It’s the most wonderful time of the year and I’m sure you have spent countless hours decorating your house this holiday season. You’ve spent time putting up a tree and other decorations inside your home and many of you may have even taken the extra time to decorate you’re the outside of your house this year so even your neighbors can enjoy a little holiday spirit. But what if you are REALLY into the Christmas spirit and want to do a little more? Did you know there are things you can do to decorate your desktop this holiday season?
That’s right. There are many different things you can do to add a little festive cheer to your desktop computer so it isn’t quite so cold and dark during this holiday season. In most cases, these tweaks only take a few minutes to do and can really dress up your desktop for the holiday season. Let’s take a few minutes today to try to get into the right mood for the holidays by decorating your desktop.
So Why Do It?
For many of you I’m sure this sounds like a complete waste of time. After all, why should you decorate your computer? I understand what you mean. For some decorating a computer can really seem like a waste of time. However, I would argue that it isn’t any more of a waste that decorating your home for the holidays. There are other benefits as well. I can help improve your mood while you are working this holiday season and can add a little cheer to your life as you stare at your computer screen while you work. There’s nothing wrong with a little Christmas cheer now is there?
What You Should Avoid
When decorating your desktop, you have a little more room to work with to add decorations both inside and out. That being said, you should never place anything on your desktop that would cover the vents and block the air flow. This could cause your computer to overheat and cost you quite a bit of money during a time when most of us are already spending way more than we should.
You also need to be careful what you download. There are some apps out there that sound like a good idea, but actually contain viruses and other malware to really put a damper on your holidays. I don’t know why these scrooges do that, but like so many things it is something we just have to deal with in the computer world.
Let’s Get Decorating
Now that you know what you need to avoid, it is time to start the decorating process. There are many things you can do to your case and even your monitor as well as things you can add to the desktop of your computer to really make it festive this year. Most of these only take a few minutes to do and are a great way to dress up not only your computer, but also your office as well.
Christmas Lights
The most obvious choice to add to your desktop and even your monitor is a string of Christmas lights. Just like your home, you can add them around the borders of your computer and even your monitor to really brighten up your desk this year. Just make sure you avoid the moving lights as these can be quite distracting especially if you are trying to get any real work done.
Case Lights
Some cases come with lighting. If they do, why not setup them to a good holiday color if you can and just let them run adding a bit of festive cheer to the room. If you don’t have any of these, you can try adding them if you want but you can always just stick with a regular string of Christmas lights like we talked about above.
Other Decorations
In addition to lights, you could always try adding a small wreath to the front of your desktop or maybe some holly or other “set around” decorations. If you do go with this option, just make sure you don’t block access to needed ports or any vents so your machine doesn’t overheat and you can still use it to get your work done without anything getting in the way.
Christmas Music
Why not add a few Christmas songs to your music player on your desktop and let me play quietly in the background while you use your desktop? Create a playlist and set it to loop if you want so it continues to play all day long while you are working. Remember, you can always stop it and start it again later if you do need a little quiet time while you work, but it is a great way to lift your mood and get you into the Christmas spirit.
Wallpaper
Perhaps the easiest thing you could do to add a little Christmas cheer to your desktop is wallpaper. Chances are you love the wallpaper on your desktop and you may have even spent hours picking it out. But live a little this holiday season and change it out for something that is a little more in the holiday spirit. There are many great free sites out there that provide this type of wallpaper for your computer. They are easy to find and download and it can be done in just a few short minutes.
To help speed up the process, I have collected ten different holiday themed wallpapers that you can enjoy. Click the picture below to download them individually or download the zip file link you will find below the pictures to get the entire set.
DesktopComputerNinja – Holiday Wallpaper
Try Adding a New Theme
Since Windows 7, you have easily been able to download and install Windows themes that alter how your desktop looks. With just the click of a few buttons, you can completely change the wallpaper, taskbar and even the icons. There are many great Christmas themes out there that you can install. One of my personal favorites can be found over at winaero.com. This theme is compatible with Windows 7, Windows 8 and even Windows 10 and allows you to quickly convert your computer into a Christmas themed wonderland that you can enjoy. The best part is, once the holiday season is finished, you can easily switch back to something else by just selecting a different theme so there is no hassle to take down your computer decorations.
Add Gadgets
Another great way to add a little cheer to your desktop is by adding gadgets to your desktop. These little apps will show graphics like that of a Christmas tree on your computer screen and can really make a big difference when you are tweaking your computer for the holiday season. Again our friends at winaero.com have come through with some great gadgets you can add to your desktop for the holidays. Just remember that the more you add the more memory that will be taken up, so make sure you use them sparingly so you don’t hurt your machine’s performance.
Desktop Christmas Lights
Another great way to add some cheer to your desktop is by adding your very own twinkling lights. I’m not talking about a physical string this time, but an app that places lights on your desktop. These are very easy to use and come with many different features to adjust from how they blink to even the colors that they are. You can spend all kinds of time customizing these things if you wish but the out of the box install should do it for most people. Visit xmasfun.com to find these lights plus other extras such as the classic Elf Bowling and even a small desktop snowball fight.
Add a Screensaver
A screensaver is a great way to keep your computer festive even when you aren’t using it. If your machine is on and you are away, you can set the screensaver to come on and continue providing holiday cheer for anyone who passes by. There are many great screensavers out there for you get that are perfect for the holidays. Some of my favorites can be found at newfreescreensavers.com. They have quite the collection of screensavers for all times of the year and their holiday selection is simply top notch. Best of all, they are free to download and use anytime.
Final Thoughts
I have to admit, I love the holiday season, and it is my belief that it is the little things that really make the holidays something special. Just taking a few minutes to decorate your desktop computer can really add a lot to your holiday experience and help you get in the mood for the upcoming holiday festivities. So what are you waiting for? Break out those lights and start those downloads today so you can add a little Christmas spirit to your desktop. What is it that they say? ‘Tis the season. Am I right?
What do you think? Do you like the idea of decorating your desktop this holiday season or do you think it’s a complete waste of time. Let me know in the comments below and…
