The Glasto 2010 Countdown Timer

mikeb · September 23, 2009

UPDATE: Shiny new versions for 2011 coming soon(ish)

Some posts in this thread have got a bit screwed due to forum changes since the original posts were made so I've had to delete various links and images to satisfy the new rules. However, if you already have the 2010 Desktop Countdown Timer files installed on your system or want to use your own background piccy then you can get a quicky update for 2011 from /index.php?showtopic=150298">THIS THREAD. I'll start a shiny new 2011 thread for first-timers just as soon as I have all the various stuff updated correctly

UPDATE: Now also able to be used on Vista

UPDATE: An alternative Brothers Bar background piccy is now available

/index.php?s=&showtopic=132612&view=findpost&p=3091392">HERE

As T-Day looms ever closer on the horizon has been and gone and the prospect of "yay, I have tickets and now there's only [insert seemingly random number here] of days/sleeps to go" over-excitement thread(s) starting to dominate the entire first page of threads is here, as me old mate Mr.Baden-Powell would say - be prepared ! There's no need to be a complete dumbo and get the counting all wrong when the solution to all your countdown timer needs is but a mere clicky or two away.

As always, there is the shiny new(ish) common or garden Countdown Timer Webpage HERE and it's usually available [Martini] any time, any place, anywhere [/Martini] plus I've finally got around to updating all the shinier and newer "now with added piccy" desktop versions as well. So if you fancy a rather jolly nice desktop something similar to the example screen grabs below coming to a PC near you then this is what you need to do:

NOTE 1: The Countdown Timer Webpage(s) should work just fine when using any old browser on any old Operating System but you do need to have javascript enabled. If you use a direct link to the Countdown Timer Webpage for any reason then please DO NOT set it to automatically refresh the page at regular intervals. This wastes shedloads of my bandwidth and it is totally unnecessary in any case because the very first copy of the webpage you download will continue to update itself until you shut down your PC. Setting it as your Home Page and randomly reloading it several times a day is just fine but reloading it once every second/minute/hour is highly likely to get your IP totally banned pretty d@mn soon ! If you do need to frequently reload the webpage for some reason or other then simply save a copy on your PC and use that instead.

NOTE 2: The Desktop Countdown Timer only works particularly well on WinXP but it will also work reasonably well on Win98 and WinME. Unfortunately, M$ have intentionally removed the Active Desktop functionality from all Windoze versions after WinXP so it can no longer be used directly like it can with earlier Windoze versions However, there is now a proven way of running it on Vista and hopefully any subsequent versions of Windoze as well The clicky linkies to eFests definitely wont work on Vista and they may not work on Win98 or WinME either.

NOTE 3: The 2010 Desktop Countdown Timer uses exactly the same piccy as was used in 2009 so if you've already got the right sized piccy you just need to grab a copy of the PLAIN BACKGROUND version then unzip the files to the same place as last year (overwriting any existing files) to update the timer. See also item ( 5 ) of the instructions below.

NOTE 4: If you want to upgrade from an earlier version of the 2010 Desktop Countdown Timer to the even shinier and newer latest version, you also just need to grab a copy of the PLAIN BACKGROUND version then unzip the files to the same place as before (overwriting any existing files) to do so. See also item ( 5 ) of the instructions below.

( 1 ) Decide which ONE of the desktops you would like according to your screen size, grab a copy of the ZIP file and unzip the contents to somewhere convenient on your PC. The same basic piccy is used for all versions so there is absolutely no need to download more than one of them, just grab the most appropriate version for your particular screen size.

( 2 ) No matter what your screen size might be, if you want to use a totally different piccy altogether then that's no problemo. Just grab a copy of the PLAIN BACKGROUND version then bung any appropriate sized piccy named "background.jpg" with the unzipped files and voila ... your piccy will appear as if by magic instead of the plain background. The piccy really needs to be exactly same size in pixels as your screen but it can be bigger if you aren't able to crop it to be the right size. If your piccy is wider than the screen, the right hand side will get cropped off. If it's taller then the bottom will get cropped off. However, if it's smaller then it all gets very messy indeed because the piccy gets tiled to fill the screen and it will probably look very cr@p.

( 3 ) You can now quite simply set the unzipped "Glasto 2010 desktop countdown.htm" as your desktop using the Display applet in Control Panel and arrange your Task Bar and Desktop Icons to be as you want them. This works just fine on WinXP with no problems at all and it also works reasonably well on Win98/WinME BUT rather sadly, you can't do this directly on Vista (or anything newer) because M$ have intentionally removed Active Desktop from all Windoze versions after WinXP. For Vista and later versions of Windoze, a 3rd party application is required to replicate the missing Active Desktop functionality. I'm not in any way responsible for writing this application it is simply a copy of THIS but it does seem to work just fine and it doesn't appear to have any nasty side-effects.

( 4 ) There are several ways of setting this up of course and it also depends on which particular version of Windoze you're running as well so follow the most appropriate method from those below depending on your particular system.

( 4A ) The simple method for Win98/ME/XP

The easiest way is to just set the unzipped "Glasto 2010 desktop countdown.htm" as your Wallpaper. If you don't know how to change your Wallpaper then here is a (hopefully correct) quicky guide that should point you in the right kinda direction regardless of which particular version of Windoze you're actually using:

( a ) Select CONTROL PANEL from the SETTINGS option on START MENU

( b ) Double click on the DISPLAY applet when CONTROL PANEL appears

( c ) Click on the BACKGROUND or DESKTOP tab and look for the list of Wallpapers

( d ) SELECT or BROWSE to the unzipped file "......countdown.htm"

( e ) Click APPLY to set the Countdown Timer as your Wallpaper

( f ) If asked to "Enable Active Desktop" then click YES

( g ) Keep clicking OK until the Display applet closes.

( h ) Enjoy your shiny new desktop with Glasto piccy and countdown !

( 4B ) The alternative method for Win98

An alternative method for setting a webpage as your desktop might produce slightly better results in addition to possibly allowing the eFests shortcuts to work as they should do as well. This is the (hopefully correct) quicky guide for Win98 ONLY:

( a ) Select CONTROL PANEL from the SETTINGS option on START MENU

( b ) Double click on the DISPLAY applet when CONTROL PANEL appears

( c ) Click on the WEB tab

( d ) Ensure "View Active Desktop as webpage" option is checked

( e ) Click on NEW then BROWSE to the unzipped files and select "...... countdown.htm"

( f ) Keep clicking OK until the Display applet closes.

( g ) A small resizable window should now have opened on your desktop

( h ) You have to move and resize this window manually using the mouse until it covers your desktop

( i ) Enjoy your shiny new desktop with Glasto piccy and countdown !

( 4C ) The alternative method for WinME

An alternative method for setting a webpage as your desktop might produce slightly better results in addition to possibly allowing the eFests shortcuts to work as they should do as well. This is the (hopefully correct) quicky guide for WinME ONLY:

( a ) Select CONTROL PANEL from the SETTINGS option on START MENU

( b ) Double click on the DISPLAY applet when CONTROL PANEL appears

( c ) Click on the WEB tab

( d ) Ensure "View Active Desktop as webpage" option is checked

( e ) Click on NEW then BROWSE to the unzipped files and select "......countdown.htm"

( f ) Keep clicking OK until the Display applet closes.

( g ) A small resizable window should now have opened on your desktop

( h ) Hover mouse in the top left corner until the control bar appears

( i ) Click the DOWN ARROW and select COVER DESKTOP from the options

( j ) Enjoy your shiny new desktop with Glasto piccy and countdown !

( 4D ) The alternative method for WinXP

An alternative method for setting a webpage as your desktop might produce slightly better results in addition to possibly allowing the eFests shortcuts to work as they should do as well. This is the (hopefully correct) quicky guide for WinXP ONLY:

( a ) Select CONTROL PANEL from the SETTINGS option on START MENU

( b ) Double click on the DISPLAY applet when CONTROL PANEL appears

( c ) Click on the DESKTOP tab and then the CUSTOMISE DESKTOP button

( d ) Click on the WEB tab and then the NEW button

( e ) BROWSE to the unzipped files and select "......countdown.htm"

( f ) Keep clicking OK until the Display applet closes.

( g ) A small resizable window should now have opened on your desktop

( h ) Hover mouse in the top left corner until the control bar appears

( i ) Click the DOWN ARROW and select COVER DESKTOP [##] from the options

( j ) Enjoy your shiny new desktop with Glasto piccy and countdown !

[##] If you select SPLIT DESKTOP rather than COVER DESKTOP then you can easily use one of the 'normal' sized desktops on a widescreen display if you want to. For example, if your screen is is say 1066x600 then use the 800x600full version and select SPLIT DESKTOP. The counter will appear on the right-hand side of your screen with your standard desktop on the left-hand side. All you need to do then is tweak the width of the counter window by dragging the left-hand side border with the mouse until the horizontal scroll bar just disappears.

( 4E ) The only method for Vista or later versions of Windoze

I don't personally have access to anything running Vista so I can't provide definitive step-by-step instructions here but this explains what's required. Make sure that you fully understand EXACTLY what to do BEFORE starting out. If you're not quite sure about something or have any questions at all then please post something in this thread and no doubt someone will be able to provide you with an answer.

( a ) Grab a copy of the zipfile of the extra stuff required for Vista from

HERE

http://www.twowheels.force9.co.uk/GLASTOCOUNT/vista%20active%20desktop.zip' rel="external nofollow">

then unzip it to the same place as you unzipped the Desktop Countdown Timer zipfile.

( b ) For security reasons, SCAN THE DIRECTORY/FOLDER WITH A FULLY UP-TO-DATE VIRUS SCANNER JUST IN CASE because executable files are now involved.

( c ) Change your Wallpaper to the unzipped file "backgroundv.bmp" and select "center" rather than tiled, stretched or whatevered.

( d ) Run the unzipped 3rd party application "AveDesktopSites.exe" but note that it minimises into the System Tray when you run it. Left click on the extra icon (a lightbulb/balloon shaped thingy) that appears in the System Tray to open the application.

( e ) Click on the "+" button.

( f ) Edit the default URL to be the FULL PATH to the unzipped Countdown Timer page

e.g. C:\My Documents\Countdown\glasto 2010 desktop countdown.htm

( g ) Set the screen position/size to TOP = 0, LEFT = 0, WIDTH = your screen width in pixels, HEIGHT = your screen height in pixels.

( h ) Set the UPDATE INTERVAL to zero seconds.

( i ) Check the IS LIVE ITEM box.

( j ) Click APPLY to save the settings and you should get a small preview image of the Desktop Countdown then click HIDE to send the application back to the system tray. If you don't see the preview image then there is something wrong with the path to the Countdown Timer that you entered so you will need to correct it.

( k ) After you've clicked HIDE, you can edit any of the settings at any time by left clicking on the icon in the System Tray to open the application and then highlighting the Countdown Timer entry in the sites list. Don't forget to click APPLY and then HIDE if you've changed something because closing the window will terminate the application.

( l ) If you like the results and want to continue using the Desktop Countdown Timer then you will need to run the 3rd party application every single time you start your PC. To do this automatically, simply add a shortcut in your Startup Folder to it BUT only do this when you are 100% happy with everything and it's all working as it should do.

( m ) Enjoy your shiny new desktop with Glasto piccy and countdown !

( 5 ) If you add/change the background piccy or upgrade the countdown timer at any time after setting it as your desktop then you will probably need to do the following before any changes take effect.

( 5A ) On Win98/ME/XP, go back to the standard desktop and then select the webpage desktop again to ensure that the background is updated. I don't think "synchronise" actually works at all with local files, it's just another one of those Windoze features I guess :lol: Rebooting ought to have the desired effect as well but I'm not certain about that.

( 5B ) On Vista and later versions of Windoze, close and restart the 3rd party application used to replicate the missing Active Desktop functionality. Rebooting ought to have the desired effect as well but I'm not certain about that.

( 6 ) To stop using the Desktop Countdown Timer and/or remove it completely from your system you will need to do the following.

( 6a ) On win98/ME/XP all you need to do is select an alternative standard Wallpaper instead, disable Active Desktop or uncheck the "View Active Desktop as Webpage" option depending on exactly how you set it up and which particular version of Windoze you're actually using. Once you have stopped using it, the relevant entry in the Wallpaper or Active Desktop items list can be deleted as can all of the files that you downloaded and unzipped to somewhere convenient on your system.

( 6b ) On Vista and later versions of Windoze

Again, I don't personally have access to anything running Vista so I can't provide definitive step-by-step instructions here but this explains what's required. Make sure that you fully understand EXACTLY what to do BEFORE starting out. If you're not quite sure about something or have any questions at all then please post something in this thread and no doubt someone will be able to provide you with an answer.

( a ) Close the 3rd party application.

( b ) Change your Wallpaper to one of the standard Wallpapers.

( c ) Delete the shortcut to the 3rd party application in your Startup Folder if you added one.

( d ) Delete everything that you downloaded and unzipped to somewhere convenient on your system.

( e ) Delete the file "avedesktopsites.ini" which will be wherever Vista stores Application Data. You can use Windoze Search to find it if you don't know exactly where to look.

Plain background for any size screen, using a custom piccy or updating any 2009 or old 2010 version

Grab ZIP file from HERE to get something like this depending on your actual screen size:

Or featuring absolutely any piccy you would like to use instead of just a simple plain background. Just add your piccy (which must be the right size for your screen and be named "background.jpg") to the same directory/folder as the "glasto 2010 desktop countdown.htm" file.

Piccy background for 800x600 screen