CNET Editors' review
Except for minor stability issues, this is the standard against which all holiday screensavers should be measured. Holiday Lights lets you string bulbs all around your screen, even on top of the program windows if you'd like. You can customize madly--bulbs for holidays year-round, MIDI songs, blinking patterns--and save your settings as a desktop theme. The screensaver options offer just as much choice. To change the sequence of bulbs, you just drag and drop from a list into border boxes. Clicking on the system-tray icon lets you close, uninstall, or open the preferences window. The quality of the MIDI music is even cheesier than the candy-colored spinning dreidel bulbs, and we noticed the bulbs occasionally disappearing from our screen. The animation also freezes for a second when a new song starts. Considering that Holiday Lights provides genuinely festive and extensively customizable fun throughout the year, it earns its keep.
Publisher's Description
From Tiger Technologies:
Holiday Lights decorates your computer for the holidays. It shows a string of colorful lights around the edge of your screen and plays background music if you wish. You can choose from more than 40 bulbs suitable for any season, including standard Christmas tree lights, chili peppers, stockings, holly, snowmen, happy faces, Valentine's Day hearts, Thanksgiving turkeys, and Halloween jack-o'-lanterns. You have the option to add more bulbs and music. The colorful lights can flash on your desktop while you work, act as a screensaver, or both.
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All versions:
4.3 starsout of 64 votes
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Current version:
4.3 starsout of 64 votes
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My rating:
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"Retro Holiday Themes"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
I am a registered owner of this software going back to the Mac OS 9 days (1990s). Out of curiosity, I came looking for Tiger's Holiday Light's software & discovered that it is discontinued and Mac OS X & Windows 7 support are not on the way per the company website:
http://support.tigertech.net/old-software
Installing the app in Windows 7 resulted in the MIDI sound working but not the accompanying graphics. The screen saver function previewed successfully but the Holiday bulbs did not render on top of the windows or the desktop.
I gave up thinking that the software was too old. But while searching my PC for some holiday themed files I happened to change the Windows 7 stock desktop wall paper to an old GIF image file, right-clicking to apply to desktop. With that simple step up popped the familiar bulbs around the desktop as well as the GIF I had selected for the background. So the "pro" in this case is that Holiday Lights appears compatible with Windows 7 Ultimate (64 bit install).Cons
Obviously this is dated software and the MIDI sound files and graphics are very basic and somewhat cheesy. However, it is all fun in the spirit of the season. (You've got to be a kid again at least once a year!)
Summary
Good software for the seasonal-theme lover. Includes music, screen saver and desktop bulb graphics for many holidays throughout the year.
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"I like very much"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
I like the way it makes my desktop look very nice
Cons
You have to pay to use everything
Summary
I will be telling my family and friend about this.
Merry Christmas everyone. -
"It works with Windows Vista!!!"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
To my surprise, it works great with Vista! I took a chance on 07/02/2011 and downloaded it, opened it and the bulbs started flashing on my desktop! True independence day gift!
Cons
There are no cons!
Summary
I used to use it on my Windows 98 computer years ago and was waiting for an upgrade. After reading that there would be NO upgrade, I just took the chance. The worst that could happen is that it would not open, but itI DID! My computer is alive again. Try it. It may work for you as well. Heck, it may work with Windows 7. What do you have to lose?
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"Cute, I liked it."
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
Very customizable.
Cons
Wish i could add my own music in the free version. Thinking about buying it. Looks like it would also be cool for a bunch of other holidays, too!
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"Lots of fun getting into the holiday spirit"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
lots of options to play with and you can add your own music, which is cool.
Cons
fairly expensive, for a toy
Summary
I like this product alot because I feel like I am getting into the holiday season by remembering to decorate everything, even my computer.
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"Build your own screen saver with a classic"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
Only your imagination limits how you can build a screen saver using the bulb files at Tiger Technology's web site. It may be old school but it's fun. There is a wide enough variety of bulbs you can have a different screen saver for every day.
Cons
Tiger Technology will be making this available for much longer so get your bulbs while you can. No new bulb files are being added.
Summary
Tiger Technology will not release the code for this program and will withdraw it soon. If you have the know how build a 21st Century Holiday Lights and see if you can sell it to as many fans as the original program.
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"Interfered with other programs"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
Nothing at all
Cons
The way in which it integrates
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"Very nice software, makes my desktop look very nice."
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
It has the ability to make the space around your desktop very pretty, and it has something for all the holidays. Combined with a holiday background and the holiday lights set for that holiday it makes for a very pretty screen.
Cons
Wish it had more music. Sort of hard to understand for a novice computer user.
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"Nice but should cost less"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
The light display is a welcome addition to the desktop and really helps you get into the spirit of the season.
Cons
The music leaves much to be desired. Some of the songs I didn't associate with the season at all.
Summary
I really enjoyed the lights for a couple of days but I don't like to be constantly asked to buy a product.
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"Great and festive"
Version: Holiday Lights 5.4
Pros
I like it very much
Cons
Screen saver does not spread over my 3 screens
Summary
Fun thing for Xmas spirit
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