The pipes can be done in solid colors or with a texture. The default texture is a red and white candy cane pattern, but you can also choose a texture. For example I created the red, white and blue barberpoll pattern below. When the texture is inserted in 3D Pipes the screen saver produces what you see at the right.

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I have created many textures with the Windows paint program that you can use in your 3D Pipes screen saver.

You can see four candy cane textures below. In addition to these I have two other pages, one with patriotic textures, and the other with several miscellaneous textures.

Patriotic Christmas

Or if you are simply tired of red and white candy canes and want to switch to

green and white or blue and white

Saving the textures

To use a texture, click on one of the links above, then save the web page.

The most simple thing you can do is save the web page to your desktop, that way it will be easy to find when you use it in the 3D Pipes program.

I save my images in my pictures, which is in my documents, which is in desktop. Or at least that is the way it is in my version of Windows.

Getting to the screen saver

To use the texture in 3D Pipes you will have to know how to change your screen saver. Windows has a vast variety of fun screen saver options, so if you have not learned how to do this yet, and you have some time to kill, it is a fun thing to play with. I will assume that you know nothing. Experts can simply skim through the following. On the other hand if this is too difficult for you I have an illustrated guide to get you to your Windows screen saver page.

First, click on a green rectangle with "start" on it. It is in the lower left hand corner of your screen.

A menu will pop up. Click on the picture in the upper left hand corner, just to the left of your name.

A page called user accounts will pop up. Click on "Change the computer theme," which is on the left hand side under the words "related tasks."

Another page pops up with the title "Display properties." Click on the screen saver tab at the top.

Once again, if you find these directions difficult you might want to check out the illustrated guide to changing your screen saver. All those pictures may make it easier.

Modify the Screen Saver

Once you are on the screen saver page you will have a choice of different types of screen savers under the picture of the computer to the left of the settings button. Choose 3D Pipes.

Then click on settings.

Once you are on the settings page, select textured as opposed to solid, and then click on choose texture.

If you have saved to my pictures, you will have to find the my pictures folder. On my computer it is under my documents that is a folder under desk top. Once you have found it click it a couple of times, or once and then click the open button near the lower right hand corner.

The file with your pictures will disappear and you will see the 3D Pipes settings page again. Click the OK button.

Then you will find yourself back on the screen saver page. Click preview to see if you like it, and ok to make it your screen saver. For the preview to work you have to make sure you do not move the mouse or hit any keys until you want to come out of preview.

Customizing the Texture with the Windows Paint program

With your paint program you can change the colors. Just start the paint program, open the file menu, and click on open. Then find the image file in my pictures, if you have saved it there. Using the pouring paint bucket tool you can easily change the colors. So you can have candy canes with what ever colors you want.

I had to go through a fair amount of trial and error to get these right, so if you want to play with candy cane patterns you might want to use mine and work from there.

Of course using your paint program you can create many other patterns that might make interesting textures.

As mentioned above there are other textures on other pages, patriotic and miscellaneous other textures that are not candy canes.. Currently I have three textures, one stripes, and two checks. Check they out.

These textures tend to work better if you use the elbow option on 3D Pipes. You will find it on the settings page. The textures add enough compexity without the added complexity of the ball option.

Security

Finally, let me address the issue of security. The textures on these pages were created by me. I know that I did not put a virus, or any type of spy ware, etc. in them, but why trust me. Sure these pages are part of a web site dedicated spreading the Catholic faith, but one has to be careful of people claiming to be religious.

Perhaps more importantly, the web site has been around for many years, you can confirm that by seaching for geocities.com/richleebruce at archive.org. They have material going back to 2002 on me. You might also note that this is a big web site, over half a mega byte, with many pages, all of which I wrote. I also have many links from many organizations.

You can also check to see that I am ranked at or near the top on Google for many word combinations, AM radio, AM radio reception, radio reception, religious statistics, Muslim population growth, and many more.

Furthermore you already have the textures on your computer, that is why you see them on the monitor, I do not believe there is any added danger to saving them. A standard way of dealing with viruses is to save them to the desktop and then scan with your virus scan before running it. So apparently the save does not increase the danger.

I hope that you enjoy these. If you wish you can leave a note in my guest book. See the link below.

I have another little project using paint, a virtual Christmas tree children can decorate. This is however pretty worthless because other people have done exactly the same thing much better than I have. The point on the web is always to be the best in some way.