Re-Enable Screensaver Transparency (float on desktop) Function in 8.1

Don't some of you hate the way the screensavers in 8.1 display over a solid background instead of floating over your desktop, as the Bubbles screensaver did in Windows 7? It may not be a big deal to many of you, and with today's monitors there's really no need to even have screensavers... But, even so, I'm one of those people who like them still. When I upgraded to 8, and then 8.1, I noticed that Microsoft had not only removed the much-loved Aero function from the new o.s., but they'd also disabled the see-through quality that some of the screensavers had, choosing instead to render them with solid non-see-through backgrounds! On their Help forums they inform us that the see-through feature was disabled "for safety reasons", whatever that means. Good old Microsoft, our Kindly Uncle, always trying to protect us from ourselves...

Yea. Whatever.

Anyway, here's a tutorial that I picked up from Windows Eight Forums, showing how to re-enable the see-through function for the Bubbles screensaver. Even though the tutorial is for Bubbles, it works just as well for the other screensavers that had the 'float on desktop' quality, as in Windows 7.

Bubbles screensaver Preview (my desktop):

Attachment 70159

Tip

Set your screensaver via your Personalization menu to 'None'. As you'll learn below, your screensaver is going to run from another location via Task Scheduler.

STEPS TO RESTORE BUBBLES SCREEN SAVER TO FLOAT
OVER DESKTOP BACKGROUND in WINDOWS 8.1 PRO


---Part 1---

1. Place Bubbles screen saver as a shortcut on your desktop.

2.Be sure to rename your shortcut on the desktop Bubbles, not the default 'Bubbles - Shortcut'.


---Part 2---

1. Copy the following lines into notepad:

Set OWS = CreateObject("Wscript.Shell")
OWS.Run "C:\Users\[your profile name]\Desktop\Bubbles.lnk"

2. Substitute your profile name without the brackets.

3. Save as Bubbles.vbs in a directory of your choice.


---Part 3---

1. Open Task Scheduler.

(Press your Windows key and begin typing Task Scheduler to search for it)

2. Highlight the TaskScheduler Library (do not choose any subdirectories).

3. At top menu, open Create Task.

4. At General Tab: Name your task: Bubbles

5. Describe it: Let bubbles screen saver float over desktop.

6. Put dot in: Run only when user is logged on.

7. Configure for: Windows 8.1

(Do not hit OK just yet, there is more to do.)

8. At Actions Tab, hit New...

9. Specify task: Start a Program.

10. Program/script: WScript.exe

11. Arguments: "C:\[path to your directory of choice without the brackets]\Bubbles.vbs"

12. Hit OK to save.

13. At Triggers Tab, hit New...

14. Begin the task: On idle (dropdown list).

15. Place a checkmark in: Enabled

16. Hit OK to save.

17. * * * At Conditions Tab: place a check mark in Start the task only if the computer is idle for: 1 minute

18. At Settings Tab: place a check mark in: Allow task to be run on demand.

19. Place a check mark in: Stop the task if it runs longer than: 3 days.

20. Place a check mark in: If the running task does not end when requested, force it to stop.

21. Leave drop down as: Do not start a new instance.

22. Hit OK to save it all and to list it in the Task Scheduler Library.


---Part 4---


1. Test it. Highlight your new task Bubbles in the library list.

2. At the lower right hand pane, hit Run. The bubbles should start floating right away.

3. End the test, exit Task Scheduler.


That's it, the task is ready to go and you have your Bubbles back as in Windows 7.

NOTE

It takes about 4 minutes of idle for Task Scheduler to start Bubbles. Don't worry if you sit there and wait, they will appear.

Click Here For The Original Eight Forums Thread (there are some useful tips in the comments/replies)

Tip

An easy way to copy the full path of any file or folder: Right-click on the file or folder while holding down the Shift key, then choose 'Copy as path' from the context-menu.

Tip

Create a new folder in a permanant directory, like say Program Data, and name it 'Screensaver' to place your screensaver (or screensaver shortcut) and VBS file in (make sure you get the paths entered correctly in both the .vbs file and in your Scheduled Task!). Thataway everything's nice and tidy. =)

As I previously stated, this system also works for other screensavers that are designed to float over the desktop (as in Windows 7). But not with screensavers that aren't designed to float over the desktop (be see-through). I personally have always liked a screensaver called "Hypnogenic Rain" (pictured below), so I use it instead. It's very cool, rendering your desktop with realistic-looking raindrop puddles. Download below. To apply it, just substitute HypnogenicRain instead of Bubbles in all of the steps above. And with this screensaver, there's no need to create a shortcut to it; just place the actual screensaver into the directory of your choice. Be sure to remember that it will be ran as 'HypnogenicRain.scr' instead of HypnogenicRain.lnk.

Hypnogenic Rain screensaver Preview (my 8.1 desktop):

Attachment 70160

Here's the Hypnogenic Rain screensaver for those of you that want it ----> Attachment 70161