When Microsoft did away with a whole bunch of screen savers in Windows 7, it really ticked off a lot of people – yours truly included.
Most ‘full’ desktop Linux distributions come bundled with at least 50 screen savers (and even over 100, depending on distro). Some are great and some not-so great, so here are my picks for the top 20 Linux screen savers.
Fiberlamp
Oldie but goodie, Firberlamp looks exactly like one of those lamps you’d buy in a novelty store. It’s pleasing, not in-your-face and doesn’t use much CPU resource to animate.
LCD Scrub
This is what we call a ‘productive’ screen saver as it’s actually a utility. This is nothing but while lines on a black background to "scrub" the display to prevent stuck LCD pixels.
Fireworkx
This is one of the few screen savers I’ve seen that actually looks like real fireworks. It’s a bit CPU intensive, but really cool looking.
Phospor
Whether you’re an old-school or new-school PC user, you’ll like this one. It shows system information in old green-screen monitor style.
SpeedMine
SpeedMine is a fast-animated screen saver that makes it look like you’re racing down a mine that never ends. Some may call this a ‘rude’ screen saver because of how it can literally make your head start jutting back and forth just by looking at it – so use with caution.
Apple2
Another one for the old-school users, Apple2 simulates the display of an old Apple II computer, complete with skewed text at top/bottom to simulate the curves of those old tube monitors.
Want to see more?
There are plenty.
XScreenSaver Pack is available now and works in both Linux and Mac OS X.
For Linux users, you should not need to download it at all. It will either already be installed or will be available from your package manager of choice.
What’s your favorite Linux screen saver? (Remember: It’s helpful to post a download link if the screen saver is not included with most distros for whatever reason.)
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