Theme Clock-7 for Windows

Style 7's Theme Clock-7 is a free screensaver that displays an excellent representation of the good-old analog wall clock that has served so many classrooms, waiting rooms, and hallways for so long. It has second-hand settings, a date display, and a text feature, but few other options. Its appeal is its standardized, black-and-white, old-school look, a masterpiece of industrial design that has never been bettered. It's familiar to nearly everyone who can tell time by a clock face, and those who can't can use it to learn how. It's clearly visible across most rooms on most computer displays.

Theme Clock-7 installs itself in the screensaver list; we merely had to select it to configure its options and preview its appearance. Under its Settings, we could show the clock's logo, the current date, or a text message we could enter in a text field. A check box let us choose to display the day of the week, and we could also turn the second hand off or make it run backward, giving a countdown effect. We could click a button to make it our default screensaver, but that's about it, beyond the typical OK, About, and Home page buttons. We made our selections and clicked OK, and then clicked Preview in the Screen Saver Settings. The clock face appeared on a white background, with the two-letter date abbreviation displayed much like on a wristwatch face, while our text message appeared beneath the center. The graphics are a bit rasterized up close but bold and clear at a distance, which is what this screensaver is clearly designed for; though it's a bit overwhelming when you're sitting in front of it, Theme Clock-7 outdoes any digital display at a distance.

It'd be nice to be able to change the font and color of the text and date display, and a red (or red-tipped) second hand might add a nice touch, too. But we'd stop before the temptation to add actual bells and whistles sets in. If you want a desktop alarm clock, they're available. This screensaver has a simple job that it does well.