You Are Your PC Screensaver!

Jan 19, 2004

WHO are you? What are you? Who the hell do you think you are? Do you know me? Do I know you?’

By Emmanuel Ssejjengo
Who are you? What are you? Who the hell do you think you are? Do you know me? Do I know you?’ The questions hit me hard and my pride skips a beat (or a bit). I look around the office to know who is actually asking. No one but I shudder for I must have crossed the wrong line, and someone is offended. Whenever I look at this screensaver, it ‘shouts’ at me. I shiver and get goose pimples.
By the time I am attended to, I can only stammer. And it is not an official visit but a friendly one. On asking about the threatening screensaver, This is what I am told about the person who uses the computer: “A young man in his mid twenties, very vibrant, proud, arrogant and does not give a damn about anyone.” He thinks he is untouchable although he is not the boss. Above all, he loves music.
Relax. There is no threat. It is only the character of the computer user. It is easy to tell the personality of a computer user by simply studying his/her screensaver.
Computer screensavers can be straightforward or cryptic, but first you have to understand them. For instance,one I saw which says: “Lie, lay, leave,” may not be clearly understood on first reading. But getting into a relationship with the owner of this screensaver will take you to the truth of the statement. A love relationship (or lust) for such a person goes through three stages: he lies to you (and you think he is Mr. Right, then he sleeps with you (that is to lay) and before you are ‘awake’, he is leaving you for good. And that is exactly what Johnnie (the owner off the computer) does.
Computer screensavers are the words, phrases, pictures or any other symbols that flash on PCs (personal computers) whenever they are left unattended to for some time.
And they do ‘speak’ out loud to whoever cares to look at them. At a data processing department in Kampala, I am greeted by one which says: “You are a joke.”
Expecting to find some one laughing behind my back, I turn and twist only to find serious working people. I have been reflecting on my life since then, and I still cannot tell whether I am actually a joke or not. Whoever thought of that screensaver must have a great sense of humour.
“Screensavers are a reflection of what is on people’s minds. Because people have a close attachment to particular attributes, they will want to feel the presence of such attributes,” says Dr. Vicki Owens, a lecturer of Psychology at Makerere University’s Institute of Psychology. “Eno mic,” is a clear indication of what is on the mind of whoever came up with it as a screensaver. Eno Mic, sung with libidinous energy by Ziggy D, has sexual overtones.
A lady working in a busy advertising company and has a photo of her son for a screensaver says: “I do not miss him so much when I am at work because I am always looking at his picture.”
Jokes aside, screensavers have serious messages. A research carried out at a data entry centre in Kampala showed that many screensavers were biblical quotes. like: “Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.”
A lecturer at Makerere University who preferred anonymity advises that “any manager who handles people cannot ignore those screensavers because they give the manager an insight into the character and feelings of his or her employees.”
“People who are extroverts are more likely to have flashy, colourful and strong screensavers. Introverts will have slow slides,” explains Dr. Vicki Owens. She further explains why the young and middle aged are more interested in screensavers. “Those who are only out of school are trying to define themselves and screensavers offer an opportunity for this.”
Observation has showed that men use pictures as screensavers more than their female counterparts. Owens explains that this is because men are more visually aroused than women.
Jeff Masaba felt guilty when questioned about his screensaver of a nude woman. “All other screensavers are boring,” he beat in and around the bush. “That is why so many people admire mine,” he added. His workmate had a different explanation.
“The guy (Masaba) is a perverted bachelor.”
Now you know what your screensaver says about you. You are your screensaver!
Ends

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});