CD Cover Art Desktop by Mark Prigoff (1280x1024px)
Click onto above image for enlarged view.
For source files, click here.
Desktops . . .
They say "A picture is worth a thousand words." . . . and they are absolutely correct.
From the "Dawn of Man" when cave-dwellers drew rather crude images on the cave walls
of their homes, to the hieroglyphics of the Egyptians and those of many other ancient civilizations,
to the present-day icons and symbols of the modern world, we have often made use of simple images
to convey complex thoughts and provide universal communication.
Even with today's computer technology, we tend to rely on the images of our desktop icons to not only provide us with a
shortcut to either a program or file, but to also tell us something about that object through the design of that icon in itself.
For example, an icon (or shortcut) to a folder actually graphically looks like a file folder in real life, and other icons
visually relay information to the user about what lies ahead at the "target" to which that icon leads us,
even before we click onto it. To some degree, it tends to make us a little less literate in technology, but at the
same time, it transcends the language barriers of the printed word and makes for a universal system of
communication in terms of convention among many computer users who speak in various different languages.
This is part of the design of a "graphically-oriented interface" between the computer and the end user.
Microsoft ® Windows ® is such a graphical interface which uses not only the concept of a
"window" to display either a dialog, file, document, application, or graphic, but also organizes
such information in the form of something both logical in concept, and visual in real life.
This is called the "Desktop" of your computer. It is not only a logical concept of practicality,
but also a brilliant one in terms of organizing the information and content of your computer, whether at home
or in the office. Since computers are used both in the home and the office, the concept of a desktop is simply
just that, "the physical and logical place where you do your work on your computer." The ease or
difficulty you may have in finding your way either to or from your desktop really depends upon how well you
have your desktop organized. Of course, the same applies in real life, too.
To make life easier, you can always create new "folders" for either files or icons on your desktop,
and keep it well-organized and easy to work on, just as you would do on an actual desktop in either your home or office.
Generally, if you have trouble finding your "desktop," chances are that your desktop is either a bit
disorganized or you have something open over the desktop which prevents you from seeing it. But this is
totally up to the user to manage according to one's own preferences.
Microsoft ® Windows ® provides a variety of choices of "desktops" to choose from.
It can either be just a simple background color, or an image provided as part of the Operating System (OS), or even one of
your own choosing or design. With the popularity of digital imaging, it is fun to design your own desktop using
digital photos from your camera, the web, or other sources. If you are interested in creating one for your own
computer, or having one made for you, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, remember that your desktop can be viewed in different sizes according to the display settings of your
monitor and video/graphics card. This varies from system to system, and depends upon the resolution of your
monitor and graphics adapter. But there are some standard sizes to consider. You will find these in the
"Screen Area" of your display settings of your desktop or "Display" in your
"Control Panel". As graphic adapters have become a bit more sophisticated, as well as applications,
menus and toolbars, the need to view your deskop at a larger screen area has become more evident. If you
"zoom out" in view from your desktop, you see more on the screen but it is the same effect as
zooming-out in view by backing away from the view of your desktop. It has once been described as if you were
viewing a football field from a blimp flying overhead. The further away the blimp is from the field, the more you see
of the field below, but everything on the field appears to be smaller since you are further away from it. The same
effect happens when you "zoom-out" with a camera lens, that is, you see more in the field of view, but
everything is smaller in size to the naked eye.
Here are some standard sizes for desktops or display screen areas, measured in pixels.
Your ideal screen area size ratio may vary from these, especially with laptop or extended flat panel screen displays:
- 640 x 480 (Windows 3.1/95...)
- 800 x 600 (Windows 98 and above)
- 1024 x 768 (ideal for graphics and full view of menus and toolbars, for Windows 98/ME/2000/NT/XP, etc.)
- 1152 x 864 (high-resolution, especially for graphics)
- 1280 x 1024 (same as above)
- 1440 x 900 (widescreen HD LCD flat panel monitors)
Note: Your actual display settings may vary from those listed above. Please check with the specifications of your
graphics adapter and your monitor specifications before switching to another screen size.
Second, you can "stretch a smaller image to fit your screen but this is also proportionate to the
dimensions of the original image and screen size ratios. Sometimes, the image is out of proportion to the size of
the screen, but that can usually be modified through various photo-editing techniques.
I created some "desktops" using a variety of digital images and photo-editing techniques using Adobe
Photoshop ™. I selected images I collected of three popular recording artists: Lara Fabian, Laura Pausini
and Marta Sanchez (all at a screen area size of 1024 x 768 pixels). I have also designed custom desktops using
similar techniques from either jpegs or other graphic images and enhancing them accordingly. Windows 98 usually prefers
to use bitmaps for "desktops" or as background "wallpaper," but you can also use jpegs (.jpg) files
for this purpose for "active desktops" which enable web content to be displayed. I created these montages using
Photoshop, and then saved them both as bitmaps (.bmp) and jpegs for desktop use. A new addition to this page is a desktop
I created for Chrissi Poland. I am now creating more to fit my new HP w19b widescreen monitor which is designed for 1440 x 900 pixels in resolution, such as the desktop below I made of Kelly Clarkson. [Click onto the thumbnail images below for a larger-sized view of these desktops in jpeg format and close them to return to this page.]
Realm + Conquest by Mark Prigoff (1440 x 900)
(Based on the movie prop from Michael Clayton)
Anna Tatangelo by Mark Prigoff (1440 x 900)
Kelly Clarkson by Mark Prigoff (1440 x 900)
Chrissi Poland by Mark Prigoff
Lara Fabian by Mark Prigoff
Laura Pausini by Mark Prigoff
Marta Sanchez by Mark Prigoff
Note: Lara Fabian, Laura Pausini and Marta Sanchez have all sung different versions of the song
"Vivo Per Lei" with Andrea Bocelli in three different languages besides the Italian lyrics sung by Andrea.
Lara Fabian sings a French lyric (Je vie pour elle), Laura Pausini sings it in Italian (Vivo per lei), and Marta sings the same duet in
Spanish, (Vivo por ella) on the Bocelli "Romanza" CD. You can also see and hear this version of this song
on the "Andrea Bocelli - A Night in Tuscany" DVD. All three vocalists have quite an extensive discography
and have many recordings in a variety of languages, especially Lara Fabian who sings quite comfortably in English,
French, Italian and Spanish. Lara also sang the end title theme "The Dream Within" from the movie
Final Fantasy:The Spirits Within, as well as, the main theme from Steven Spielberg's, A.I. Artificial Intelligence,
"For Always" in duet with Josh Groban. For more information about these and other talented artists, please
visit their websites:
If you would like to have a desktop custom-designed for you, please contact me.
Mark Prigoff
Digital Jazz Productions
March 2009
