Using Windows Dreamscene (with Extra Dreamscene Content)
Feb 14, 2007
There has been a lot of interest in the Windows Dreamscene Ultimate Extra, previously known as motion desktop, that allows you to use video files as your desktop wallpaper. This extra that started out as a rumor and finally into a product adds a great deal of "wow" to your desktop.
Earlier this year at CES 2007 when Bill Gates introduced this feature in the keynote I witnessed something that rarely happens to Microsoft. Right after the presenter turned on Windows Dreamscene and the static picture of a waterfall turned into a moving flowing waterfall the crowd responded with a level of excitement and applause that was greater than I ever heard at a Microsoft keynote. The attendees were truly excited and impressed with this little Vista add-on. To see a quick demo of Windows Dreamscene, check out my CES Dreamscene article here.
Windows Dreamscene has been released and users of Windows Vista Ultimate edition can begin to customize their desktops with this great Ultimate Extra. Follow the steps below to get Windows Dreamscene installed on your computer. Before you continue, make sure that you have Windows Vista Ultimate edition. Windows Dreamscene can not be downloaded and installed on any other version.
Click on the Start Menu and type in Windows Update and hit Enter.
Once Windows Update loads, click Check for Updates.
Under the Ultimate Extras section, check the Windows Dreamscene option and hit Install.
After Windows Dreamscene is installed you may need to reboot.
After a reboot, right click on your desktop and select Personalize.
Next, click Desktop Wallpaper.
Browse and select the video file you want to use and hit OK.
Your selected video file will now be displayed as your wallpaper.
Extra Windows Dreamscene Content Videos
After a short while you may become bored of the stock videos that come with Windows Dreamscene. Below are some sites that I use to download additional videos that I use as my Dreamscene wallpaper. Some of these sites offer free downloads while others are not. If you find a video you like keep in mind that you can always edit it to shorten it in Windows Movie Maker....
I'm new on this forum. I cannot see update for DreamScene Content Pack. Right now i got only one DreamScene video. When i look for Ultimate Extra updates it says that there are no more updates... I have not install the content pack... How can i get them? can anybody please send me ONLY those videos that are provided by Microsoft Content Pack? my email is: extreme [dot] aly [at] gmail [dot] com
Everything was rosy until I installed the PowerDVD to play a movie. It asked me to update which I did then it gave me an error message that dreamscene had been changed, although I had no dreamscene playing in the background at the time. The player came up with an error message that when I followed instructions from Cyberlink didn't go away. I decided to uninstall the player, and it took out the registry in some form for both of my disc drives as they no longer showed up in My Computer. I only knew of one solution which was to reinstall Vista, and probably a lot of you out there are now holding your heads, but I did.
All went well with new installation, all latest drivers, and Vista updates reinstalled and tried Powerdvd again - same problem. Dreamscene has changed, and an error code from player (I think it was 8004014, or something close). I then thought I would uninstall the graphics card drivers and try to reinstall them after player. When I did I noticed for the first time that Windows Updates hadn't offered me the Service Pack 2 Update nor any of the Dreamscene Contents Packs (My Windows cd is Service Pack 1). However on uninstalling the Graphics card they all suddenly appeared so I installed them again. After reinstalling graphics, and Powerdvd I still had the same issues as originally had. No use uninstalling as it takes out disc drives so went into Bios to change start up priority and did a clean install of Windows Vista after formatting drive. Totally clean install ? Well I think so, or as near as I know how. I then reinstalled all the drivers for the system as supplied except the graphics card which I downloaded from nVidia. I religously installed each and every Windows update individually in chronological order when it asked me, and it did not show me the Service Pack 2 update, nor did it offer me the Dreamscene Contents Packs 2/3/4. It did offer me the Dreamscene download and it comes with the 1 background option. I don't know if this book I am writing should be posted in here, but it seems to be general to me, and the question is how do I watch blu-ray movies, on a Vista Service Pack 2 OS, with all the extras such as Dreamscene I should have after spending the monies on a system that is not the highest of specs, but well up there - I think. Jeez not written that much in a long while.
I am having a problem running windows dreamscene. It is greyed out when i right click my desktop and if i go to the personalization menu I am able to select windows dreamscene but nothing happens. Does this have anything to do with my Nvidia card?
I have a problem with windows dreamscene. When I try to apply downloaded .wmv dreamscenes from sites such as dreamscene.org or and custom .wmv for that matter, it works but when I restore a minimized window and then if if i x out or go back to my desktop the dreamscene which is a custom .wmv is paused...when I right click to hit play dreamscene i cannot for it is already supposedly playing..and sometimes when apply a custom .wmv it experiences that problem and it will also sometimes cause explorer.exe to crash and then ask me to restart explorer.exe or find solution online?
Stardock has released a great add-on for Windows Dreamscene that allows you to use Stardock .Dream content files that have many advantages over ordinary Windows Dreamscene content.
According to Stardock, "Stardock's DeskScapes enriches and extends ordinary Dream files by allowing users to add dynamic content to their animated wallpapers. For example, have your Dreams change automatically based on the time of day or local weather. Deskscapes turns your Dream into something more!"
Click here to learn more about Stardock DeskScapes and download this add-on for free....
My vista (ultimate x64) is working perfectly, and only one thing bothers me.When I installed vista, and some programs (cc cleaner,winamp..), everything was fine during startup. But, when i downloaded Dreamscene from Windows update, now when desktop shows-the background is still (frozen), and the only thing I can click with mouse is taskbar, and icons on taskbar. Then, after one and a half, or two minutes, the circle on the mouse shows, like its loading something, the background start playing, and then everything works perfectly.
I was looking at programs that starts with windows, but nothing-those are the same programs that were before dreamscene (java, windows defender, roccat drivers, nvcpldaemon, nvmediacenter). When I uninstaled dreamscene, everything was fine again. But, since I want DS, is there a soultion? Is there a manual dreamscene instalation, so that I can try with that-without windows update? Or its not DS, its something else.
I have read the message about posting information, and although at work and pc is at home I will endeavour to try and furnish the relevant details. I would only consider myself average in the knowledge stakes of pc's. I understand how to follow instructions, but would never consider myself an analyst capable of modifying programmes in anyway. I have a relatively new pc, details below, that until last week I hadn't put completely to the test. I have a blu-ray reader/writer to play blu-ray DVD's on but only purchased a screen capable of HDCP last week, and that is when all the issues started. The system basics are :-......
I was ahappy user of dreamscene that worked well for a while then (after installin sp1 MAYBE???) i canno tuse it anymore as if i right click on desktop dreamscene is installed but not selectable (sama from control panel). I reinstall dreamscen but still same problem.
After downloading the last ultimate update the dreamscene option in the background menu disapeared. The option doesnt't exist anymore I have searched this site for the past 4 hours and can't find a solution or for that matter anyone else who has a similar problem.
Normally you can set only wmv and mpg video files as desktop background using DreamScene. You can howewer use ANY video file as a background it the following way:
1.download and install K-Lite Mega Codec Pack or a codec pack equivalent. The first benefit will be tat you can play back practically any kind of video file with your WMP11.
2. Rename the fi,e you want to use as desktop background .wmv or .mpg (To do this you have to uncheck "hide extensions of known file types" in your Fokder Options Menu)
3-Once you have changed the file extension, you'll find "Set as desktop background" in its context(right-click) menu.Set your background and enjoy! Use avi, mov, mkv or just any kind of file!
I used DreamScene Preview without any problems. I stopped using it for awhile and recently attempted to run it, only to find out that M$ crippled their final release. Preview worked great for me - I'd like to roll Dreamscene back to the functional version that I can use. I have the original .cab file for DreamScene Preview, and am capable of uninstalling the full version without any problems - is there any way to install the older version manually?
Supposedly, StarDock DreamScapes is a version of the Microsoft DreamScene. But how do I turn their Dream files into one that the MS version understands?
Have Vista Ultimate and am trying to set one of the dreams as my desktop. I have downloaded and installed all Ultimate upgrades (Dreamscene plus the dream packs) as well as the Stardock Deskscapes but I casn't get any of the installed dreams to work. I get an error message saying "Dream is not allowed" with no option of fixing it (or clue as to why it's not allowed). Anyone have a similar problem or a solution?
I have vista x86 sp2. I get 'explorer has stopped working' error when trying to set dreamscene as background. after that error comes, explorer restarts and my background is still old(without dreamscene).
I currently have a problem with running dreamscene, it slows my computer down when running it, as soon as I open up other windows. Also moving windows around the desktop is noticebly slower, along with the fact dreamscene stutters. I currently use a Nvidia Geforce 7300se which is intergrated graphics.
I was looking to upgrade to a cheap ATI HD3450 graphics card to solve this problem. Does anyone here know if the HD3450 will speed up dreamscene to its optimal level along with using and opening up windows without slow downs?
I double click on a video clip, instead of opening windows media player 11 and playing it, vista ultimate sets it as the desktop background. I've even noticed it treats MP3's differently suddenly - when you try to open them, it displays the "Open With" box where you can select a program. Even after a selection, it doesn't stick and happens every time. The files have the WMP logo on them and everything I've checked has it as the default media player. The files WILL play if you right-click and "Open With". It just started doing this a few hours ago, media player got put on the back burner somehow.
It really just recently started doing this and all the info I've found elsewhere pointed to Roxio; which I did have on my computer. But after removal (a very thorough removal at that),
I've just downloaded and installed the latest Dreamscene pack via Windows Update. When I try and load one of the dreamscene backgrounds explorer crashes. Does anyone have any ideas how to fix this problem?
1. Integrate Dreamscene to Aero -Most home users like Vista Ultimate because of Ultimate Extras, Complete PC Backup and Restore, and BitLocker. Dreamscene happens to be a popular feature of Ultimate, but if that's all a user wants, it's not very wise to spend 100$ more than Home Premium or Business just to get Extras. There is also an Extra that lets you play Poker, but there are 3rd party software/websites that can let you do that.
2. Screensaver Fine-tuning -I've seen it before: you have to play with some values in the registry to change some settings in some Windows screensavers, namely Ribbons, Bubbles, Mystify. However, for the inexperienced user who just wants bigger bubbles or thinner ribbons, it's quite hard to follow instructions that assume the reader is an experienced computer user.
3. Where's Luna? -Some Vista users just miss the Luna theme that XP came with. Personally, I miss it as well, and I doubt that most users would like to buy WindowsBlinds just to get XP look on Vista. The Luna theme should be available for download. Maybe as an "Optional" update in Windows Update. Or, as a download in the Microsoft website.
4. Change color in Windows Vista Basic Theme -The generic light blue color scheme that the Vista Basic theme has isn't very attractive. There should be options to change the frame color so that computers unable to run the Vista Standard or Aero theme can also enjoy the customizable interface. It can also help laptops by not making it a hassle to switch between Aero/Standard and Basic, which uses less GPU and CPU power. The "ColorizationColor" registry entry is deleted whenever you switch to Basic through Personalization. It saves the user time to get that perfect shade of Green, Violet, or Yellow that was lost due to someone changing the theme to Vista Basic. If possible, on computers capable of running the Vista Standard or Aero theme, the "ColorizationColor" registry entry should not be deleted, so that the user will not have to fine-tune sliders to get that perfect shade.
There must have been a Windows update or something because now I have a big white balloon that comes up in my system tray, every time I load up the computer. This has only been coming up in the last few weeks or so, which makes me think it is a Windows update. The balloon shows a yellow triangle with a black exclamation mark inside. It states, "Windows has blocked some startup programmes. Windows blocks programs that require permission to run when Windows starts. Click to view blocked programs."
I did this and it showed me the programmes I always have a on the start menu anyway, with a sign saying 'permitted' for each one, whereas I know this already. Then there are other, new programs, I have never seen before, under the banner 'Windows Defender' with signs saying 'Not Yet Classified.' Eventually, in the same boot up session, I can eventually get rid of the balloon. After that it shows in the system tray, with all my other items already there, as a square turquoise icon with a red circle and a red line across it diagonally, on a white background and this sits on the bottom left of the turquoise icon.
When I try and ask for help in Windows help&support it gives me the reply 1)Topic not found and then 2)This content under construction. When I look under the programs I have on my computer no where does it say Windows Help and Support.
I've just installed Windows Vista (32bit) Ultimate on a second machine in my home network, and the content for on-line services is very different on them both. The regional settings for both of these machines are the same (Netherlands), but the content is very different. How can I add/change the on-line regional content for media center? I've already looked into adding .mcl files into the AppData directory, but this isn't the solution that I'm looking for.
Running Vista 64. Got 2Gb of memory already. And since I'm in the process of ordering the 32 bit version of Vista for my wifes PC i'm thinking of getting another 2GB. Would another 2Gb of memory work to my advantage?
I have a problem that i have encountered with a dual boot machine.First i will give the details of my computer:
ECS NF650iSLIT-A motherboard Intel Core 2 CPU E6400@2.13ghz 2gb Ram (2xGeil Ultra 1gb DDR2 PC6400) 2xNvidia GeForce 8500GT graphics cards both with 1gb on board) 700w jeantech modular PSU Sound Blaster X-Fi Xtreme Audio Sound card Windows XP Home on 120gb HDD PATA Windows Vista Home Premium on 320gb HDD SATA
This all works fine including in SLi mode.All the latest drivers are installed and both O/S's are up to date.My problem started when i purchased another pair of Geil Ultras (same spec as above) to make my total ram 4gb.I installed the ramas per instructions,then powered up the computer.Vista is my default O/S and it refused to boot up.Got past the P.O.S.T screens then got a black screen with no computer activity whatsoever.Powered off with power button turned off at mains waited a moment or two then powered up again,At the choose O/S screen chose XP,got as far as the windows XP logo screen and it just locked up on that screen.Turned off again,removed the new ram and tested on my sons machine to find they are working perfectley.
Is it possible to change the Vista Sidebar's width or have it auto-hide? I haven't found a way to change the width, but would like to (assuming any gadgets can use the extra width. I also am interested in having the Sidebar auto-hide. I found a gadget somewhere that claimed it could add auto-hide. I was suspicious as I didn't think that Sidebar would let a mere gadget change the bar's appearance. Sidebar claimed my download was corrupt. I didn't attempt another download. Because of these issues, I looked into other sidebars, but the only one I liked that worked was Google Desktop which won't install. I have Vista 64-bit SP1 and GD requires a 32-bit OS.
I have a vista laptop with a 60g HDD which is partitioned as C: 20g d: 40g. I have been having space issues with the c: drive and would like to know if i would be able to transfer some of the 40g from d: to c:?
