Flying Windows screen saver assigned to the primary monitor, preview mode checked. Don't assign screen savers to the secondary monitors. Check if it still doesn't work when configured like this, also try manually launching the screen saver from the UltraMon menu.
Regarding the wallpaper problem: see this thread, it's also possible that some other application is causing problems.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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clint 2002-05-03 07:25
I've done as you've suggested with the screensavers. I've also upgraded to beta 7 from beta 6. The screen savers appear to be functioning properly.
I am still having trouble with the wallpaper. I've removed everything from the run key in the registry, and there is nothing in the startup menu other than ultramon.(to make sure theres a minimum of crap in running in the background) When I log off, then back on, my wallpaper is a solid color, not the images I've selected. If I have (none) selected in ultramon, and choose default (as you suggested in that link you sent me) in Display Properties > Desktop, it appears to work fine every time. That is an acceptable work around, but I'd be happy to do more testing if you'd like.
-C
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Christian Studer 2002-05-03 11:22
That shouldn't make any difference, if you select None in UltraMon, it will simply set the Windows wallpaper to None as well, and if you select Default it will set the Windows wallpaper to My Wallpapers\Default.bmp.
Are you using a virtual desktop manager that supports different wallpapers on each desktop?
If the Windows wallpaper is always set to the wallpaper generated by UltraMon, with Position set to Tile, you should always see the UltraMon wallpaper. You could also check if the Default.bmp file created by UltraMon actually shows the images you selected.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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clint 2002-05-07 12:04
I'm not runnning a virtual desktop manager. For testing purposes, I'm running nothing else in the background.
I just want to stress the point that the wallpaper does in fact behave that way. I've tested it every way I can think of. If I have a wallpaper selected through ultramon, it displays properly after I hit apply. But if I log off and back on, or switch user, and come back, the wallpaper is gone. Only a blue desktop remains. If I go back into the ultramon util, and make a change that gives me the apply button, I hit it and get my wallpaper back.
I've created a new wallpaper using the New Wallpaper button in ultramon. The bitmap it creates is in My Documents > My Wallpapers. One of the wallpapers I've created is called Rivendell. It has 3 Rivendell wallpapers from the LOTR website. When I select all 3 for the 3 monitors, and hit apply, it creates 2 files in the My Wallpapers folder. It creates a rivendell.bmp, and a rivendell.wallpaper. I copy the rivendell.bmp to a folder c:\wallpaper. I select (none) for wallpaper in the ultramon util. I select the rivendell.bmp in c:\wallpaper as my wallpaper in Display Properties > Desktop and Tile as the position. It works and never goes away.
Things I've noticed...
The extra wallpapers I create (rivendell, spiderman, etc.) all create .bmp and .wallpaper files. However, the .bmp file "disappears" when I log off and back on. I assume its being deleted somehow. This does not happen for the default.bmp file. But, even when I have default selected in the ultramon util, I still loose the wallpaper. The only time I don't loose the wallpaper is when I have (none) selected in ultramon, and select the wallpaper in Display Properties > Desktop.
This may sound like craziness or black voodoo, but I swear its the truth. I'd be happy to answer any question you have for me about my system.
-C
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clint 2002-05-07 12:35
I believe I've found the problem.
I keep a server in my house. All of my data is kept on the server, including my My Documents folder. I uninstalled ultramon, moved the My Documents folder to a local drive, reinstalled ultramon. It created a new My Wallpapers folder. I don't have the problem with this configuration.
Its interesting that the windows desktop display doesn't have a propelm with this. It could be that it locates the file using a unc name (\\server\share\filename) instead of a Drive\folder\file.
In any case, I now know why its happening. If you eventually get around solving that issue, thats cool, but I'm sure 99.9% of users don't keep their My Documents folder on a network drive.
Thanks for the help.
-C
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Christian Studer 2002-05-08 01:41
Here's what might have happened: you have a drive mapping to the My Documents share. UltraMon stores the path to the wallpaper directory using the drive mapping. When applying a wallpaper, the wallpaper will be stored using the drive mapping. When you log in the next time, Windows tries to load the wallpaper, but because the drive mapping hasn't been restored yet, fails to do so.
The solution: change the UltraMon wallpaper directories in the registry to use UNC paths instead of the drive mapping.
UltraMon stores the paths to the current user and all users wallpaper directories in the registry:
Current user: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Realtime Soft\UltraMon\Wallpaper, Wallpaper Directory
All users: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Realtime Soft\UltraMon\Wallpaper, All Users Wallpaper Directory
You can change these values as desired, the next time you open the wallpaper dialog UltraMon will list wallpapers from the directories specified in the registry.
Windows stores the current wallpaper under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop, Wallpaper.
Regarding the disappearing bmp files: UltraMon generates a bmp file every time you apply a wallpaper. When you change a wallpaper but don't apply it, UltraMon will delete the associated bmp file because it is no longer up to date.
To conserve space, you can always delete any bmp files except the one for the currently active wallpaper. All settings for the wallpaper are stored in the .wallpaper file, UltraMon will regenerate the bmp file when necessary.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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clint 2002-05-09 11:04
I tried the reg change. It didn't help. The idea about the UNC name doesn't hold water when you consider that I also loose the wallpaper when I switch users (where I stay logged on).
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Christian Studer 2002-05-09 11:15
When switching users, Windows will load the wallpaper for the new current user, and thus you would have the same problem if the wallpaper isn't specified with a UNC path.
After changing the UltraMon wallpaper directories to UNC paths, you'll need to open UltraMon > Wallpaper and apply the current wallpaper once. This will change the wallpaper filename stored by Windows to one using a UNC path.
Christian Studer - www.realtimesoft.com
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