WimpWall

Windows allows a great deal of customization options, and can even automatically rotate pictures on the background so you never get bored. You might not find this tool to your liking, case in which you might be tempted to look for alternatives. One suitable example here is WimpWall, which might just make the cut.

One of the application’s main advantages is the lack of a setup process to take your time and effort. This makes it just right to carry around on a thumb drive along with picture folders to have a personal background changer at hand, regardless of the computer you’re working on. No harm is done to the target PC, because registry entries are not modified in the process.

The application starts off in the folder selection section. Adding them isn’t possible through a drag and drop operation, but the built-in browse dialog isn’t difficult to use. More than that, you’re free to add multiple directories so you don’t spend time to move all pictures inside a single folder. Note that subdirectories are included by default.

Supported formats include only JPG and BMP images, but are enough to meet most demands. Size isn’t really an issue. In this regard, there’s an option which can automatically tile pictures if size values are smaller than a custom value which is specified in pixels.

You can manually define the fill option, which can be centered, stretch to fill, and tile. It’s possible to have a countdown timer visible. A button helps you instantly change the picture if it’s already been used. Items in target folders are picked at random. For more comfort, a built-in option allows you to install a startup component so the application is ready when reaching the desktop.

All things considered, we can state that WimpWall is a nifty alternative to the default wallpaper changer, mostly because it doesn’t require installation. You can add different types of pictures found inside multiple directories, with a neat variety of options to make it suit your style.